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The manor itself has a unique history. The house was originally built by James Alexander Gordon, and was located near Cupar, Saskatchewan. There is an exact replica of Rose Bush Manor in Valley Field, Quebec as Rose Bush Acres was built based upon plans James Gordon borrowed from a cousin in Quebec.
The house was built on site in 1916. Lumber was shipped from B.C. and Eastern Canada. The precision woodwork in the house was carved by Mr. Fergusson, a contractor from Abernathy.
The many has many intriguing and interesting facts associated with it. This information was provided by Eunice Gordon, a daughter-in-law to James and the eldest person to live in the house. The following are only a few of many:
The present original stained-glass window in the foyer contains a thistle to represent the Scottish ancestry of James and a shamrock to represent the Irish ancestry of Annabel, James' wife.
The dining room has an original Tiffany lamp with amber glass and brass trim.
The oak dining table was 54 inches wide and sat 12 people. White Irish linen table cloths were used for all meals, even when feeding hired men directly from the field.
The hired man and the hired girl lived in the house with the family.
Rose Bush Acres Heritage Resort Co-operative is a group of over 75 members who have come together to transform an eighty-year-old home into a bed and breakfast. Future plans at Rose Bush Acres are for the development of an old country farmyard which will encompass a barn (for barn dances), a church (for old country-style weddings) and a yard that will depict the original beauty of the land that was so attractive to homesteaders.
The initial conception of this project was facilitated by Colleen and Randy Haussecker, and Martin and June Draude. But, it was not until the fall of 1992 that their plans finally began to take shape with the formation of the Co-operative.
CBC television ran a program about a man named Emil Decorby who had purchased the home from Cupar and had moved it to Fort Qu'Appelle, overlooking Echo Lake. Mr. Decorby had wanted to turn the home into a bed and breakfast but did not have enough resources available to him to finish the project. In the meantime, the beautiful home had fallen to vandals.
After seeing the program, the Hausseckers and the Draudes went down to Fort Qu'Appelle to view the home. It became apparent to them that the project was much larger than the two families could handle and if the house was not moved soon, it would be rendered worthless by the vandals.
A series of organizational meetings followed the initial viewing. The meetings were held to organize a group of people willing to invest both time and money in the project. Within two weeks, there were enough people interested and committed to the project, that their combined resources were enough to move the home to its present location.
The initial group of 34 members has now grown to 75 members, with each committed to contributing resources that will make this project a successful one. The Rose Bush Acres Heritage Co-operative Ltd., was legally christened in the spring of 1993, and is already being used as a model for community ventures throughout the province.
Rose Bush Acres has many facilities and attractions. They are as follows:
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