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After a two-year-long renovation that amounted to a rebuild (with considerable controversy and delays) Yellowknife’s oldest restaurant and historic icon, the “Wildcat Café” has finally opened for it’s 2013 summer season.
The video below documents the opening this afternoon.
Wildcat Café – HistoricPlaces.ca
“… The Wildcat Café is one of the earliest permanent buildings in the City of Yellowknife. The building’s structure and style are an excellent, well-preserved example of its time period. Built in 1937-1938 by prominent pioneers Willie Wiley and Smokey Stout, the Wildcat is a reminder of pioneering days for Yellowknifers, and all Canadians alike. A replica of the Wildcat Café is on permanent display at the Canadian Museum of Civilization’s Canada Hall, where it serves as an icon of early industrial development in Canada’s northwest.
The Wildcat was a gathering place for the founders of Yellowknife: prospectors, miners and pilots. It was the hub of Yellowknife’s social activity. Prospectors wheeled and dealed, community members held meetings and banquets, while visitors came and went by floatplane. Throughout the years, the Wildcat was used as Yellowknife’s first ice cream parlour and Chinese restaurant.
The Wildcat is a well-loved community landmark, and a symbol of Yellowknife heritage that nearly every visitor recognizes. From its prominent location in historic Old Town, the Wildcat creates and encourages a pioneering spirit, which is still alive in Yellowknife today.
Source: City of Yellowknife By-Law 3635….” More here
Photo Caption: The Wildcat Café in Old Town Yellowknife, [movie ad on wall for “My Friend Flicka”] Credit: Busse/NWT Archives/N-1979-052-4573
Photo Caption: Wildcat Café, Yellowknife. [There are several identifications for the people. The man on left has been identified as pilot Myron Olson; the man on the right has been identified as either “Old Henry Lafferty” or “Sam”] Credit: Busse/NWT Archives/N-1979-052-4491
North of 60° — Visions of the New North: “…The log building in the Canada Hall is a replica of the Café as it looked in the late 1970s, when it was renovated and reopened after many years of disuse. … View a Quicktime VR panoramic movie of the Wildcat Café interior …”
Upgrades to historical Wildcat Café complete 1 year late – New foundation makes renovation costs go over budget (CBCNorth @CBCNorth)
Wildcat Café $74,000 over-budget: No windows, floor, door but still expected to open on schedule (Northern News Services December 1, 2011)
Asbestos delays Wildcat Café: An unexpected surprise during the restoration of the Wildcat Café has further delayed the restaurant’s opening, pushing it to mid-July. (Northern News Services June 8, 2012)
Stolen range hood final straw for Wildcat: Mayor concedes cafe will likely not open this season (Northern News Services Aug 3, 2012)
Daughter of the Wildcat: After John Mainland “Smokey” Stout built the Wildcat Café in 1937 with his brother-in-law Willy Wylie, Stout moved to Kingston, Ont., and got married, then had a child named Bonnie and raised her in Whitehorse. Bonnie Brown is now 64 and has come to Yellowknife for the first time to see her dad’s café (Northern News Services July 29, 2009)
Wildcat Café Restaurant Reviews, Yellowknife, Canada (TripAdvisor)
Wildcat Café in Yellowknife, Canada (Lonely Planet)
Wildcat Café – Yellowknife (Urbanspoon)
The Wildcat Café: rebirth process photos from June 2011 (Fran Hurcomb Photography)
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