MacMillan House

Description of the Historic Place

The MacMillan House is a large two and-a-half storey Craftsman influenced home that was built in 1912. The house is located at 302 Saskatchewan Crescent West on a large lot in the neighbourhood of Nutana. The building lies across from two other historic residences – the Hopkins House and the Hoeschen House.

Heritage Value

The MacMillan House exhibits influences of the Craftsman architectural design, a style that was dominant for smaller homes between 1905 and 1920. The home was the residence of Frank MacMillan, one of Saskatoon’s most influential citizens during the formative years of the city. In 1913, MacMillan constructed the Avenue Building (200-220 3rd Avenue South) and the MacMillan Building (135 21st Street East) in the city’s downtown.

Born in Chicago, Frank MacMillan settled in Saskatoon in 1909 and was an early Saskatoon merchant, alderman, mayor, and Member of Parliament. He was elected as a member of parliament for the Conservative party in 1930.  Frank MacMillan served on the Commons' Railway Committee and was instrumental in persuading the Federal government to contribute to the construction of the Broadway Bridge as a relief project in the 1930s. MacMillan was also president of the Saskatoon Club between 1944 and 1945, president of the Board of Trade, Kiwanis Club president, and president of the Conservative Association of Saskatchewan, the Parks Association, the Boy Scouts Association, the Red Cross and the Navy League. 

The MacMillan House features a front gabled roof with two gabled dormers, a two-storey hexagonal turret on its east side and two massive brick chimneys with decorative chimney-pots. The open verandah wraps around the length of the residence’s east side and extends back to meet an enclosed porch. The main level’s exterior features dark-brown bricks with stone sills and lintels, while the upper levels are stuccoed and paneled with 1/2-timbering. The original windows on the upper two levels have diamond-lattice muntins in the upper sash windows.

Along with some of the other historic homes in the area, the MacMillan House continues to add visual interest and character to the streetscape of Saskatchewan Crescent West. 

Source: City of Saskatoon Built Heritage Database

Character Defining Elements

Key elements which contribute to the heritage value of this historic resource include:

• Those features that relate to the building’s historical and cultural significance such as its prominent location along Spadina Crescent West and its large scale appearance; and
• Its architectural style with craftsman influences, evident in: its brick and stucco façade with timbering, the front gabled roof, dormers and turret, its verandah with brick piers and square columns, the diamond lattice muntins on the upper windows, and the brick chimneys with decorative chimney pots.