On this day in 1975, one of Edmonton's most influential philanthropists was being honoured for contributions to the Citadel Theatre.
It isn't hyperbole to say Sandy Auld Mactaggart changed the shape of Edmonton.
Born to a wealthy family in Scotland, Mactaggart first came to Canada at 11 years old when his family evacuated the United Kingdom in the late 1930s due to fears of a war brewing in Europe. Mactaggart attended school near Peterborough, Ontario, before he moved to the United States for high school and eventually attended Harvard, where he studied architecture and business.
In 1952, Mactaggart and Jean de La Bruyere, his dormmate and business partner, moved to Edmonton, sensing opportunity in Alberta's still-new oil industry. The original plan was to open a restaurant. However, they instead combined their surnames and created a property development company called Maclab Enterprises. The business was slow initially but picked up as the '50s and '60s saw rapid growth in Edmonton's suburbs and exurbs.
The profits allowed Mactaggart to indulge in his passions for art, adventure, and academics. Mactaggart was a dedicated patron of the arts, offering both his time and fortune to build Edmonton's cultural institutions. He was one of the co-founders of the Citadel Theatre, and one of the driving forces behind the Edmonton Art Gallery. Mactaggart and his wife, Cécile, also built one of the most extensive foreign collections of Chinese art and clothing. The collection, valued at more than $37 million, was eventually donated to the University of Alberta.
Mactaggart sought adventure. His wealth allowed him to indulge in racing cars, sailing, and aviation. According to some, he was one of the first hot-air balloonists in the country, back when you couldn't legally bring them into Canada. Instead, Mactaggart secretly assembled his own balloon, buying the parts piecemeal to bypass the regulations. His first flight ended when he had to leap from the balloon to avoid a fiery death when it hit a power line. And no, that didn't stop him from ballooning again.
Mactaggart was also a tireless advocate for universities and spoke regularly about how they were a vital part of a city's character. Over the decades, the Mactaggarts donated around $60 million to the University of Alberta and worked to secure millions more in additional donations and government funding. He served on the university's board of governors for a decade in the '80s and became its chancellor from 1990 to 1994, where he worked to build stronger ties and communication between the university and community leaders.
The Mactaggart's also made two large gifts of land to the university. The first was 40 hectares in Whitemud Creek, which is now the Mactaggart Nature Sanctuary. The second was in 2010, when they donated their $23 million mansion before leaving Edmonton.
Sandy Mactaggart passed away in 2017, having returned to his native Scotland in his final year. His time in Edmonton remains apparent in many ways: The southside neighbourhood that bears his name, the institutions he helped build, and the donations he made to the city's largest university. A few years ago, the Mactaggarts' donated mansion narrowly escaped demolition after it was deemed too expensive for the U of A to maintain. The fate of the home is still uncertain, but there was a proposal floated last fall to turn it into a Nordic spa.
This clipping was found on Vintage Edmonton, a daily look at Edmonton's history from armchair archivist @revRecluse of @VintageEdmonton.