In 1929, the Buchans Mining Company converted one of its ore storage sheds into a natural ice rink. Since that day, hockey became a very popular sport in Buchans. The ice surface was small. It may have been regulation length, but it was only 59 feet wide.
As you entered by the main door of the rink, there were two sheds, one on each side. The one on the left was used to store hockey sticks and paint for the ice. A small ticket office was located under the wooden stands. This office contained the public address system used during hockey games or skating. The large wooden stands were situated in the west end of the rink and were capable of seating a large number of fans.
After one walked under the stands, he or she would turn left and walk along the end boards of the rink, then turn right to go upstairs where there were small stands all along the side. This section was railed off and most people would watch the games leaning over the rail. The reserved section was down in the east end of the rink and contained six to eight rows of stands. The scoreboard was also located in this section. It advertised MacDonald’s cigarettes on the board. You had to have a reserve ticket to get in this section and it was used mostly by the mining company officials.
On the bottom of the stairs, a long hall ran the whole length of the rink. People could watch the game looking over the boards. The team benches and penalty box were located in a walled off area in the middle of the rink. Just across from this area were two dressing rooms and an equipment room. At the end of the corridor stood a canteen that served great hot dogs. The building didn’t have any running water, and an outdoor toilet was located in the far end.
