Early Skyscrapers in Canada

[balletomane]

I've been compiling a list of all early skyscrapers in Canada built during the "First Great Age" (i.e. those built from 1900-1918) although I'm sure I've missed some. The list includes all buildings over 37 metres, but does not include government buildings like City Halls and Legislatures, factory and warehouse buildings, grand railway hotels or religious buildings.

Montreal


http://wikimapia.org/7655570/fr/%C3%...minion-Express
Edifice Dominion Express (1912) 49 m


https://imtl.org/montreal/building/N...-Insurance.php
New York Life Insurance Building (1888 - considered by some to be Canada's first skyscraper) 46 m


https://imtl.org/montreal/building/E...que-Scotia.php
Eastern Townships Bank Building (1909) 45 m


https://www.spacelist.ca/listings/17...avenue_viger_o
425 Viger Ouest (1910) 45 m


https://imtl.org/montreal/building/E...nt-jacques.php
Hotel Le Saint James/Merchant's Bank (1875, additional floors in 1899/1900) 44 m


http://www.patrimoine-culturel.gouv....n#.XZTJ_0ZKjIU
Edifice McGill (1912) 43 m


https://imtl.org/edifices/Southam.php
Edifice Southam (1910) 42 m


https://imtl.org/montreal/building/E...reign_Bank.php
Edifice Sovereign Bank (1905) 41 m


https://imtl.org/montreal/building/E...an-Express.php
Edifice Canadian Express (1906) 41 m


https://imtl.org/montreal/building/E...haughnessy.php
Edifice Shaughnessy (1912) 41 m


https://imtl.org/montreal/building/E...Sauvegarde.php
Edifice La Sauvegarde (1914) 40 m


https://www.imtl.org/montreal/buildi...s-Building.php
New Birks Building (1910) 39 m


https://imtl.org/montreal/building/Edifice-Duluth.php
Edifice Duluth (1912) 39 m


https://imtl.org/montreal/building/Edifice-Unity.php
Edifice Unity (1912) 39 m


https://imtl.org/montreal/building/Edifice-Lewis.php
Edifice Lewis (1913) 39 m


https://imtl.org/montreal/image.php?id=4774
Edifice Drummond (1915) 39 m


https://imtl.org/montreal/building/E...Versailles.php
Edifice Versailles (1916) 39 m

Toronto


https://www.flickr.com/photos/57156785@N02/7609064352
Royal Bank Building (1915) 90 m


https://www.flickr.com/photos/57156785@N02/11108930955
Canadian Pacific Building (1913) 85 m


https://www.blogto.com/city/2016/11/...er_in_toronto/
Trader's Bank Building (1906) 60 m


http://www.urbandb.com/canada/ontari...l#.XZTm_EZKjIU
302 Bay Street (1917) 56 m


http://www.urbandb.com/canada/ontari.../#.XZToGEZKjIU
Dynamic Building (1910) 41 m


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_Building_(Toronto)
Temple Building (1896, demolished 1970) 37 m

Vancouver


en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_Tower
Sun Tower (1912) 82 m


https://equitablerealestate.ca/vancouver-block/
Vancouver Block (1912) 65 m


https://www.emporis.com/buildings/11...ncouver-canada
Standard Building (1912) 52 m


http://www.vancouversun.com/news/van...250/story.html
Birks Building (1913, demolished 1974) 48 m


http://blog.gryphonliving.com/2018/0...nion-building/
Dominion Building (1910) 45 m


https://pci-group.com/PCIprojects/credit-foncier/
Credit Foncier Building (1913) 41 m


https://equitablerealestate.ca/rogers-building/
Rogers Building (1911) 39 m


https://www.vancouverheritagefoundat...-vancouver-bc/
London Building (1912) 39 m


https://vancouver.skyrisecities.com/...carved-granite
Seymour Building (1920, construction started in 1912 but was delayed due to WW1) 39 m


https://www.vancouverheritagefoundat...-vancouver-bc/
Holden (Tellier) Building (1911) 37 m

Winnipeg


http://archiseek.com/2010/1912-union...ipeg-manitoba/
National Bank (Union Trust) Building (1913) 50 m


http://www.virtual.heritagewinnipeg....eNum=%2004-010
Childs (McArthur) Building (1909, demolished 1988) 49 m


http://www.mhs.mb.ca/docs/sites/unionbankbuilding.shtml
Union Bank (Royal) Tower (1904) 46 m


https://www.flickr.com/photos/bryanscott/2616437973/
Electric Railway Chambers (1912) 45 m


http://www.mhs.mb.ca/docs/sites/bankofhamilton.shtml
Bank of Hamilton (1918) 44 m


https://www.flickr.com/photos/morrismulvey/8715600005
Confederation Life Building (1912) 44 m


https://mccor.ca/portfolio/office-bu...uilding-paris/
Paris Building (1917) 42 m


https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/532761830891866342/
Grain Exchange Building (1908) 42 m


http://winnipeglovehate.com/2008/07/...ay-building-2/
Lindsay Building (1911) 39 m

Other Cities


https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calga...ders-1.3581079
Southam Building, Calgary (1913, demolished 1972) 40 m


https://www.thespec.com/living-story...nnaught-hotel/
Royal Connaught Hotel, Hamilton (1916) 42 m


https://www.british-immigrants-in-mo..._hamilton.html
Bank of Hamilton, Hamilton (1905, demolished) 40 m


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:A...lding_1913.jpg
McCallum Hill Building, Regina (1913, demolished 1982) 37 m

[Calgarian]

The list of demolished grand old buildings in Calgary would be quite depressing, especially considering what replaced most of them.

[Chadillaccc]

The Southam Building was a tragic loss, especially for the garbage that replaced it. Here's a better view...





Thankfully, Calgary is also still home to...

Fairmont Palliser Hotel - 1914 - 55 meters


https://www.aeonstonetile.com/instal...iar-calgary-2/



The Lancaster Building - 1918 - 40 meters





Calgary Public Building - 42 meters


http://www.mbeng.ca/portfolio/calgary-public-building/




And a special mention to the Grain Exchange Building, built in 1910 at 30 meters, one of the first buildings in Alberta with an elevator.


https://www.loopnet.com/Listing/815-...ry-AB/6540483/

[SignalHillHiker]

Our only contender would likely be the Supreme Court of Newfoundland - first built in 1730 but the current building (on that same site) was built in 1901. Not sure if it's tall enough?

Supreme Court Building, St. John's by Eric Harrison, on Flickr

[Rico Rommheim]

A few from Montreal that were forgotten:

Canada Life building: 1895. 8 floors and 40m roof height. The first highrise in Canada with a steel frame.


Windsor Station /CP Headquarters: 1916. 69m and 15 floors.


Ritz-Carleton Hotel 10 floors 38. 1912.


Linton Apartments 1908. 10 floors 40m.



Windsor hotel (annex) 40m 9 floors 1906.


Guardian Building. 36m 9 floors 1902.



There are many more 130 footers. By 1931 Montreal would have approximately 80 buildings of 40m or more.

Montreal had a height limit of 40m until 1922.

[Darkoshvilli]

Calgary was building taller than Montreal in 1915. Lmao

[Rico Rommheim]

Originally Posted by Darkoshvilli

Calgary was building taller than Montreal in 1915. Lmao

Pretty much every city was.

[Dr Awesomesauce]

Proper skyscrapers! Love it!

[jonny24]

Originally Posted by Chadillaccc

And a special mention to the Grain Exchange Building, built in 1910 at 30 meters, one of the first buildings in Alberta with an elevator.

Lol

[giallo]

A couple more for Vancouver:

The Royal Bank building is an overlooked, but awesome one.

Royal Bank Building, Vancouver by Steven Ballegeer, on Flickr



And, of course, how could we forget the Marine Building.

[balletomane]

^ Lots of beautiful early skyscrapers in Canada built in the 1920's and in the very early 1930's. I find it funny how Winnipeg has a nice collection of "First Great Age" early skyscrapers yet none from the 1920's while Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Hamilton and Quebec City have some.


http://winnipegdowntownplaces.blogsp...-building.html

Construction started on the first Richardson Building only a few weeks before Black Tuesday in 1929, it was put on-hold and then eventually cancelled. The building was supposed to be about 90 metres in height.

[le calmar]

We have a good collection of highrises from the early 20th century in Canada, but the heights were modest compared to what was being built in the US.

New York City built the Woolworth Building in 1912. Height: 241 m.


https://media-cdn.sygictraveldata.com

[WhipperSnapper]

For sure. The US built 241 metre towers all over the place at the turn of the century.

I do agree. Bigger country built bigger buildings.

[_Citizen_Dane_]

Edmonton only ever had four 'skyscrapers' constructed prior to the Second World War, although they were all more stout than those in Canada's larger cities.

The 1911-1915 Tegler Building was the city's first true skyscraper, standing at 28 meters, and was demolished in 1982 in a tragic turn of events. The Bank of Montreal had ultimately purchased it, and strong armed City Council through blackmail and threats to get them to rescind a planned heritage designation, over the objections of the public at large.

https://www.edmontonsarchitecturalhe...gler-building/

The 1912-15 McLeod Building stands at 35 meters tall. It's a designated Municipal and Provincial Historic Resource, and is Alberta's best example of Chicago School architecture. Interestingly, it's a near copy of Spokane's Paulsen Building; its namesake, Alderman Kenneth McLeod, was so wooed by it he put in an order with the same architect for a twin. Allegedly its footings were designed to allow for another 50 storeys to be built in the future.

https://www.edmontonsarchitecturalhe...leod-building/

The 1912-13 Canadian Pacific Railway Building stood at approximately 25 meters. It was supposedly Western Canada's first steel-reinforced concrete building, and was initially planned to stand around 40 meters. It was demolished in 1992 despite the protests of heritage advocates; its ornate ground floor reliefs and columns were bastardized and grafted onto its stout two storey replacement.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/lac-bac/18360612256

The 1912-13 Agency Building stood around 28 meters, and was purported to be Canada's skinniest 'skyscraper,' with its width of only 25 feet. It was demolished in 1972.

https://www.edmontonsarchitecturalhe...ency-building/

An honourable mention also goes to the 1926 Woodward's Department Store, which after going through an expansion in 1940 stood at roughly 25 meters. It was demolished in 1974 to make way for Woodward's Edmonton Centre Mall.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/woodhead/25746584396/

[ScreamingViking]

Delete... posted building was past the "first great age"

[Metro-One]

Wow, Edmonton only had a handful of such towers and decided to demolish all but one? I would say relatively Edmonton has suffered the worst fate in this regard for any Canadian city?

[hipster duck]

It's a bit utilitarian, but the 10-storey 1916 wing of Peterborough's Quaker Oats factory counts:



Today:



It actually replaced a nearly-identical building from 1902 that burned down in a fire.

[Andy6]

Originally Posted by WhipperSnapper

For sure. The US built 241 metre towers all over the place at the turn of the century.

I do agree. Bigger country built bigger buildings.

It's anachronistic to assume that everyone wanted skyscrapers (or at least huge ones like these). They were considered by many to be a regrettable example of American vulgarity -- the emphasis of planners of the time was on harmony and proportion, with maximum building height being determined as a multiple of the width of the street, not by the desire of promoters or tycoons to one-up each other. More practical concerns included the loss of light and overwhelmed sewerage systems leading to the spread of disease. This type of thinking began to change, particularly in the West where U.S. cultural influence was stronger, but there were never any corporate clients that would have been able or willing to sponsor Chicago-size buildings.

[Andy6]

Originally Posted by hipster duck

It's a bit utilitarian, but the 10-storey 1916 wing of Peterborough's Quaker Oats factory counts:.

In my postcard collection I have a lot of Ontario factories, some of which were really enormous. For Peterborough, I have Quaker Oats, General Electric and De Laval Dairy Supply Co. -- all vast complexes but not skyscrapers, obviously. Almost every town had some sort of factory. Maybe a thread will be in order someday.

[J.OT13]

Ottawa has a few, mostly on the corner of Sussex and Rideau and down Sparks Street. Many more were lost during the blitz of the 50s, 60s and 70s.

Transportation Building, 1916. Named for its location across the street of the then Union Station. It served as the "temporary" City Hall between 1931 and 1958 when our second City Hall burnt down. Today, it hoses one of the entrances of Rideau Station.

Here it is in 1962, three years after the streetcars were removed.


https://www.flickr.com/photos/rdb466/23778776170

Recent image with subway entrance on the corner.


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transp...lding_-_03.jpg


http://gmld.ca/portfolio/cf-rideau-centre/

And here's one with the Transportation on the right and the Plaza Building on the left, another early skyscraper. Little information is available on this one, but it was designed by W.E. Nofke, one of Ottawa's most prolific architects of the first half of the 20th century, and built somewhere between 1905 and 1920.


http://www.pastottawa.com/comparison...king-east/225/