Merchants Bank of Halifax, Grand Forks, BC Branch(-)
Bridge Street & First Street, Grand Forks, BC, Canada
Commercial, Bank [2 floors, upper floor: 6 bedrooms]; brick and stone; composite

Client: Merchants Bank of Halifax
Architect: E. Maxwell

Description: The Merchants Bank of Halifax, now called the Royal Bank (596) was founded in Halifax in 1864 and federally chartered in 1869. The bank established an agency in Bermuda in the 1880s and in Montreal in 1887. By 1900, the bank had branches in nine different provinces in Canada, as well as in the United States. The name was changed to the Royal Bank of Canada in 1901, and the head office was moved from Halifax to Montreal in 1907. The building designed by Edward Maxwell in Grand Forks, British Columbia, is a two-storey block, and has a sandstone façade resting on a limestone base. The low height of the building captures attention by its appearance of organization and unity. The building designed on the corner site facing Bridge Street and First Street feature a dome, which caps the manager’s room on the ground floor and sitting room on the first floor. This feature is not seen in Edward’s other bank buildings, which usually are flat. The façade is enhanced by rectangular windows with Romanesque and Italian details at the first floor level, and with the corbelled stones at the ground level. The stone band surrounding the building differentiates the two floors. The parapet harmonizes with the rusticated cornice below. The building is entered from the Bridge Street through a simple side entrance with no decoration. The vestibule opens onto a large public space featuring a mosaic floor. The remaining area was designed for banking transactions with the manager’s circular room placed to one side. The stairs at the rear provide access to the manager’s residence on the first floor, which accommodates a large hall, six bedrooms and a sitting room.

Holdings: Bank (2 floors, upper floor: 6 bedrooms); brick and stone; composite
10 Drawings: 6 ink on linen; 2 ink on paper; 2 watercolour on paper
4 Presentation drawings: floor plans, elevations
6 Working drawings: foundation plan, floor plans, elevations, section
Comment: 2 presentation drawings by W. Newlands, Architect, Grand Forks, B.C., for a proposed building for the Merchants Bank of Halifax, Grand Forks, B.C.,are included.

Comments: 2 presentation drawings by W. Newlands, Architect, Grand Forks, B.C., for a proposed building for the Merchants Bank of Halifax, Grand Forks, B.C.,are included.