Château Frontenac, Hotel for the Canadian Pacific Railway(6/1919-8/1924)
1 rue des Carrières; rue Saint-Louis, Quebec City, QC, Canada
Commercial, Hotel [tower block: basement, 20 floors; citadel pavilion: basement, 8 floors; St. Louis Pavilion: basement, 5 floors]; brick and stone; concrete frame

Client: Canadian Pacific Railway Company
Architect: E. & W.S. Maxwell

Description: Château Frontenac has graced the Quebec City skyline since it was begun by architect Bruce Price (CAC 9) in 1892. It is the prototype of the grand, picturesque Château style hotels that would make the Canadian Pacific famous. It stands on top of Cap Diamant and alongside the cliff delimiting the Haute Ville. New wings had been added to the Hotel in 1899 by Price and in 1909 by W.S. Painter; both architects had also worked on Windsor Station (228) in Montreal, another CPR project to be expanded by the Maxwell firm at a later date as well. In 1919 it was decided to double the hotel size and its capacity. With no alternative but to build higher, E. and W.S. Maxwell suggested erecting a tower in the middle of the hotel property, razing an existing service wing and rebuilding a new one to the west. The Tower block, the new service wings and the brand-new Saint-Louis wing on Saint-Louis Street followed the original style; the combination of stone and brick, of turrets, towers, conical roofs, chimneys and dormers culminating in the powerful copper roof of the Tower block. It is Quebec City’s tallest landmark at this point, visible from the river and the south shore. The hotel lobby and hall, public rooms and offices were housed in the first two floors of the Tower block. Two grand staircases, one of them oval, led form the hall to the dining room, palm room, the ballrooms and other public and meeting facilities. Many artists, among them Archibald Davies, Else Hower, Charles Kelsey and Adam Sherif Scott, worked on decorations. The total number of rooms reached 660; the tower at twenty stories made its presence felt with vigour and panache. From then on, Quebec City’s skyline without the Château was unthinkable. It is the highest structure designed by the Maxwell brothers but sadly the last important project they undertook as partners. Edward Maxwell, who devoted three full months to travelling in Europe --locating furniture for the hotel, died November 14, 1923. William Maxwell took Gordon McLeod (1886-1954), who had been with the firm from 1919, as partner; they worked together until 1952. In fact, they went back to working on the Château as early as 1926. A fire destroyed most of the original part of the hotel, the Riverview Wing, built by Price in 1892-1893. Maxwell & Pitts rebuilt the Riverview Wing in an incredible 127 working days. In designing this new section, notably the dining rooms, Maxwell and Pitts were respectful of Price’s original concept, but ensured the facilities and amenities were brought up-to-date. In 1973, major alterations to interiors were performed, often weakening and trivialising the majestic and subtle public rooms. In the mid-eighties, a major renovation plan that corrected this in part was begun. The construction of a new addition, the Claude Pratte Wing (Arcop Architects, 1990) provided another occasion to review the hotel room organisation, with great sensitivity to the overall coherence and heritage of the building. The hotel now comprises a total of 610 guest rooms and suites. In the fall of the year 2000, the Chateau Frontenac was sold to Legacy Hotels for $185 million Canadian. The hotel now bears the name Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac. See: Construction vol. 18, no. [ ], August 1925, p. 245-268; Construction vol. 19, July 1926, p. 217-224; Contractor, May 1924, p. 2-13; Gagnon-Pratte, France and Eric Etter. Le Château Frontenac. Quebec City, QC: Éditions Continuité, 1993.

Holdings: Hotel (tower block: basement, 20 floors; citadel pavilion: basement, 8 floors; St. Louis Pavilion: basement, 5 floors); brick and stone; concrete frame
966 Drawings: 326 ink on linen; 40 ink on paper; 422 pencil on paper; 108 blueprints; 9 sepia; 61 photocopies
4 Survey drawings: survey plan, lot plans
77 Measured drawings: lot plan, floor plans, elevations, sections, bedrooms, dining room, café, billiard room, lounges, reception rooms, music room, dance hall, barber's shop, halls, entries, structure, staircases, elevators, windows, doors, partitions, pilasters, classical details, finishes
14 Sketch drawings: floor plans, elevations, bedrooms, palm room, exhibition room, elevators, fixtures
404 Development drawings: perspectives, floor plans, roof plans, ceiling plans, elevations, sections, bedrooms, dining room, tea room, coffee shop, kitchen, palm room, billiard©room, convention halls, exhibiÜ^
60 Working drawings: foundation plan, floor plans, roof plans, elevations, sections, staircase, elevators
357 Detail drawings: foundations, floor plans, ceiling plans, elevations, sections, bedrooms, dining rooms, tea room, coffee shop, tavern, kitchen, palm room, billiard room, lounge, sitting rooms, writing room, reception rooms, convention hall, committee room, offices, manicure parlour, barber's shop, transformer room, halls, foyer, vestibules, washrooms, entry, structure, mechanical, vents, staircases, fire stairs, elevators, mantelpieces, chimney, smoke-stacks, windows, dormers, skylights, doors, partitions, furniture, gallery, stage, mail chute, hoppers, fittings, fixtures, finishes, stonework, ironwork, marquee, cornices, arches, turrets, finials, steps, sidewalk
15 Shop drawings: ceiling plan, structure, mechanical, mantelpiece, fixtures, stonework, glasswork
35 Consultant drawings: foundation plans, floor plans, roof plans, sections, structure, mechanical, steelwork
15 Photographs: 3 finished exteriors; 4 finished interiors; 8 finished details
1 File folder: correspondence; clippings; notes; list of furniture
Comment: This project was completed by Maxwell and Pitts. 34 drawings by C.P.R. Engineering are included.

Comments: This project was completed by Maxwell and Pitts. 34 drawings by C.P.R. Engineering are included.