Description of Historic Place

Leslie Building is located on Prince William Street in the Trinity Royal area of the City of Saint John. It is a four storey brick Italianate-Style commercial building.

Heritage Value

Leslie Building is designated as a Local Historic Place for its architecture and for its continued viability as a commercial venue in downtown Saint John.

Leslie Building is recognized for its architecture. It is one of a collection of commercial, Italianate and Second Empire buildings that were built between 1877 and 1881 after two thirds of the City of Saint John was destroyed by the fire in 1877. This four storey brick Italianate-Style commercial building exhibits traditional elements of this style of architecture, including Roman arch window openings, ground-level storefront and roof-line cornice.

Leslie Building is also recognized for its history as a viable commercial space in downtown Saint John. This building has housed several types of businesses since its construction, including William T. Bell, wholesalers, Hector's Restaurant, Regal Café and a tobacco shop. Leslie building has also been home to various stock brokers, the longest chain of occupancy was G. E. Leslie & Co. and later Bongard-Leslie & Co. through the 1950 and 1960.

Source: Planning and Development Department - City of Saint John

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements that describe Leslie Building include:
- rectangular 4-storey massing;
- roof-line cornice with corbel bands;
- common set-back with the rest of the streetscape;
- cast iron pilasters;
- exterior brick walls;
- 2/2 vertical slide Roman arch windows with brick arches with sandstone keystones;
- window arches connected through a course of sandstone across the entire width of the building;
- window height decreasing from level to level;
- large storefront window openings and fascia above;
- transom windows.