McLeod Block
50 Sixth Street, New Westminster, Colombie-Britannique, Canada
Reconnu formellement en:
2004/04/05
Autre nom(s)
s/o
Liens et documents
s/o
Date(s) de construction
1913/01/01
Inscrit au répertoire canadien:
2010/04/30
Énoncé d'importance
Description du lieu patrimonial
The McLeod Block is a two-storey Edwardian Classical Revival building, covering the entire lot, with frontages on Sixth and Carnarvon Streets in the downtown core of New Westminster.
Valeur patrimoniale
The heritage value of the McLeod Block is associated with the development of downtown New Westminster, which represents a formative period in BC's resource-based economy. The city grew through successive economic waves that followed the founding of the city as the colonial capital of the Mainland colony of B.C. in 1859, which earned the new settlement the name 'The Royal City'.
After the devastation of the Great Fire of 1898, the downtown was rebuilt immediately and continued to develop during the great western Canadian economic boom that preceded the First World War. The McLeod Block is also significant within the context of Columbia Street, the city's earliest, most historic area of commercial and institutional buildings. The consistent and distinctive built form of Columbia Street dates from between 1898, when New Westminster was the major centre of commerce and industrial output for the booming Fraser Valley area, serving the agricultural, fishing and lumbering sectors of the economy.
The McLeod Block is valued for its association with its architects Gardiner and Mercer, whose partnership was one of the most enduring and prolific in the province (1911- 1940). A high-profile commission by one of the wealthiest people in New Westminster, it was an important project for the partners. This handsome two-storey Edwardian Classical Revival building clad in pressed Clayburn brick, with contrasting tones of red and yellow, was striking and had rooms with plumbing and gas connections in the event that they were used for residential purposes.
Built in 1913, the McLeod Block is valued for its association with Alfred W. McLeod, known as 'the insurance man' in New Westminster. McLeod acquired the landmark stone residence and offices at the corner of Sixth and Carnarvon Streets in 1900, razed it, and commissioned the construction of a new landmark building. It was home to McLeod's head office for many years.
Source: City of New Westminster Planning Department
Éléments caractéristiques
Key elements that define the heritage character of the McLeod Block include its:
- form, scale and massing
- siting, consistent with other building on Columbia Street
- prominent corner location
- pressed-brick window details and south wall detail
- large storefront windows
- single-hung wooden-sash windows on second floor
- simple ornamentation
- stepped retail frontages and change in a number of floors due to slope of Sixth Street
Reconnaissance
Juridiction
Colombie-Britannique
Autorité de reconnaissance
Administrations locales (C.-B.)
Loi habilitante
Local Government Act, art.954
Type de reconnaissance
Répertoire du patrimoine communautaire
Date de reconnaissance
2004/04/05
Données sur l'histoire
Date(s) importantes
s/o
Thème - catégorie et type
- Économies en développement
- Commerce et affaires
Catégorie de fonction / Type de fonction
Actuelle
- Résidence
- Édifice à logements multiples
Historique
- Commerce / Services commerciaux
- Bureau ou édifice à bureaux
Architecte / Concepteur
Gardiner and Mercer
Constructeur
Miller and Jewhurst
Informations supplémentaires
Emplacement de la documentation
City of New Westminster Planning Department
Réfère à une collection
Identificateur féd./prov./terr.
DhRr-179
Statut
Édité
Inscriptions associées
s/o