Description of Historic Place

Newnham and Slipp Pharmacy is part of the last three segments of a two-storey brick commercial row building at the corner of King and Main Streets. The building is situated close to the Meduxnekeag River in downtown Woodstock. The historic place designation is confined to the last two segments of the row building, the original home of the pharmacy.

Heritage Value

Newnham and Slipp Pharmacy is designated a Local Historic Place because this section of the row building has continuously housed a family-owned downtown pharmacy since 1878.

The roots of the business formed in 1839 when the first shipment of merchandise for William T. Baird's store was floated in barrels from Saint John via the St. John River. The building that originally housed Baird's was destroyed by fire in 1860. The subsequent building burned in the Woodstock Fire of 1877, an event that destroyed much of the downtown. Baird set up shop in the present building, one of several row buildings constructed in the rebuilding of the downtown, in 1878.

Although most of the buildings elements are no longer original, the brick details and other design features adhere closely to the original design. Original elements would include the regular fenestration of rectangular and segmented arch windows on the façade, the 2-storey rectangular massing and the large wooden double door with original hardware.

Source: Carleton County Historical Society Historic Places File #18

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements that describe the location of the building include:
- corner of Main and King Streets in the downtown core;
- next to the Meduxnekeag River.

The character-defining elements that describe the storefront architectural elements include:
- cornice with elaborate corbelled brick design;
- second storey windows with patterned brick segmented arches;
- rectangular 2 storey massing;
- large wooden double door with original hardware at King Street entrance.