Description of Historic Place

Palmer Restaurant is a two story, concrete block Arts and Crafts building. It is located on the edge of the Tantramar marshes near the Canadian National Railway Station (former Intercolonial Railway) on Lorne Street in Sackville.

Heritage Value

Palmer Restaurant is designated a Local Historic Place for its architecture and for the role it played in the Sackville community.

Palmer Restaurant is recognized for its unique architecture in Sackville. Built in 1923, it is a two story, concrete block Arts and Crafts building. It represents the brief period early in the 20th century when the Sackville Concrete Company offered concrete blocks for building, as well as concrete fence posts and cement sidewalks to Sackville citizens. In 1911, the Sackville Concrete Company was formed by local businessmen to provide these concrete blocks to the residents of the town but also to provide concrete for the construction of sidewalks and foundations. In 1912, a fire in the downtown area of Sackville wiped out a whole block and a new bylaw insisted upon new commercial structures being built of brick or stone. Entire town blocks were built of concrete block at that time but this is one of only two surviving storefronts built in Sackville in the late 1910’s and early 1920’s.

Palmer Restaurant is also recognized for its role in the community. George Palmer built this building which contained a store and a residence. It was located near the Railway Station and also next door to the Intercolonial Hotel. The restaurant provided meals for the passengers on the trains as they disembarked to catch the connecting train on the line that went to Prince Edward Island. A popular cook, Mrs. Herbert Anderson, purchased the restaurant business in 1946 and most residents today remember the location as the Anderson Restaurant. It remained open until the mid 1960s.

Source: Town of Sackville, Historic Places File Cabinet, Palmer Restaurant File

Character-Defining Elements

The character defining elements that describe Palmer Restaurant include:
- 2-storey rectangular massing;
- gable roof;
- exterior composed of concrete blocks, in a very simple design intended to imitate stone texture, with the peak on the front façade composed of more decorative blocks;
- top floor windows to the second floor apartment irregularly placed but featuring a larger window on the front;
- all windows on the second floor feature plain stone sills;
- bottom floor with large display windows in the style of the 1920's, located on either side of the front entrance to the restaurant;
- storefront cornice displaying the name and function of the building;
- recessed entryway to the restaurant with the door having an opening transom to bring in fresh air;
- the entry to the apartment, although not recessed, also with an opening transom;
- concrete deck across the front of the building.