Description of Historic Place

271-275 Duckworth Street is a four storey, concrete building with classical features located in the downtown core of St. John’s. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.

Heritage Value

271-275 Duckworth Street was designated for its aesthetic and historic values.

271-275 Duckworth Street has aesthetic value because it is a good example of Classical Revival architecture in a commercial building. The main floor features rounded arched windows and doors in a street level arcade. Within each arch is a keystone feature and between these are alternating square stones. The cut ashlar façade has unique diagonal and other oddly shaped stonework. Above each window and door are etched, arched windows, which help to establish the arcade, while the stone between each arch is designed to resemble columns with heavy bases. Also on the main floor below the windows are moulded fascia boards with heavy brackets.

The second, third and fourth floors are delineated from the first by a wide band and cornice moulding which is used for the building’s signage. Above this is a plain, concrete façade with several Classical elements. Tall, ionic pilasters stretch from the second floor to the top and they have heavy bases and decorative volutes on the capitals. The fourth floor also features arched windows, while those on the second and third floors are square. This lends to the overall look of an arcade above the main floor. Above each arched window is a keystone motif. A heavy moulding and dentil effect span the eaves to finish the classically inspired building.

271-275 Duckworth Street has historical value because it is associated with several commercial ventures. It was originally constructed for the Newfoundland Clothing Factory in 1911. Then, from the mid 1950s to 1981 the building housed the province’s daily newspaper The Evening Telegram. The building is historically valuable for its association with the newspaper’s founder, William J. Herder. Herder apprenticed as a printer for the Courier in 1863, and by 1879 he bought out the newspaper, beginning Newfoundland’s first daily newspaper. The Evening Telegram offices have been in several locations over their 125 year existence, including 271-275 Duckworth Street. It is the longest running daily in Newfoundland. Currently, the building is being used as a private training facility.

Source: City of St. John's Archives, 3rd Floor Railway Coastal Museum, 495 Water Street, P.O. Box 908, St. John's, NL A1C 5M2

Character-Defining Elements

All those original exterior features that embody the Classical Revival style of architecture, including:
-arched window and door openings;
-arched transom windows;
-arched arcade on front façade;
-pilasters with bases and volute capitals;
-cut ashlar columns;
-all window and door fenestrations, sizes and shapes
-dentils and cornice moulding;
-all keystone decoration and other geometric stonework;
-moulded fascia boards with heavy brackets; and
-all etched windows.