Description of Historic Place

The Molson's (Toronto Dominion) Bank is a three-storey, stone-clad building situated on portions of two lots along Calgary's historic Stephen Avenue Mall. The 1911 building embodies the Beaux-Arts architectural style in its ornate exterior decoration including fluted columns crowned by Ionic capitals, an elaborate cornice with dentils, classical sculptural elements, and a pedimented front entrance.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of the Molson's (Toronto Dominion) Bank lies in its impressive representation of early twentieth-century bank architecture in Alberta.

Between 1905 and 1914, Alberta's population and economy grew rapidly. In an effort to capitalize on the commercial and financial possibilities of the burgeoning West, central Canadian banks began establishing branches throughout the Prairies. In 1911, the Molson's Bank constructed a branch in Calgary. Opened in 1912, the bank building is an impressive embodiment of the Beaux-Arts architectural style. Elements of this ornate style include the building's fluted columns crowned by Ionic capitals, elaborate cornice with dentils, pediments over windows and doors, and sculptural embellishments. These decorative features, along with the robust steel framing and stone-cladding of the building, impart the bank with a classical air of strength and permanence - desirable qualities for any financial institution. The Molson's (Toronto Dominion) Bank was the finest branch erected by the Molson Bank in Alberta and an excellent example of the kind of architecture employed by financial institutions of the time to project an image of solidity and balance. The building's success as an architectural statement of financial virtues and as a response to the practical demands of branch banking is reflected in decades of later use by such financial institutions as the Bank of Montreal and the Toronto Bank (later the Toronto-Dominion Bank). Situated along Calgary's historic Stephen Avenue Mall, the Molson's (Toronto Dominion) Bank is an integral dimension of the historic charm of one of Alberta's premier early twentieth-century commercial streetscapes.

Source: Alberta Culture and Community Spirit, Historic Resources Management Branch (File: Des. 880)

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of the Molson's (Toronto Dominion) Bank include such features as:
- limestone facade with granite base;
- window surrounds;
- four fluted columns crowned with Ionic capitals;
- pediments over side entrance, main entrance, and side window of front elevation;
- elaborate cornice with dentils;
- sculptural elements, including decorative elements on cornice and on pediments;
- main entrance with transom topped by pediment;
- "The Molson's Bank" in gold lettering on sign band and the Molson's Bank crest and engraved motto "Industria et Spe".