Near the City of Amherst is the Amherst Red Stone Quarry, which supplied red sandstone to the construction industry throughout the Maritimes and Ontario from 1889 to 1914. Given its proximity, sandstone from that quarry was used in the construction of the majority of large religious and commercial buildings in Amherst, the Bank of Montreal being a prime example.
Designed by well known architect J. C. Dumaresq, the building exhibits a blend of Classical Revival and Romanesque Revival styles. The overall appearance of the façade in particular states that "This is a Bank", solid, strong, a building in which one could place their trust - exactly the impression a bank wishes to convey to prospective customers.
Over the years, the building has housed first the Bank of Montreal, followed by Central Trust, government offices and the town police force, the final tenant that vacated the premises in the mid-1990s.
The building is a Municipal Heritage Property and the town, which now owns it, has tried at length to find a cost effective use for it but, sadly, it appears that we find ourselves writing yet another Heritage Property obituary. Their final decision on the disposition of the old bank building was to apply to have it deregistered then
demolished. How long this process could take we known not, so it seems that the bank's days and weeks are numbered.
Old Bank of Montreal
DESCRIPTION OF HISTORIC PLACE
100 Victoria Street East, also known as the “Old Bank of Montreal” and as “Heritage Court”, is a tall one-storey building of local red sandstone. The south-facing structure stands on the corner of Victoria East and LaPlanche Streets in the heart of Amherst, Nova Scotia’s commercial district. Built in 1906, it shares the street with a number of large, prominent stone buildings erected at the turn of the twentieth century. The building and property are included in the municipal designation.
HERITAGE VALUE
100 Victoria Street East is valued as an important part of one of the most architecturally distinct streetscapes in the province. Value is also found in its association with local industry.
Architectural Value: Built as a bank, this is a good example of early twentieth century commercial architecture, and is a blend of the Classical Revival and Romanesque Revival styles. It has a symmetrical three-bay façade, and a centred entrance in a central frontispiece crowned with a large moulded pediment. Two freestanding columns flank the entry, and the recessed double door is topped with a large fanlight and a stone arch. The fanlights and arches are also found above the other windows in the building, in particular, the band of windows facing LaPlanche Street.
Historical Value: The bank was designed by well-known Maritime architect J. C. Dumaresq. The construction of the building has been accredited to James Reid of Sydney and to Rhodes, Curry Co. of Amherst. Rhodes, Curry Co. installed the interior and was an important business in the industrial, commercial, and architectural history of Amherst and Nova Scotia. This company was the contractor and builder of a number of grand homes and businesses throughout Nova Scotia. The bank was built of rough-cut, red sandstone from the Amherst Red Stone Quarry. Stone from this quarry was used for buildings throughout the Maritimes and Ontario because of its rich red colour and because it was easily carved. The Amherst Red Stone Quarry Co. operated between 1889 and 1914.
CHARACTER-DEFINING ELEMENTS
General character-defining elements of 100 Victoria Street East include:
- local red sandstone building materials;
- location in and contribution to a significant Victorian era streetscape.
Character-defining Classical Revival elements of 100 Victoria East include:
- symmetrical and proportioned front façade;
- large pediment over central bay;
- free-standing columns with simply decorated capitals on each side of entrance;
- deep frieze;
- pilasters;
- fanlights.
Character-defining Romanesque Revival elements of 100 Victoria East include:
- large scale massing of the building;
- rough-cut stone walls;
- semi-circular arches on front and side windows.
From Historic Places Canada