Imperial Bank of Commerce & Thomson Brothers Block

A point of interest on the Discover Downtown Calgary GPS-guided audio walking tour.

Press play & listen to the tour audio!

Audio Transcript

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If you take a look across the road, you'll see a sandstone building on the street corner. That's the Imperial Bank of Commerce building!

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When it was first built between 1886 and 1887, this was one of two identical and adjacent sandstone buildings built for the quickly developing downtown. In 1892 it was purchased by the Imperial Bank of Canada, which was actually the first chartered bank to open in Calgary! The IBC then made alterations to embody a different architectural style and make the building more prominent.

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Like most of the historic buildings in this area, the building would be leased to a number of different companies as the years went on!

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Alright now let's practice your counting skills. We're going to talk about the fourth building from the corner. If counting's not your thing, that's ok, it says "Thomson Brothers Block" at the top of the sandstone building. Go ahead and walk a bit closer while I talk if you like.

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This building’s original owners, James and Melville Thomson, were in the business of stationing and bookselling. While their first location in Calgary was a small frame building on Stephen Avenue, their business would go on to expand. In 1893, due to their success, they were able to build this new building that you see here today!

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Despite the brothers leaving in 1900, the building has continued to be used in a retail capacity to this day!

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