Beard Building
The Beard Building was a seven-storey, 25.38 m (83.3 ft) Richardsonian Romanesque highrise in Toronto, Ontario, Canada that is considered to be Toronto's first skyscraper. Designed by E. J. Lennox and completed in 1894, initial plans were for a nine-storey, iron-framed structure, but a more traditional wood-brick combination with seven storeys was settled upon. The Beard Building consisted of a bank at street level, a commercial and office tower, and a hotel. A branch of The Bank of Commerce occupied the building's main space on its ground floor. Above that, the hotel never opened because of the design of the building. However, the space above the ground floor was leased to businesses as office space. The building was named after George T. Beard, the original landowner of the site. The Beard Building was demolished in 1935 and was replaced by a gas station a few years later.
| Beard Building | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Interactive map of the Beard Building area | |
| General information | |
| Status | Demolished |
| Type | Commercial offices Hotel |
| Architectural style | Romanesque Revival |
| Location | 163 King Street East Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Coordinates | 43°39′01″N 79°22′18″W / 43.650366°N 79.371587°W |
| Completed | 1893 – 1894 |
| Demolished | 1935 |
| Cost | $60,000[1] |
| Height | |
| Roof | 25.8 m (85 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 7 1 below ground |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | E. J. Lennox |
| References | |
| [2] | |
The Beard Building was a seven-storey, 25.38 m (83.3 ft) Richardsonian Romanesque highrise in Toronto, Ontario, Canada that is considered to be Toronto's first skyscraper.[1] Designed by E. J. Lennox and completed in 1894, initial plans were for a nine-storey, iron-framed structure, but a more traditional wood-brick combination with seven storeys was settled upon.[3]
The Beard Building consisted of a bank at street level, a commercial and office tower, and a hotel. A branch of The Bank of Commerce occupied the building's main space on its ground floor.[1] Above that, the hotel never opened because of the design of the building.[1][4] However, the space above the ground floor was leased to businesses as office space.[1] The building was named after George T. Beard, the original landowner of the site.[3]
The Beard Building was demolished in 1935[5][3] and was replaced by a gas station a few years later.[1]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f Bateman, Chris (13 June 2017). "The short, mysterious life of the Beard Building". Spacing. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
- ^ "Emporis building ID 237788". Emporis. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016.
- ^ a b c GmbH, Emporis. "The Beard Building, Toronto | 237788 | EMPORIS". Emporis. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016. Retrieved 2018-10-22.
- ^ "lennox.html". 2007-09-11. Archived from the original on 2007-09-11. Retrieved 2018-10-22.
- ^ "Obsolete Buildings are Being Torn Down". The Toronto Daily Star. 30 July 1935. p. 7.
Further reading
[edit]- Litvak, Marilyn M. (1995). "The City Hall Years". Edward James Lennox: "Builder of Toronto". Toronto: Dundurn Press. p. 37. ISBN 9781554881505. Retrieved 6 August 2013.