The Canadian Bank of Commerce today. Spot the oculus window and the rear addition.--PHOTO BY Malcolm Sissons
T he Canadian Bank of Commerce was founded in 1867 in Toronto and concentrated its activities in Central Canada until the turn of the century, when it began expansion in the Maritimes and the Prairies.
In 1902, Winnipeg branch manager Sir John Aird toured the North West Territories and recommended the establishment of new branches. The Medicine Hat branch opened in rented quarters, but business was so successful that in 1908, the branch opened its building on Main (Second) Street across from city hall. Â
The bank building is a two-and-a-half storey gable-roofed brick and stone structure, in the Classical Revival style of the Edwardian era.
Similar to other branches, construction used red soft-mud moulded brick probably sourced in Ontario, limestone from Indiana and glazed terracotta (the only example in Medicine Hat). It features an oculus window in the front gable to keep an eye on the street! A employees’ residence was located above the offices and a rear addition was built in 1913. The style and materials were intended to project stability and security.
In many prairie towns, the Canadian Bank of Commerce rivaled the Bank of Montreal in seeking the business of local industry and the financial management of the Western Canadian grain trade. However, during the Depression, small communities with two competing bank branches often endured the closure of one branch.
The banks’ head offices would agree on which branch to close to ensure both companies’ survival during difficult financial times. The Canadian Bank of Commerce closed twenty-five branches nationwide in 1934 but not here.
The bank’s property included the open space between it and the Cypress Club and it built a substantial vault in the space. The 1961 merger with Imperial Bank of Canada resulted in the closure of the nearby Imperial Bank branch.
However, a new combined branch was constructed on Third Street, with the the original building retained as offices until 1979. The city acquired the building in 1980 and rented it to Chamber of Commerce from 1981 until 1993.
In 1994, two members of the Cypress Club formed a company to buy the bank property. They had the open space behind the bank, which was being used by the club as a patio, sub-divided from the bank property, and then sold the bank building to Roy Link Law Office in 1995, which has occupied it ever since.
The Canadian Bank of Commerce building looks as impressive today as when it anchored one corner of the most important intersection downtown along with the city hall, Post Office and Medicine Hat News. It was designated as a Provincial Historic Resource in 1991.
Malcolm Sissons is vice-president of the Historical Society of Medicine Hat & District
