Bank of British North America Building, Commercial heritage building in St. John's, Canada.
The Bank of British North America Building is a stone structure on Duckworth Street in St. John's, built in the Italianate style by Halifax architect David Stirling in 1849. Its facade carries the arched windows and bracketed cornices of that style, and a mansard roof replaced the original hipped roof between 1857 and 1894.
The Bank of British North America Building was built in 1849 by Halifax architect David Stirling for Newfoundland's first commercial bank, after the St. John's fire of 1846. From 1857 to 1894 it belonged to the Commercial Bank of Newfoundland, which replaced the hipped roof with a mansard roof. Damaged in the 1892 fire, it was reconstructed by William Howe Greene, who also built Cabot Tower.
The building is home to the Anna Templeton Centre, a non-profit centre for crafts and arts training and education run by the College of the North Atlantic. Its studios host courses in textile and craft work, continuing the building's long record of housing Newfoundland institutions.
The building sits in downtown St. John's within walking distance of other heritage sites and local shops. You can view the original stone exterior from the street, while the interior hosts regular classes and workshops throughout the year.
The Bank of Montreal donated the building to the City of St. John's in 1985, ending 136 years of banking use that began in 1849. It was designated a National Historic Site in 1990 and a Registered Heritage Structure by the Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador on 3 May 1991.
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