Royal Edward Arms, Art Deco building in Thunder Bay, Ontario

The Royal Edward Arms is an eight-story Art Deco building at the corner of South May and George Streets in downtown Thunder Bay. Its reinforced concrete structure shows the continuous form created during construction, which defines its distinctive exterior lines.

In 1927, 800 residents led by businessman Norman M. Paterson raised $419,000 in a few months to build the hotel themselves, since no national railway would. It opened in 1929 with 105 rooms, each with an ensuite, plus 21 sample rooms for day rental. After closing in the late 1970s and sitting vacant, it was renovated in 1985 into 64 low-income units by Ranta and Tett at a cost of $2,478,305.

The hotel's guest register included Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles, Governor General Roland Michener, Prime Minister John Diefenbaker, Gene Autry and George Hees. The building later became a 64-unit low-income housing facility and was added to the Thunder Bay Heritage Register in 1988.

The building is easy to locate since it stands at a main intersection in downtown Thunder Bay and is clearly visible from the street. As it now serves as residential housing, visitors can explore the exterior but interior access is limited.

The Royal Edward Arms was built by the slipform method, in which concrete is poured into a mould that rises with the structure, producing a seamless reinforced concrete frame. Its exterior is part of that concrete structure itself, not a stucco facing, and the vertical Art Deco detailing rises between small windows.