1909 - Grain Exchange - Calgary, Alberta
Posted by: 
wildwoodke
N 51° 02.699 W 114° 03.939
11U E 705684 N 5658924
The Grain Exchange was constructed in 1909 by William Roper Hull at a cost of $164,000 and was a skyscraper when it was constructed in what was then small town Calgary, Alberta.
Waymark Code: WM55DE
Location: Alberta, Canada
Date Posted: 11/13/2008
Views: 19
"It may not be considered a skyscraper any longer but the six-storey Grain Exchange Building - once one of Alberta's tallest buildings - still commands a presence.
Located at 815 1 Street S.W. in downtown Calgary, the building was built by William Roper Hull in 1909 for a cost of $164,000. The famed rancher was born in Devonshire, England in 1856 and arrived in Calgary in 1884. Hull would eventually become one of the wealthiest individuals in this region with extensive land holdings and a stake in the Calgary Brewing and Malting Company.
He was a savvy businessman who along with his brother, John Roper Hull, established a meat packing plant and a chain of 15 butcher shops that supplied beef to the railway to feed the labourers who were employed to construct rail lines in British Columbia.
With his great wealth Hull built several important buildings including a sprawling sandstone mansion called Langmore which was demolished in 1970 and Calgary's first Opera House which was demolished in 1963.
Thankfully the Grain Exchange Building has escaped the wrecker's ball. Opened in 1910 with the Calgary Grain Exchange as its first tenant the structure stood out because of its fine details. They include sandstone cladding on three of its sides, an elaborate carved sandstone arch over the main entrance to the building, the first passenger elevator in Calgary and an exquisite set of oak doors with bevelled glass that each visitor must pass through on the way to the many offices that occupy the building.
Although the Calgary Grain Exchange moved out of the place that bears its name more than 80 years ago the building continues to act as a hub for a mix of private and not-for-profit organizations. There are very few buildings in Calgary where you can get a haircut on one floor and visit an art gallery on another. And that's why the Grain Exchange Building is part of Calgary's living history.
-Wes Lafortune is a Calgary-based freelance writer."
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