Chapman Brothers - Edmonton, Alberta
Posted by: 
wildwoodke
N 53° 31.076 W 113° 29.916
12U E 334346 N 5932793
Chapman Brothers is one of the last wood frame commerical buildings in Edmonton, Alberta.
Waymark Code: WM7PVY
Location: Alberta, Canada
Date Posted: 11/19/2009
Views: 6
Text from the plaque
In 1907, this building was constructed by Robert Ritchie, founder of the Edmonton Milling Company. Until 1912 it was the outlet for the Great Western Saddlery Company. Starting in that year, under the leadership of A.B. Chapman, joined soon thereafter by his sons, Bus and his brothers, the Chapman Family have owned and operated this retail business at this location since 1912. This pioneer Edmonton family has fulfilled the leather and western wear needs of countless thousands of Edmontonians. This business represents an important aspect of early Strathcona and Edmonton commercial history."
From the Real Estate Weekly which is conflicted somewhat with the plaque (see http://www.rewedmonton.ca/content_view2?CONTENT_ID=234 )
The Chapman Brothers Building at 10423 Whyte Avenue was built in 1901 and originally occupied by the Great West Saddlery Company. It is one of few wood frame buildings remaining on Whyte Avenue; it was constructed the year before the town council passed an ordinance requiring all new commercial blocks to be built of non combustible materials.
Archibald Benjamin Chapman was the manager of the location and in 1912, he purchased the firm, renamed it A.B. Chapman and Company, and continued making and selling harnesses. After his death in 1918 Archie Chapman's sons changed the company name again, this time to Chapman Brothers Limited.
As the motor car and the tractor gained in popularity, the Chapman harness-making business fell on hard times. The brothers diversified and began selling western wear and sometimes half of the premises was let to other businesses. The Chapman family owned the building well into the 1990s.
The exterior in essentially in its original condition and the store is one of the least altered of the remaining wood frame commercial buildings on Whyte Avenue. With its boom-town front, multi-paned windows, bracketed parapet and pressed tin siding, molded to imitate brick, it offers a glimpse back at a popular exterior style around the turn of the 20th century. The Chapman Brothers Building was designated a Registered Historic Resource in 1976.