Barrington runs the full length of downtown Halifax, from the Murray MacKay bridge in the north to Inglis Street in the south end of the city. While much urban renewal took place in the twentieth century, along Barrington one will still find many of the historic buildings and sites of Halifax, including
Saint Mary's Cathedral Basilica (a National Historic Site),
St. Paul's Anglican Church (the oldest Protestant church in Canada and the oldest building in the city of Halifax as well as a National Historic Site), the 1887
City Hall,
Government House, the Oldest Official Government Residence in Canada and
The Old Burying Ground, Canada's First Municipal, Provincial & National Historic Cemetery. A walk along Barrington will pass many other historic buildings from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
In Canada, it would be difficult to find a more historic city street.
Barrington Street History
Barrington Street is part of the original street grid laid out by engineer John Bruce and surveyor Charles Morris when Halifax was established as a British fortress. The streets were named after leading British statesmen, but the origin of the name Barrington Street is reportedly unclear. One account suggests the street is named after William Barrington, 2nd Viscount Barrington, who served as a Secretary of War but was an "unknown" in 1749 when Halifax was founded. Others say the street name is derived from a misspelling of the Earl of Harrington, the Secretary of State.
Barrington Street sits halfway up the slope to Citadel Hill and has long been a main street of Halifax. After the town's founding it became a fashionable street for promenading. In 1766 the eastern sidewalk was planked and became known as the "mall" until it fell into disrepair in the 1820s and was dismantled.
By the 19th century, Barrington Street was the main commercial district in Halifax. Horse-drawn streetcars began operating on Barrington Street in 1866. These were replaced by electric streetcars by 1896.
The street saw big changes in the mid-20th century, with massive demolition under the banner of urban renewal. A huge swath of the downtown area, north of Duke Street, was cleared for the development of Scotia Square and the Cogswell Interchange.
Today, Barrington Street stretches the length of the Halifax peninsula. However, the Barrington Street name originally only applied to the length of the street within downtown proper. South of Spring Garden Road, the street was called Pleasant Street. North of downtown (up to North Street), it was originally called Lockman Street. The remainder (everything north of North Street) was once called Campbell Road.
The area between downtown and the Angus L. Macdonald Bridge changed drastically in the 20th century. In order to serve the bridge, hundreds of properties were demolished in this area and this section of Barrington Street was partially converted into a limited-access highway. No shops front on this section of the street anymore. As the area is separated from downtown by the Cogswell Interchange, few people walk along the road here.
The construction of the multi-level Cogswell Interchange in 1970 separated Barrington Street into two discontinuous sections; the street now interchanges with itself at this point. That is, a driver heading south toward downtown who exits Barrington at the Cogswell Interchange will wind up on the south section of Barrington Street. Continuing straight through the interchange, Barrington splits into Hollis Street and Lower Water Street. The Cogswell Interchange is slated to be demolished in the near future. In the current redevelopment plans, Barrington Street would form a continuous street once again.
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