Alberta Register of Historic Places

Glenwood Manor

Calgary

Other Names:

Statement of Significance

Description of Historic Place
The Glenwood Manor is a three-storey brick apartment block built in 1928 on one city lot, on the north side of Memorial Drive in Calgary. The designation applies to the building's exterior facades and common areas, and exterior landscape elements such as original plantings in the front garden, wooden walkways, and an iron fence with brick gateposts.

Heritage Value
The heritage value of the Glenwood Manor lies in its representation of both 1920's domestic architecture, and a period in the history of Calgary when the City was emerging as a major center for corporate head offices, many representing the developing oil industry.

Economic recovery in the 1920s, due to the development of the Turner Valley Oil Field and the renewed health of Calgary's agricultural hinterland, heightened the demand for housing, particularly in suburban neighbourhoods like Sunnyside, where Glenwood Manor was located. Built in 1928, Glenwood Manor provided a residence for Calgary's professional, entrepreneurial and managerial classes into the late 1960's.

Glenwood Manor is significant as an example of the transitional, eclectic architecture favoured at the time, which incorporated several revivalist styles. Here, for example, the symmetry of the main facade and the two-storey bay windows are Georgian Revival, while the interior woodwork, light fixtures and stained glass are typical of the Arts and Crafts style. The amenities of the twelve suites made it one of the finest apartments built in Calgary during the 1920s. Glenwood Manor is a prominent historic structure on the street and in the neighborhood.

Source: Alberta Culture and Community Spirit, Historic Resources Management Branch (File: Des. 1179)

Character-Defining Elements
The heritage value of the Glenwood Manor is contained in such character-defining elements as:
- scale, form and massing including rectangular plan with recessed central space formed between symmetrical projecting pavilions, each with parallel two-storey bays on front (south) elevation;
- red brick facade, concrete foundation, with painted sandstone window sills and fascia, sign on front elevation, two decorative brickwork panels, two chimneys;
- hipped roof, overhanging eaves;
- interior furnishings including: hand crafted mahogany woodwork, light fixtures, radiators, door and window hardware, character and fabric of public hallways, stained glass;
- original plantings and landscape details in front garden;
- wooden stairs and walkway;
- wrought iron fence and gate with central and corner brick gateposts on stone base on south and east elevations;
- galvanized Spanish metal roof tiles;
- symmetrical fenestration (double-hung sash design) and door pattern including two covered porches with square columns;
- original wood windows and storm windows.

Location

Street Address:	904 and 908 Memorial Drive NW
Community:	Calgary
Boundaries:	Units 1 to 12, Condominium Plan 8110119
Contributing Resources:	Building: 1 Landscape(s) or Landscape Feature(s): 3

ATS Legal Description:

Mer	Rge	Twp	Sec	LSD
5	1	24	21	2 (ptn.)

PBL Legal Description (Cadastral Reference):

Plan	Block	Lot	Parcel
8110119 8110119 8110119 8110119 8110119 8110119 8110119 8110119 8110119 8110119 8110119 8110119	9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 12 11 10 1	N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

Latitude/Longitude:

Latitude	Longitude	CDT	Datum Type
51.054791	-114.080014	GPS	NAD 83

UTM Reference:

Northing	Easting	Zone	CDT	Datum Type

Recognition

Recognition Authority:	Province of Alberta
Designation Status:	Provincial Historic Resource
Date of Designation:	1997/04/21

Historical Information

Built:	1928 to 1928
Period of Significance:	1928 to 1969
Theme(s):	Expressing Intellectual and Cultural Life : Architecture and Design Peopling the Land : Settlement
Historic Function(s):	Residence : Multiple Dwelling
Current Function(s):
Architect:
Builder:
Context:	HERITAGE SIGNIFICANCE The Glenwood Manor was constructed in 1928 by Andrew Murdoch, a Calgary building contractor since 1922. It was built to meet an increasing demand for housing in Calgary. This demand reflected the impact of the development of the Turner Valley Oil Field and the health of Calgary's agricultural hinterland which had recovered from the post-war recession. The building is located in an area which was one of Calgary's suburban neighbourhoods before World War One. The Sunnyside district north of the Bow River was initially an independent community prior to its annexation by Calgary in 1907. After the end of the pre-war construction boom in Calgary, many vacant lots languished for years and reverted to the City of Calgary under the provisions of the 1921 Tax Recovery Act. These lots were available for construction during the resumption of Calgary's growth in the mid-1920's. The architecture and the amenities of the Glenwood Manor made it one of the finest apartments built in Calgary during the 1920s. Finished in brick and stone, it included twelve storage rooms, a billiards room and a gas furnace in the basement as well as the necessary hook-ups in each suite for either gas or electric stoves depending upon the preference of the tenant. From 1928 to 1970, it attracted tenants from Calgary’s managerial, entrepreneurial, and professional class. Many, like prominent oil magnate, S.C. Nickle, Sr., were associated with the oil and gas industry in its several phases. That association helped to maintain a continuity of clientele even during the Great Depression and, when age and diminished maintenance eventually threatened its status, it attracted renewed attention from the professionals of the modern petroleum boom for use as a condominium.

Additional Information

Object Number:	4665-0563
Designation File:	DES 1179
Related Listing(s):	4664-0143
Heritage Survey File:	HS 70477
Website Link:
Data Source:	Alberta Culture and Community Spirit, Historic Resources Management Branch, Old St. Stephen's College, 8820 - 112 Street, Edmonton, AB T6G 2P8 (File: Des. 1179)