Downtown Commercial in Calgary in Calgary Metropolitan Region, Alberta — Canada’s Prairie Region (North America)
The Meeting Place
Stephen Avenue
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, June 28, 2022
1. The Meeting Place Marker
The clanging bell and rumbling wheels of the orange streetcar were welcome sounds to people headed for Stephen Avenue. This was Calgary's thriving commercial centre and a natural "meeting place." The trip to "town" became easier and the street even busier after the Calgary Municipal Street Railway opened in 1909.
Along Stephen Avenue customers came to buy and to talk, merchants vied for frontage, and lawyers and doctors worked upstairs behind gold-lettered windows. In the offices of Senator Lougheed and future Prime Minister R. B. Bennett, political strategies were planned, while across the street in the Alberta Hotel business deals were sealed with a handshake.
Banks, bakeries, cigar shops, saddle makers, theatres, cafes, and more shared the frontage along Stephen Avenue. Here in 1923 chubby-faced Jimmy Condon opened his "Palace of Eats." He served milkshakes, swapped stories and welcomed people inside to wait for their streetcar. Places and people like this made Stephen Avenue a favourite "meeting place."
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Railroads & Streetcars. A significant historical year for this entry is 1909.
Location. 51° 2.739′ N, 114° 3.915′ W. Marker is in Calgary, Alberta, in Calgary Metropolitan Region. It is
this page online
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. T.C. Power & Bro. (within shouting distance of this marker); Lougheed Home (within shouting distance of this marker); The Buildings (within shouting distance of this marker); The Clarence Block ~ 1900 (within shouting distance of this marker); Stephen Avenue / L'avenue Stephen (within shouting distance of this marker); Molson Bank ~ 1911 (about 90 meters away, measured in a direct line); The Palace Theatre / Le Théâtre Palace (about 90 meters away); Hudson's Block (about 120 meters away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Calgary.
Also see . . .
1. Calgary Municipal Railway.
The Calgary municipal railway operated a system of streetcar routes in Calgary, Alberta, from 1909, until 1950. From 1909 to 1910 the system was named the "Calgary Electric Railway". In 1946, the system was renamed the "Calgary Transit System", to reflect the decision that all the streetcars routes were to be replaced with electric trolley buses.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, June 28, 2022
2. The Meeting Place Marker
2. Alberta Hotel.
The Alberta Hotel, originally built 1888-90, is a sandstone retail and commercial building within the Stephen Avenue National Historic District of downtown Calgary. The three storey, Italianate-style, landmark building occupies a corner location at one of downtown’s busiest intersections. The building also incorporates a 1906 Classical Revival-style annex and 1891 rear addition. The earliest part of the building is distinguished by its rock-faced exterior, roundheaded windows and ornamental metal cornice, while the annex is defined by a smooth-finished, ashlar facade.(Submitted on April 22, 2023, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
3. Jimmie Condon.
In the late 1880s a young man named Demetrios Kouimgis of Greek Orthodox origin was born on the Mediterranean Sea in a tiny village called Hora, in Turkey. In his early twenties, his family immigrated to Calgary, around the time of Calgary’s first great settlement boom. He changed his name to James A. “Jimmie” Condon and the family began a series of businesses, a tea house on 17th Avenue, a grocery store on 4th Street and ‘Jimmie’s Palace of Eats’ across from the original Hudson’s Bay. A well-known merchant, developer, sports promoter, and restaurateur, Jimmie hosted the ‘Palace of Eats’ on 8th Avenue and 1st Street.(Submitted on April 22, 2023, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
Credits. This page was last revised on April 29, 2023. It was originally submitted on April 22, 2023, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 65 times since then and 12 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on April 22, 2023, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
