Lower Metcalfe Street

Lower Metcalfe Street. . Enterprising businessmen began to locate on Metcalfe Street in the early 1860s. The lower section extended from the Mill Street intersection up the hill as far as Church Street. For more than a century, the street ended at the river (see photo) until a new bridge replaced the Victoria Street Bridge in 1954. Charles Clarke, a newspaper journalist and entrepreneur, opened this fledgling business district with the construction of a state-of-the-art red brick edifice in 1861. His imposing three-storey store called Kirk and Clarke's Dry Goods stood proudly on the southeast corner of Metcalfe and Church Streets. Clarke was elected Member of Provincial Parliament for Wellington Centre in 1878 and served in that capacity for 21 years. After his father-in-law, John Kirk, died, Clarke's nephew Henry took over the management of this very progressive shop. Maurice Halley built a more modest red brick structure just down the street from Clarke moving his bakery from Mill Street to this location in 1866. He owned the building until 1892, selling baked goods to families as well as supplying many of the hotels in the area His bake shop became an institution in the village. The building housed various bakers, including the Christies and Starks, right through to the 1930s. In the 21st century several bakeries have opened on Metcalfe Street, however in locations closer to the village centre. The east side of the street, from Webster's Tinsmith Shop on the corner of Mill Street up to Clarke's store, became filled with business enterprises by the end of the 1860s with the addition of a grocery store, candy store, retail dairy and eventually a laundry. Today, both sides of this part of Metcalfe are abuzz with antique stores, gift and clothing shops, a florist, studios, cafes and a restaurant and bar.