| Phillips Square and architect Claude Cormier |
Montreal's
Phillips Square is named for Thomas Phillips, a building contractor and city
councillor who bought the land from fur trader Joseph Frobisher. Phillips died
in 1842, and the land the square now sits on was donated by his widow to be
used as a perpetual memorial to her husband.
In
1842, the square was first laid out in what was at the time a growing wealthy
residential area on the fringe of the city of Montreal. The first merchant to
open a business on Phillips Square was Alfred Joyce, known to be a "high
class caterer and confectioner” and one-time mayor of the town of Outremont who
built an elegant shop on the south side of the square in 1878. In 1891, Morgan’s department
store, now "The Bay", established itself on the north side of the
square.
The
head office of Henry Birks and Sons was built soon after on the west side of
the square in 1894. In 1910, another building was built on the square. Now
designated as 620 Cathcart, it was originally named the “New Birks Building”
and was used in part for the growing needs of Henry Birks and Sons. At 130
feet, it was at the maximum height allowed in the city at that time as that was
as high a fire ladder could reach.
The
square features a bronze statue of Britain’s King Edward VII, who ruled from
1901 to 1910. He visited Montreal in 1860, when he was still the Prince of Wales,
to open the Victoria Bridge, named after his mother. The statue was erected in
1914.
The
Birks Building was constructed at a time when the abutting elite residential
area known as “The Golden Mile” was becoming the hub of the nations wealthiest
families. In fact, 70% of all wealth in Canada was firmly in the hands of this
small group. It was a natural place for merchants like watchmakers,
silversmiths and jewellers to locate their businesses.
By
1923 Birks was the second largest jewellry store in the world; only Tiffany’s
of New York was larger than Birks. A booming mail order business kept the Birks
craftsmen busy, bolstered by American tourists. At that time Canada had no duty
on diamonds, and a set diamond was subject to 45% duty in the US.
In
more modern times, the jewelry trade has evolved, and is now largely made up of
independent craftsmen. But the legacy of the presence of Henry Birks still
exists in the fact that the bulk of Montreal’s leading edge designers, diamond
dealers and jewellers still ply their trade in the many offices that line the
square.
Ex
Aurum Jewellers is proud to continue this tradition of fine handcrafted
jewelry in Phillips Square. While our clients come from a broader spectrum of
society than the area once catered to, they are still no less important to us.
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