Pause for a moment to appreciate the architecture before you. This is the u00c9difice Montreal Curb Market. It has witnessed pivotal moments in Montreal’s financial history.
The Montreal Stock Exchange had this building constructed in 1928-1929. Kenneth G. Rea was the architect behind its design. The Montreal Stock Exchange acquired a large property on Saint-Franu00e7ois-Xavier Street in 1903. They built their own exchange building there. However they kept an old two-story house. In 1928, they decided to demolish the house. They wanted to construct a building for the Montreal Curb Market.
Since 1926 the Montreal Curb Market had been legally separate from the Montreal Stock Exchange. It was a place for trading young securities and speculative stocks. A monumental staircase linked the two exchanges. This allowed movement between the two organizations. The new building officially opened on May 1 1929.
Besides the Montreal Curb Market, two other companies connected to the Montreal Stock Exchange were located here. These were the Exchange Clearing House and the Exchange Printing Co. The Exchange Clearing House handled transfers between members. The Exchange Printing Co printed daily transactions. This included both the Montreal Stock Exchange and the Montreal Curb Market.
In 1953, the Montreal Curb Market changed its name. It became the Canadian Stock Exchange. Like the Montreal Stock Exchange, it moved to new premises in Victoria Square in 1965. It was legally reintegrated into the Montreal Stock Exchange in 1974. Later in 1967-1968 the building was repurposed. The Centaur Theatre has occupied it since then.
The building has a square layout and a flat roof. It occupies its entire plot unlike its neighbor. It is the same height as its neighbor. Its cladding uses chamois sandstone to harmonize with the surroundings. The sandstone is likely from Wallace in Nova Scotia. Wallace Quarries stone was used for the Montreal Stock Exchange.
The building’s architectural treatment is simpler than its neighbor. There are no monumental columns here. However it shares stylistic similarities. There is a symmetrical design and classical elements. These include fronton doors and large windows with latticework. Some elements like moldings medallions and the cornice are very refined. The New York Curb Market building built in 1921 shared a similar design spirit.
Relatively modest doors and windows are on the ground floor. They were intended for members and employees. Tall windows indicate the Curb Market’s trading floor location. A widened opening in the right wing of the neighboring Stock Exchange allowed visitors access. It led to a marble staircase for viewing both trading floors.
Today the internal organization has changed. The former trading floor is now the Centaur’s first performance hall. It is smaller than the one in the old Stock Exchange.
The Montreal Curb Market was founded in 1926. Members of the Montreal Stock Exchange founded it. It traded new securities and speculative stocks. These did not meet the Montreal Stock Exchange’s requirements.
The Exchange Clearing House facilitated transfers between members. The Exchange Printing Co printed daily transactions. They produced the Official Daily News for both exchanges.
The building originally had its own entrances. This made it functionally independent. However internal connections existed from the beginning. A shared monumental staircase led to the upper floors.
Now a protected heritage site this building stands as a reminder. It reminds us of Montreal’s dynamic financial past. It is part of the Montreal heritage site. This designation falls under the Cultural Heritage Act since October 19 2012.