Paisley Main Street - North End

There has been considerable change in the nrth end of Paisley’s main street (Queen St.) since the above photograph was taken, some time about the turn of the century. But many of the buildings remain, with some alterations.

Only one of the stores bears an identifying sign. It seems safe to assume that the first building on the left was occupied by a grocery store, for examination under a magnifying glass reveals the poster in the doorway is an advertisement for “Sunlight”, probably soap.

The building remodelled inside and out, is now the Stoddart & Sawyer furniture store. The other frame buildings are gone, the last of which was demolished as recently as 1966, to become the site of the Centennial Library.

Easily identified with the aid of a glass is the name on the sign and the “sweat pads” hanging in front of J.H. Steele’s harness shop. The man in the doorway is not identifiable.

The first brick structure at the time the picture was taken, the W.H. McFarlane General Store, is now occupied by Bruce Pickard’s apartments, with completely changed front. Next door was, the writer believes a bank which was later occupied by the Pfaff family’s store and later the grocery and shoe store operated by the late D.C. McGregor, but now is the Odd Fellows Hall. The remaining brick buildings are generally structurally unchanged, with the exception of the Hanna House Hotel, the last brick building, which gave up its upper two storeys to the wreckers. The ground floor is now the J.S. Howe Motors.

The frame building to the north of Church Street and the white brick carpet factory have all disappeared, but the Armory and the pork factory (later the creamery) still stand.


Queen Street looking south from Church Street. The Hannah House is first on the right. The next block was occupied by J. S, Nicholl and purchased by W. E. Theaker who ran a Dry Goods Store 1929-1962. The following was a 5c to $1 Store operated by Alex Keith 1938-1951.

The east side of Queen Street in the first block north of the Teeswater River bridge. None of the buildings in the central area of the picture now stands.

Long gone are the blacksmith shop and storage shed on the extreme left, and the big old planing mill and its windmill which stood on Church Street at the end of Ross Street. The hardware store was destroyed by fire, and the frame structure on the extreme right was one of a series which stretched almost to the bridge and were torn down at intervals over the years.

The elevated board walk and the concrete crosswalk disappeared almost half a century ago, and even the floodwaters have been contained by thousands of loads of fill dumped in the area through the years. The hydro and telephone wires have not been entirely eliminated, but they have been reduced in numbers from the 29 strands revealed in the photo.

Unfortunately, neither the date of the picture nor the identity of occupants of the building or the bystanders on the street is available.


The Hanah House. The painter at top right is the late Burton Tooke.


Queen Street lookng south towards the
Teeswater River bridge

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An Historic Album of Paisley
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