Description of Historic Place

The Bank of Nova Scotia, located in downtown Ottawa, is a rigorously Classical stone building designed in the Beaux-Arts style. Its proportions and overall simplicity is derived from a severe Doric order, while its fine stone craftsmanship and decorative details on the exterior and a generous banking hall on the interior contribute to its distinctly classical character. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.

Heritage Value

The Bank of Nova Scotia is a Classified federal heritage building because of its historical associations, and its architectural and environmental values.

Historical Value
The Bank of Nova Scotia is a very good example of the early 20th-century economic development and diversification of Ottawa, marking the dominance of Sparks Street in retail trade and office-sector financial activities. Chartered in 1832, the Bank of Nova Scotia was first contained within the 1874 building erected for the Bank of Ottawa on Wellington Street. In 1924, following the trend of movement away from this area, the bank was moved to Sparks Street.

Architectural Value
The Bank of Nova Scotia is one of the best examples of John Lyle’s works, and is the most rigorously classical of his buildings. The clarity of the arrangement of details, the balance of the design and the reflection on the exterior, of the interior design, all embody the best of Beaux-Arts planning and exemplify its excellent esthetic design. Its Doric order respects archaeological precedent, while the detailing combines references to Canadian economic activities. The stonework treatments of the construction and the detailing demonstrate the excellent craftsmanship. The building’s composition is remarkable in its lucid proportions and achieves an overall simplicity, demonstrating a very good functional design.

Environmental Value
By reinforcing the economic and historic character of its surroundings, the Bank of Nova Scotia has maintained an unchanged historical association with the streetscape, which make it a familiar landmark in downtown Ottawa.

Sources: Dana Johnson, Bank of Nova Scotia, Ottawa, Ontario, Federal Heritage Building Review Office Building Report 85-008; Bank of Nova Scotia, Ottawa, Ontario, Heritage Character Statement, 85-008.

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of the Bank of Nova Scotia should be respected.

Its excellent aesthetic design, very good functional design and excellent craftsmanship and materials, as evidenced by: its Beaux-Arts design, as exhibited by the arrangement of details, the balance of the design and the reflection on the exterior of the interior design; the classical conception of the Sparks Street façade exhibiting Beaux-Arts principles, including its high rusticated base and a piano nobile in smooth ashlar, the symmetrical arrangement and type of openings such as the centre door, the four windows, and recessed niches, and the four-freestanding columns and a capping cornice; its Doric order and ornamentatal scheme, respecting archaeological precedent; the relative opacity of the main façade fundamental to the original architectural intent, and expressive of its original use as a bank; the general volumes of its interior, including the generous banking hall, and the mezzanine offices overlooking the central space; the combination of traditional classical detailing with references to traditional Canadian economic activities, including the banking hall decoration with scenes of Canadian life on the marble walls; the surviving Greek inspiration ornamentation, fittings and furniture; the interior materials, including the marble-walled vestibule, the rose grey Tennessee marble floors of the banking hall and the pink marble dados with cast stone walls above.

The manner in which the Bank of Nova reinforces the economic character of its setting and preserves its historical relationship with the unchanged streetscape, as evidenced by: its prominent location on both Sparks Street in one of the most accessible areas of the Ottawa downtown core; its design, function and location, which makes it a familiar landmark in downtown Ottawa for residents of the city and tourists.

Heritage Character Statement

Disclaimer - The heritage character statement was developed by FHBRO to explain the reasons for the designation of a federal heritage building and what it is about the building that makes it significant (the heritage character). It is a key reference document for anyone involved in planning interventions to federal heritage buildings and is used by FHBRO in their review of interventions.

The Bank of Nova Scotia, Ottawa, was built in 1924-25 to designs by John M. Lyle, architect, of Toronto. It was acquired by Public Works Canada in 1973, and has been vacant since 1985. See FHBRO Building Report 85-08.

Reason for Designation
On June 2, 1986, the Bank of Nova Scotia was designated Classified because it is a superior work of architecture, one of the best designs by a nationally significant architect, and because of its positive contribution to the character of Sparks Street.

John M. Lyle was a Beaux Arts trained architect much admired by his peers. He is best remembered for his vigorous call for the development of a Canadian ornamental vocabulary within the Beaux Arts style. In his several buildings for the Bank of Nova Scotia, Lyle pursued this idea with carved representations of Canadian wildlife and allegorical sculpture of Canadian industry. His Ottawa bank is the most rigorously Classical of these buildings: its Doric order respects archaeological precedent and much of the rest of the ornamental scheme is intended to be Doric, at least in spirit. The composition of the façade, of course, is distinctly Beaux Arts, borrowing as much from Roman and Renaissance precedent as from the Greek. This composition is remarkable in its lucid proportions, and achieves an overall simplicity despite its fairly generous array of festoons and cornucopia. The architect's effort to Canadianize his architecture is less evident, and less painful, in this design than in his later works.

Much of the interior of the building is occupied by a generous banking hall; mezzanine offices overlook this central space. The banking hall was lit by a coloured-glass skylight; its walls were relieved with murals of scenes from Canadian life. The Greek inspiration of the building extended to the design of its fittings and furniture. In 1957, the splendours of this space were seriously diminished by the installation of an indifferent luminous ceiling; its original fittings have mostly disappeared.

Character Defining Elements
The whole of the Sparks Street façade of this building, including all windows, doors, and architectural metals, and the general volumes of its interior are essential to its architectural and historical character. The relative opacity of this façade is fundamental to the original architectural intent, and was expressive of its original use. Any attempt to make this façade more transparent would be an affront to the building.

General interior volumes and surviving ornament should be preserved and perhaps restored. (One can hope that the skylight survives above the luminous ceiling.) The best care of this building would result from a use being found which can be fitted to its existing spaces. Failing this, the building is valuable enough that any changes made must be readily reversible. Heritage doctrine requires that the new be kept quite distinct from the old; the character of the interior of this building is strong enough that it may respond well to a literal reading of this doctrine.