1906 – Fairchild Building, Winnipeg, Manitoba

Architect: John D. Atchison & Herbert B. Rugh

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J.D. Atchison, a Chicago-trained architect, who set up his very successful Winnipeg office in 1905, designed the building and another relocated Chicago designer, H. B. Rugh, who had come to Winnipeg in 1904, supervised the project. Atchison designed the Fairchild Building using stylistic motifs established by renowned Chicago architect Louis Sullivan (1856-1924). Atchison designed the six-storey pressed brick building using an internal steel frame structure with cast iron columns and wood joists. While Winnipeg’s earlier warehouses had small window openings due to simpler methods of construction and to limit the amount of daylight on drygoods and food products, the display of farm machinery required that ample windows be provided. The rear elevation is largely composed of wire glass fenestration and is a unique feature in Winnipeg’s warehouse district.