Hanson Block I

Hanson Block I
10 – 14 York Street, Sackville, N.B.
HANSON BLOCK I
1927
Peter Hanson (1852-1930), a native of Sweden, sailed the seven seas as a sea captain before settling in Sackville where he built for himself a fine house on Bridge Street, the Captain Peter Hanson House. He became active in business and purchased a number of commercial properties. Among them was “The Pridham Block” a two-storey wooden building which occupied the site of the present 10 – 20 York Street; the ground floor was occupied by five businesses and in the upper floor were apartments. The building had been erected in 1902 by R.S. Pridham; its name was changed from “The Pridham Block” to “The Hanson Block.”On 24 January 1927 the entire building was destroyed by fire. Despite the fact that he was then 75 years old, Hanson undertook to rebuild the site, employing the Amherst architect J.A. Miner. In keeping with the Town of Sackville’s policy (born of experience) the new building was of brick, not wood. The two-storey structure was completed in two stages: while it appears to be one continuous building, in fact 10 – 14 York is separated from 16 – 20 York by a fire wall. The upper level houses apartments. The new building was completed in 1927.

10 – 14 York consists of two stores at the ground level. It is interesting to note that one of the stores in the original building was the photographic studio of R.S. Pridham of Amherst. In 1911 the business was purchased by Edgar P. Smith. Although Smith moved out of the building in 1923, he and his son returned in 1931. In the 1960s history came full cycle when the studio returned to the Pridham family. The store at #14 is still “PRIDHAM’S Studio.”
This building is within the Town of Sackville Municipal Heritage Conservation Area A.

For the Hanson Block as an example of the Main Street Commercial architectural style see Sackville Heritage Architecture Style Guide Section 4: MAIN STREET COMMERCIAL.”

Tantramar Heritage Trust | Historic Sites