Fort Amherst · Photo: SingleIntegral · CC BY-SA 3.0

35historic places on the registers

History of St. John's · Canada’s heritage registers

St. John's’s record starts in 1697 with Fort William

Canada’s heritage registers list 35 historic places inside St. John's, 25 with the highest designation. Scaled to its population, 2.7 per 10,000 residents beats 89% of Canadian towns. Among the places are 7 provincial or municipal listings, 2 Recognized Federal Heritage Buildings and a heritage lighthouse. 119 further listings on provincial or municipal registers are known only through Wikidata, so they have no page of their own.

28photos 25highest designations 1697oldest building

Historic places

2.7 per 10,000 residents

Highest designations

National Historic Sites and Classified Federal Heritage Buildings

Other federal designations

Recognized buildings, railway stations, lighthouses

Provincial and local listings

provincial and municipal listings with an encyclopedia article

Oldest building

1697

the first construction date on its record

Homes built before 1961

22%

typical town: 18%

In pictures

Then and today: St. John's in 28 photos and 15 old pictures

Of St. John's’s most honoured places, 20 are photographed. Photos show 28 of the places St. John's’s registers name; the others show their record instead. Open a place’s page for its old views: 6 places in St. John's have them.

St. John's Court House

St. Thomas Rectory / Commissariat House and Garden

Murray Premises

Christ Church / Quidi Vidi Church

Basilica of St. John the Baptist+23See all photos

Photos from Wikimedia Commons, each credited to its photographer with its licence; names open the place’s page. Tap a photo to step through them full screen.

Through time

St. John's from 1842 to 1924

On one line by date: 9 old photographs of the town and the oldest views of 6 of its historic places. The dots mark each picture’s year; tap one to enlarge it.

Before ConfederationBONNYCASTLE(1842) p006 ST. JOHN'S, ENTRANCE TO THE HARBOURPublic domain

Before ConfederationBONNYCASTLE(1842) p248 ST. JOHN'S HARBOUR - FROM ABOVE THE LONG BRIDGEPublic domain

Before ConfederationHarbour, Town and Narrows of St. John's, NewfoundlandPhoto: Clarke, William Pardoe, approximately 1818- (author) Picken, Thomas, -1870 (after) · Public domain

Before ConfederationAnglican Cathedral St. John's NewfoundlandPhoto: The Illustrated London News · Public domain

Before ConfederationBank of British North America, Duckworth StreetPhoto: Best, W. R., active 1850-1858 (contributor) Page and Best (St. John's, N.L.) (publisher) Spreat, William, active 1840-18 · Public domain

Before ConfederationColonial Building NewfoundlandPhoto: Drawn by W.R. Best, on Stone by W. Spreat, lithographed by W. Spreat's Litho Establishment, Exeter, England, 1851 · Public domain

Before ConfederationGovernment House Newfoundland 1851Photo: Drawn by W.R. Best, on Stone by W. Spreat, lithographed by W. Spreat's Litho Establishment, Exeter, England, 1851 · Public domain

Before ConfederationBasilcia of St. John the Baptist, St. John'sPhoto: Drawn by W.R. Best, on Stone by W. Spreat, lithographed by W. Spreat's Litho Establishment, Exeter, England · Public domain

Confederation to 1900Artist sketching the St. John's Harbour and skyline (c. 1910)Photo: S.H. Parsons & Sons · Public domain

Confederation to 1900Bowring brothers shop st. john'sPublic domain

Confederation to 1900Saint John the Baptist Cathedral 1892Public domain

Confederation to 1900Greenland Icefields (1896) FigPhoto: Uncredited photographer in 1896 publication · Public domain

Boom yearsA-3-65Photo: Holloway family fonds Robert Edwards Holloway photographs · Public domain

Boom yearsTown and Harbour of St. John's, NewfoundlandPhoto: Hayward, John William, 1843-1913 · Public domain

The wars and betweenUnveiling the National War Memorial, StPublic domain

Public domain or CC0, made before 1950, from Wikimedia Commons; old views of places can be drawings, prints or maps of their time. Each credit opens the image’s page.

How old

In St. John's, the years before Confederation left the most behind

Each place by the first construction date on its record.

New France before 17602

British North America 1760–186618

After Confederation 1867–19135

Wars and Depression 1914–19451

Since 1946 1946 on4

Of the 30 with a date, 20 predate 1867.

How it began

The dates behind St. John's, from 1583

St. John's is named after John the Baptist. Railway Coastal Museum, the earliest station on record, opened in 1903. For the municipality of St. John's itself, Wikidata records August 5, 1583, a date that can be a founding as much as a merger.

How it began: Wikidata (CC0).

The map

Where St. John's’s history is

Every place on the registers inside the town, by its designation.

Federal designations come from Parks Canada’s directory; a province’s or a council’s own listing shows here only when Wikidata holds it and an encyclopedia covers it.

Points from Wikidata (Parks Canada’s files carry none) and from Québec’s register, as mapped there. 5 places, placed by their register’s municipality, have no point and aren’t on the map.

Highest designations

St. John's’s 25 top designations

They are 23 National Historic Sites and 2 Classified Federal Heritage Buildings. National Historic Sites and Classified Federal Heritage Buildings, Canada’s highest federal recognition. Fort William is the earliest, from 1697; the latest dates from 1979. Each one opens its own page.

National Historic Site · 1697–1698Signal Hill230 Signal Hill RoadPhoto: No machine-readable author provided. Tolivero assumed (based on copyright claims) · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1773–1780Fort TownshendBonaventure Avenue and Harvey RoadsPhoto: Skeezix1000 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1777–1778Fort AmherstSouthside RoadPhoto: SingleIntegral · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1818–1822St. Thomas Rectory / Commissariat House and Garden5 Kings Bridge RoadPhoto: Mo Laidlaw · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1820–1841Mallard Cottage2 Barrows RoadPhoto: Skeezix1000 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1827–1832Government House50 Military RoadPhoto: No machine-readable author provided. Jcmurphy assumed (based on copyright claims) · Public domain · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1835–1836Cape Spear LighthouseBlackhead Road / Route 11Photo: Mollyaspen · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1839–1856Basilica of St. John the Baptist172 Military RoadPhoto: Paul from Hacketts Cove, Canada · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1842–1843Christ Church / Quidi Vidi Church100 The BoulevardPhoto: Nilfanion · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1847–1850Murray Premises5 Beck's CovePhoto: David P Janes · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1847–1851St. John the Baptist Anglican Cathedral16 Church HillPhoto: Jcmurphy · Public domain · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1847–1917Water Street Historic DistrictWater Street (corner of George Street)Photo: Jcmurphy · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

Show the other 13

National Historic Site · 1848–1851Former Bank of British North America276 Duckworth StreetPhoto: Skeezix1000 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1864–1882St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church40 Patrick StreetPhoto: No machine-readable author provided. Jcmurphy assumed (based on copyright claims) · Public domain · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1892–1893Crow's Nest Officers' Club88 Water StreetPhoto: Skeezix1000 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1900–1905St. John's Court House194 Water StreetPhoto: Skeezix1000 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1901–1904Former Newfoundland Railway Headquarters495 Water StreetPhoto: Jcmurphy · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1905–1908Winterholme79 Rennies Mill RoadPhoto: Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1923–1925Newfoundland National War MemorialBetween Water and Duckworth Streets, across from Harbourside ParkPhoto: Jcmurphy · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

Classified Federal Heritage Building · 1900–1901Cabot TowerSignal Hill RoadPhoto: Aconcagua · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

National Historic Site · 1697–1698Fort William115 Cavendish Square

National Historic Site · 1777–1778St. John's WWII Coastal Defences

National Historic Site · 1826–2001St. John's Ecclesiastical District

National Historic Site · 1846–1921Rennie's Mill Road Historic District21-79,12-54 Rennie's Mill Road

Classified Federal Heritage Building · 1979–1980Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Centre80 White Hills Road

Other federal designations

3 other places Canada recognizes in St. John's

Designations came from 2000 to 2014. They are 2 Recognized Federal Heritage Buildings and a heritage lighthouse. Recognized Federal Heritage Buildings, heritage railway stations and lighthouses. Each one opens its own page.

Recognized Federal Heritage Building · 1955–1957Pleasantville-Building 2232231 Legion StreetPhoto: Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

Recognized Federal Heritage Building · 1953–1955Cape Spear LighttowerBlackhead Road, Highway 11

Heritage Lighthouse · 1951–1952Fort Amherst LighthouseSouthside Road, Fort Amherst

What’s designated

St. John's’s record leans to churches and religious buildings: 23%

5 places make public buildings the second group. Compared with the whole country’s registers (21%), houses are thin on the ground: 9%. The top of the list holds Fort William and Signal Hill.

Churches and religious buildings8

Public buildings5

Stations, lighthouses and bridges4

Mills, shops and works4

Forts and military buildings4

Houses3

Theatres, museums and memorials2

Other places5

Grouped by what each register says the place is or was; a converted building counts as what it was built for.

Provincial and local listings

7 more places St. John's or its province protects

Provincial and municipal listings that Wikidata records and an encyclopedia describes. Anderson House is the earliest, from 1804; the latest dates from 1844. Each one opens its own page.

City of St. John's heritage site · 1804Anderson HousePhoto: David P Janes · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

City of St. John's heritage site · 1844Bishop Feild CollegePhoto: Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

Provincial historic siteColonial BuildingPhoto: Jcmurphy · Public domain · Commons file

City of St. John's heritage siteGeorge Street United ChurchPhoto: MatthewVanitas · Public domain · Commons file

Registered heritage structureLSPU HallPhoto: Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

City of St. John's heritage siteMasonic TemplePhoto: HJKeats · Public domain · Commons file

City of St. John's heritage districtSt. John's Ecclesiastical DistrictPhoto: Dpjanes · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file

When designated

Designated in St. John's since 1951

The places by the year of their designation.

19401960198020002020

The first was Fort Amherst, in 1951. 4 have been added since 2011.

Homes by age

St. John's’s building boom came from 1961 to 1980: 30% of its homes

21% of St. John's’s homes were built from 2001 to 2015, more than the typical town’s 15%. Before 1961: 22% of St. John's’s homes, against 18% in most towns. New building in St. John's runs at the usual pace: 3.8% of homes from 2016–21, the typical town 4.1%.

22%

Before 1961

30%

1961–80

23%

1981–2000

21%

2001–15

3.8%

2016–21

St. John'sTypical town

2021 Census, private dwellings by period of construction (Statistics Canada); the typical town is the middle Canadian town of 2,500 or more.

Born here

7 national historic persons among St. John's’s people of the past

Beatrice Greig reached 105, the longest life here, ending in 1974. 81 people on the record were born here before 1914. The earliest is William Denning, born in 1740. 18 Wikipedias cover Harry Watson, the most of anyone here. The timeline shows the 20 best known.

William Denning

Thomas Skinner

Ambrose Shea

Frederick Carter

Cyprian Bridge

Michael Francis Howley

Daniel Joseph Greene

Johnny Burke

Thomas J. Clunie

Edith Archibald

Robert Bond

Maurice Prendergast

Charles Prendergast

Maurice Galbraith Cullen

Beatrice Greig

Cluny Macpherson

Frederick Gordon Bradley

Charles Philip Fenwick

Harry Watson

Robert Pilot

170017501800185019001950

Harry Watson1898–1957 · Ice hockey player

Maurice Prendergast1858–1924 · American-Canadian artist

Maurice Galbraith Cullen1866–1934 · Designated nationally in 1944 · Canadian artist

Edith Archibald1854– · Canadian suffragist and writer

Ambrose Shea1815–1905 · Person of national historic significance (1959) · Canadian businessma…

Beatrice Greig1869–1974 · Trinidadian writer and activist

Frederick Gordon Bradley1886–1966 · Canadian politician

Frederick Carter1819–1900 · Designated nationally in 1959 · Newfoundland politician

Everyone born in St. John's → Born before 1914. Birthplaces from Wikidata, each checked against Wikipedia; national historic persons from Parks Canada’s Directory of Federal Heritage Designations, matched by name and life years.

Towns its size

St. John's has the 2nd most of 16 towns its size

Towns of 111,800 to 149,500 residents, by places on the registers.

St. John's35

Ahead of it: Kingston. The typical town its size has 5. 2 of them have none.

Neighbours

St. John's and its neighbours

Town	People	Places	Highest	Oldest
St. John's	128,693	35	25	1697
Mount Pearl	24,266	1	0	1914
Petty Harbour-Maddox Cove	1,005	1	0	—
Portugal Cove-St. Philip's	9,167	0	0	—
Paradise	26,155	0	0	—
Logy Bay-Middle Cove-Outer Cove	2,601	0	0	—
Torbay	8,297	0	0	—

In brief

St. John's in brief

Canada’s heritage lists give St. John's 35 historic places, 25 with the highest designation, Fort William among them. 22% of its homes are older than 1961, against 18% in the typical town. Within 400 m of St. John the Baptist Anglican Cathedral stand 7 of the town’s places of the highest designation.

Only one of the 16 towns nearest its size has more historic places. Most of its dated places come from the years before Confederation: 18 of 30. Among the lives from its past: Harry Watson (1898), Maurice Prendergast (1858) and Maurice Galbraith Cullen (1866).

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

The grade. This page gives no grade; history doesn’t count toward a Canadian town’s letter.
The tiers. The highest designations are National Historic Sites, Classified Federal Heritage Buildings and Québec’s classements; then come the other federal designations; then provincial and local listings.
Protection. Federal recognition isn’t a planning control: buildings the federal government owns follow its heritage policy, while others are protected only by a provincial or municipal designation.
Map points. Parks Canada publishes no coordinates, so federal places are pinned where Wikidata puts them.
Provincial and municipal lists. Outside Québec, provinces’ and municipalities’ heritage registers aren’t open data; their places are known only through Wikidata items with a register number, and only those with an encyclopedia article get a page.
People and events. Parks Canada’s open file gives its national historic persons no place. A town’s page names one only when the person was born there (matched by name and both life years) or one of its own historic places carries the name and its record speaks of them; national historic events stay off.
The federal register. Every federal designation is in Parks Canada’s directory, and the Canadian Register of Historic Places gives most of them a bilingual statement of significance.

Questions about St. John's’s history

What is the oldest building in St. John's?

By its record, Fort William, from 1697 (National Historic Site).

Which places in St. John's have the highest designation?

These: Fort William, Signal Hill, Fort Townshend, Fort Amherst, St. John's WWII Coastal Defences and St. Thomas Rectory / Commissariat House and Garden, and 19 more.

Why might a heritage building in St. John's be missing here?

Provincial and municipal registers outside Québec aren’t open data. Wikidata knows 119 more listings in St. John's, but without an open description or an encyclopedia article they get no page.

How old are the homes in St. John's?

Before 1961: 22% of its homes; the typical town has 18%.

Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada (Parks Canada).

Sources: Parks Canada, Directory of Federal Heritage Designations · Canadian Register of Historic Places (federal extract) · Wikidata (CC0) for map points, other names and articles · Statistics Canada, 2021 Census (homes by period of construction). Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.

Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).