Port Arthur Customs House (1914)
| Port Arthur Customs House (1914) | |
|---|---|
| Building (customs house, later newspaper office) | |
_building_(Elaine_Lynch_post,_photo_1).jpg) | |
| The building before demolition | |
| Address | Corner of Water Street and Red River Road, Port Arthur |
| Existed | 1914 – 1980 |
| Coordinates | 48.43428, -89.21790 |
| View on map → | |
The Port Arthur Customs House was a masonry building at the corner of Water Street and Red River Road in Port Arthur. It was built in 1914 as the federal customs house, became the home of the News-Chronicle newspaper, and was demolished in 1980.[1] The map point is the OpenStreetMap intersection of Water Street and Red River Road, so it is approximate for the building itself.
It is a different building from the earlier Customs House on Lincoln Street.
History
The federal government built the customs house in 1914, using heavy masonry and interior reinforcement to protect government records. In 1954 the building was bought as the home of the News-Chronicle (see also Port Arthur News-Chronicle), which was published there for more than twenty years.[1] A large-letter sign reading "The News Chronicle" stood on the roof. Inside were small offices painted institutional green. Typesetters set lead type on the lower floor, visible from the sidewalk through arched windows set at sidewalk level.[1][2]
The paper's Circulation and Display Advertising departments were in the building until the paper moved to a new location; Karen Matson, her mother and her four sisters worked in them. Newspaper carriers, among them Ralph Neri, paid for their routes at the building each Saturday.[2]
The building was demolished in 1980; its solid construction made it hard to bring down.[1]
_demolition_(Elaine_Lynch_post,_photo_2).jpg)
_demolition_(Elaine_Lynch_post,_photo_3).jpg)
See also
- Customs House, the earlier customs house on Lincoln Street
- News-Chronicle
- Chronicle-Journal
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "The C-J building", Facebook post by Elaine Lynch, Thunder Bay Mystery and History, 11 June 2026. Archived.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Comments on "The C-J building", Thunder Bay Mystery and History (Facebook), June 2026. Archived.