The Hotel Macdonald

The Hotel Macdonald was designed by the infamous firm of Ross & Macdonald and later built by the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway in 1915. Built as a railway hotel, this building was designed to impress, with seven-stories, copper dormers, high pitched irregular rooflines, finished with Indiana limestone, corbelled balconies, and many turrets and finials. Sparing no modern conveniences: electric elevators, dumbwaiters, modern heating and ventilation.

Before the construction of the hotel, the land housed a squatters camp, known as the "Galician Hotel," after several Ukrainian-speaking migrants settled there. The land was purchased by the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway and began construction in 1911 at a completed cost of 2.25-million dollars (61.7-Million in 2020 dollars) and was opened to the public on July 5, 1915.

The hotel was named for Sir John A. Macdonald, Canada’s first Prime Minister. Quickly becoming Edmonton’s premier hotel, it attracted many prevalent guests the world over. When King George VI and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother visited in 1939, Edmonton experienced its first-ever traffic jam as citizens of all walks of life gathered to catch a glimpse of the royal couple. The finest suite was named in honour of the Queen Mother, featuring a large foyer, two bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms, a large living room, and a huge foyer.

Through its many years of service, the hotel has seen many celebrity guests including Queen Elizabeth II, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Carol Burnett, Sir Paul McCartney, the Rolling Stones, U2, Bill Clinton, Justin Timberlake, Oprah Winfrey, and Jessica Biel.

In an article by Claire Theobald, July 3, 2015, in the Edmonton Sun, the director of sales and marketing Steven Walton says it’s hard to list all the celebrities that have passed through. "Usually what we say is name one and I’ll tell you if they haven’t stayed with us," he said. "Our colleagues are very used to it,"  Walton says celebrities tend to mingle, and some even showcase their talents for other guests. Paul McCartney sang Christmas carols in the lobby, while actress Carol Burnet sang “Don’t Cry for Me, Argentina” from the third-floor balcony.

Following Grand Trunk's bankruptcy in 1919, management of the hotel was passed to the Canadian National Hotels, a division of the Canadian National Railway. Following the repeal of the prohibition laws in 1924, the hotel was one of the first two establishments to be reissued a liquor licence by the Alberta Liquor Control Board.

In 1953, to meet the postwar population boom, the hotel expanded with a 292-room addition, known simply as the "The Box."

In 1983, the hotel closed due to disrepair, leaving its future in jeopardy. Plans were announced by Canadian National Railway to complete a major renovation, build a complementary addition to the hotel, as well as two office towers; these plans never came to fruition. In 1985 the City of Edmonton designated the hotel as its first Municipal Historic Resource to save it from demolition and to keep the iconic hotel for future generations.

The hotel was sold to Canadian National Hotels in 1988, with the company undertaking a 28-million dollar restoration project. The project included the demolition of the 1953 addition "the box", and a restoration of the facade. Part of the restoration was the addition of specialty suites in the attic featuring turrets and spectacular views of the river valley and the City of Edmonton. The hotel was reopened on May 15, 1991.

In 2001, taking a name from an American company it had purchased in 1999, Canadian Pacific Hotels was rebranded as Fairmont Hotels and Resorts. This led to the renaming of the Hotel Macdonald as the “Fairmont Hotel Macdonald”.

Today, the Fairmont Hotel Macdonald stands as one of the city’s most iconic buildings, a regal silhouette on our skyline.