The Caledonian has graced Main Street since 1892

The false front of the building at the eastern corner of Oak Park and Main Street in Moncton is a clue to its past. The lettering on the façade is gone and the stone front and brick walls are covered with siding. Built by William H. Faulkner in 1892, the building was welcomed as a splendid and modern addition to Main Street.

Faulkner settled in Moncton in the mid 1880s and was manager of The Metallic Monument Co. By 1891 he owned a clothing business on Main Street and moved into his new location in September 1892.

Faulkner named his new building The Caledonian. It was 40 feet by 75 feet and three stories high.

The first level had two storefronts, one for Faulkner’s business and the other to rent. The second floor was divided into commercial sample rooms which visiting salesmen rented to show their wares to wholesale customers.

The third floor space served as a public hall for meetings, church services and community fairs.

A furniture dealer first rented from Faulkner and then Middleton Jones rented the space for his stationery and book business. By 1900, Middleton and his brother Andrew Jones bought the building and the Jones brothers rented space for a short time to clothing merchant Patrick J. Quinn.

Middleton Jones decided to expand and took over the entire first floor by opening the wall between the two store areas. Circumstances changed again in 1904 when the Jones brothers sold the building to James Flanagan.

Flanagan previously ran two stores on East Main Street. His Central Dry Goods Stores carried many items including ladies’, children’s and gents’ clothing, furs, household linens and fabrics. In 1905 he sold The Caledonian to John Daniel Creaghan from Newcastle and retired from business in 1907.

J.D. Creaghan was already well established as a dry-goods merchant in Newcastle and Chatham.

He bought all of Flanagan’s stock, valued at $25,000, and offered it to ‘storekeepers, traders and the general public’ at bargain prices.

Creaghan was born in County Galway, Ireland.

He learned the retail business while employed by merchants in Dublin and Glasgow before emigrating to Fredericton in 1875 to manage a store. Later, he and a partner opened a dry-goods store in Newcastle and, when that partnership dissolved in 1887, Creaghan carried on as the owner. He opened another store in Chatham and then in Moncton. His businesses became known as ‘the Eaton’s of New Brunswick.’

The grand opening of the Moncton store was delayed. After the successful sale of all of Flanagan’s stock, the new stock had not arrived. Creaghan made buying trips to the British Isles and Europe where he took pride in personally choosing only the best goods for his stores.

Most of the shipment for the grand opening was aboard the S.S. Parisian via Manchester, Glasgow and Belfast. As she was entering Halifax harbour, the S.S. Albano accidentally rammed the ship. The Parisian made it to the dock and all the passengers got off safely before the ship sank to its deck and rested on the bottom of Halifax harbour. Creaghan’s merchandise was rescued and the grand opening of the Moncton store was also a ‘tremendous slaughter sale of wet goods.’

Creaghan publicly apologized for the delay in the store opening and assured customers that ‘the goods were perfectly sound and clean, only wet by water.’

After buying The Caledonian, J.D. Creaghan made some changes to the building. The original flat roof was changed to the present slope and a large section was added on the north side.

J.D. Creaghan died in 1938. The business continued to operate as J.D. Creaghan Ltd. until 1990.

Jas. Flanagan Establishment on Main St. Disposed of to Mr. Creaghan, of Chatham, N. B.

Mr. J. D. Creaghan, of Chatham, N.B., has purchased the stock of dry goods, clothing, etc., from Mr. Jas. Flanagan. Mr. Creaghan is inviting tenders for the stock en bloc, or in lots to suit purchasers. The stock will be open for inspection each day, until March 6th, when tenders will close. The Caledonia Building, owned by Mr. Flanagan, in which the stores are located, has also been sold to Mr. Creaghan.