Philip Jamieson’s distinctive ‘Rounded Corner’ at Queen and Yonge shines again

Men’s clothing retailer Philip E. Jamieson (1850-1909) did not have a good 1895. Three years earlier, he’d celebrated completion of an extensive renovation at the north-west corner of Queen Street West and Yonge Street. The Globe reported that “the whole lower walls” had been torn out and replaced with “immense plate glass windows” to showcase his wares. “There are no better display windows in Canada,” the paper breathlessly reported.

However, in March, 1895, disaster struck when a massive fire destroyed the almost-new, seven-storey Simpson’s store across the street. With the strong winds blowing the flames about, other buildings, such as Jamieson’s, were partially consumed as well.