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John A. McDougall began operating a fur trading and retail business on the northeast corner of Jasper Avenue and 101 Street shortly after arriving from Ontario in 1879. Richard Secord, who briefly worked as a clerk in McDougall's store, partnered to establish McDougall and Secord Ltd. in 1897. They decided to jointly construct a major four-storey, red-brick building at the site in 1905, with the upper levels containing offices — including space for the nascent Alberta government — and the main floor offering space for the Bank of Nova Scotia, drug stores, barber shops, and other retailers.
The rectangular Empire Block integrates Edwardian elements, with oversized keystones and windows flanked by two-storey pilasters. The footprint of the structure expanded in 1920 when an addition was constructed on the north end. A fire tore through the interior in 1942, requiring an extensive renovation that involved the installation of a new roof, woodwork, ceilings, and floors.
Though it survived the fire, it met a permanent end when the owners demolished the structure for the 12-storey Empire Building, erected in 1963. Manulife Place, Scotia Place and Enbridge Centre are the largest additions in the immediate vicinity since the completion of the replacement office building.
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