The History of Water Street

Originally known as “The Lower Path”, Water Street has been the heart of Downtown St. John’s since 1527. It began unpaved, unlit, winding and as narrow as six feet wide, connecting piers and fish processing buildings.

By 1811, with the dissolution of properties dedicated to ships, a wider variety of buildings began to populate the street, including factories, post offices, banks, restaurants, taverns, bakeries, drugstores, hotels and private houses. Huge fires in 1816, 1846 and 1892 ravaged the street and much of St. John’s. With each rebuild, Water Street was straightened and widened, and stricter edicts were put in place to encourage buildings with greater fire resistance.

Infrastructure changed significantly through Water Street’s history. After the second major fire in 1846, the street remained unpaved, but many business owners had put down wooden or stone sidewalks in front of their buildings. Significant improvements came in the late 1800s. In 1889, incandescent lights were installed along the street and in 1899 the street and sidewalks were paved in granite blocks, and simultaneously, electric street cars were installed, giving people more options for travelling in the downtown.

In 1939 buses were introduced along Water Street. The presence of buses, as well as the rise of the automobile, brought about the removal of the streetcar and repaving of Water Street in tarmac in 1948. Completing the current street infrastructure, traffic lights were added in 1952 and overhead electric wiring was put underground in 1966.

Now, in 2015, the requirement to upgrade infrastructure has made a comprehensive project possible, in which the character and experience of Water Street can continue to evolve and be refreshed.