Notes For The Early History of Rose And Lily Streets

Lily and Rose Streets are two of the most interesting oddities of Grandview, being “off the grid” of the surrounding streets.  No doubt they were a function of lot-splitting at some early date.

In August 1907, well-known local auctioneer J.J. Miller and 9 other local residents wrote to Vancouver Council’s Board of Works in regards to what would become Lily Street, asking them to:

“clear a right of way on an un-named street lying between blocks one and two in Block 136 Grandview, and between William and Napier Streets, being about 260 feet long.  Several new houses are going up there and the residents are unable to obtain access to their homes unless the Council renders them sound assistance in the manner asked for.”

Rose Street was cleared and graded in the summer of 1909.  George Freeman was the foreman and the work was completed on 24^th August.  That November, a sewer was laid on Rose Street. In April 1910, a 3-plank sidewalk was laid on both sides of Rose Street.

In May 1910, Lily Street was cleared and graded, and a sewer laid. In April 1911, a 7-room house on Lily Street was offered for sale at $5,500.  This was an average price in Grandview at that period – the height of the pre-war building boom.

 

Earliest Building Permits for Lily Street

Address	Date	Owner	Architect	Builder	Value
1115	1910-06-12	McLellan, S.	McLellan, S.	McLellan, S.	$2,700
1131	1910-06-02	McLellan, S.	McLellan, S.	McLellan, S.	$2,500
1139	1910-06-02	McLellan, S.	McLellan, S.	McLellan, S.	$2,700
1142	1909-12-07	Proffit, J.R.	Proffit, J.R.	Mahoney, A.D.	$1,850
1149	1910-10-26	McLellan, S.	McLellan, S.	McLellan, S.	$2,700
1152	1910-11-14	Thompson, G.	Thompson, G.	Thompson, G. J	$1,600

1911 Canada Census – Lily Street

The 1911 Canada Census pages for Lily Street (12-32-12, 13 and 14) are extremely difficult to read.  The following information is what I can make out.

1115    Herbert & Florence Burns (both aged 32) lived with two daughters (8 and 4) and a son (1 year), along with two older relatives (60 and 62) and another female (18 years old).  Mrs. Burns and the 18-year were Dutch while the rest of the residents were of Scottish extraction.  All of the residents were listed as Presbyterians.  Herbert’s occupation was listed as “house building.”

1118    Nathaniel Rose (42) and his wife Jessie (30) lived with their son James (5) and their two daughters, Jessie (3) and the infant Katherine (?). The four oldest in the family emigrated from Scotland in 1909.  They were Presybterian.  Nathaniel worked as a labourer for the BCER.

1131    Mrs. Pearce, a 30-year old widow, lived with her sons (aged 5 and 3), her 73-year old father William (surname illegible), two of her sisters aged 32 and 29, and an 18-year old female lodger with the same illegible surname as her father and sisters.  All of the residents were born in England and were Baptists.  Mrs. Pearce worked as a nurse (?), the elder sister worked in a laundry, her father still worked as a shoemaker, and the lodger was a seamstress.

1138    Daniel Brown (age 24) and his wife Mary Elizabeth (23) lived with their 2-year old son Joseph, Daniel’s older brother John (35) and John’s wife Sarah (34). They appear to have emigrated from England in different years: John in 1904, Daniel in 1909, Mary in 1910 and Sarah in 1911.  Both brothers worked as moulders at the Ross & Howard Iron Works.

1139    Frank and Pearl Frederics (?), aged 27 and 21, lived with their one-year old son, Pasquale (?), and two of Franks brothers, Thomas (24) and Federico (?) (21). The family had moved to Canada from Italy in 1908, while Pasquale was born in BC.  All of the family were Roman Catholics.  Frank and Thomas worked as barbers; Federico was a tailor.

1142    Robert H. Cleborn (aged 40) and his wife Elizabeth (28) lived with their 4-year old son Stanley.  Elizabeth had emigrated from England in 1896, Robert in 1901.  He worked as a salesman.

1145    Charles B. Stamford and his wife Margaret, both 30 years old, lived with 20 year old Alice Appleyard and four young sons – Ray (4), Frank (2), Charles (1) and a two-month old baby.   Margaret was said to have arrived from the USA in 1906, but son Ray was listed as having been born in the USA in 1907.  All the residents were Presbyterians.  Charles was the manager of a shoe store and held insurance worth $6,000 (an extraordinary sum.) Alice was a nurse.

1149    Alexander McLellan (aged 32) and his wife Elva (31) lived with their one-year old son (name illegible) and their 10-year old niece Mazie (?) O’Brien.  Alexander, Mazie and Elva were born in the USA and they appear to have arrived in Canada in 1909. They were all Presbyterian.  Alexander was a housebuilding contractor and may well be the “S. McLellan” listed in the building permits.  By 1912 at least he had a partnership – McLellan & Middleton – working as masonry contractors.

1150    Hy John Hills (50 years old) and his 32-year old wife Anne lived with their 8 year old daughter Margaret.  Hy had come to Canada from England in 1870, while Anne had also come from England but not until 1901.  The family was Methodist.  Hy was a street labourer.

1152    William George Rowe and his wife Florence, both aged 29, lived with their sons, William George (6) and Joseph (an infant who was born in Alberta), and their 11-month old daughter Diane Alice.  Florence had been born in Ontario and was of Scottish heritage.  They were Anglicans.  William worked as an accountant.

Earliest Building Permits for Rose Street

Address	Date	Owner	Architect	Builder	Value
1108	1910-03-03	Main, John	Main, John	Main, John	$1,500
1112	1910-02-09	Wilson, J.L.	Wilson, J.L.	Wilson, J.L.	$1,500
1118	1909-06-08	Charley, Chin Wing	Charley, Chin Wing	Barrett & Earl	$1,250
1122	1909-06-08	Charley, Chin Wing	Charley, Chin Wing	Barrett & Earl	$1,250
1128	1910-04-01	Burgess, Mrs. R.	Burgess, Mrs. R.	Burgess, H.	$1,500
1132	1909-04-03	Barrett, J.	Barrett, J.	Barrett, J.	$1,100
1138	1909-09-09	Cox, J.M.	Cox, J.M.	Cox, J.M.	$1,300
1142	1909-02-22	Wilson, J. Lennox	Wilson, J. Lennox	Wilson, J. Lennox	$ 800
1148	1910-07-27	Arnold, H.B.	Arnold, H,B.	Arnold, H.B.	$2,200
1156	1910-09-28	Arnold, H.B.	Arnold, H.B.	Arnold, H.B.	$2,200
1162	1910-09-11	Arnold, H.B.	Arnold, H.B.	Arnold, H.B.	$3,800

 

1911 Canada Census – Rose Street

The 1911 Canada Census pages for Rose Street (12-32-15 and 17) are also extremely difficult to read.  The following information is what I can make out.

1114    Mr. Woods (age 43) lived with his wife Margaret (31), their daughter Eileen (1) and infant son John. All but John were born in England, and the family was Roman Catholic.  Mr. Woods worked as a labourer for the City.

1118    Harvey (?) Lusier (31) and his wife Hazel (29) lived with their three sons, Harold (8), Ernest (6) and Laurence (2), and with David White (23) and 21 year old man (name illegible), who’s relationships with the Lusic family are also illegible.  Harvey Lusier was born in New Brunswick and the oldest son was born in the USA.  All the others were BC-born.  Other than Hazel (who was Scottish), the entire household claimed French heritage, and everyone was Roman Catholic.  Harvey seemed to be the only one working: he was a labourer at the Sugar Refinery.  For 60 hours a week, he earned $800 in the previous year.

1128    Dudley Gulston (?) lived with his wife Laura and their 11-yeard old son Hector.  As Dudley was only 26 and his wife 28 in 1911, they must have had Hector at a very early age.  All members of the family were born in England and were Presbyterians.  Dudley worked as a steward in a club, making $600 in the previous year.

1138    George (30 years old) and his wife Catherine Brown (29) shared their house with a 23 year old lodger, Seymour Wright.  The Browns were from New Brunswick and the lodger from Nova Scotia. George was a Methodist, his wife a Christian Scientist, and the lodger was a Baptist.  George worked as a salesman for an aluminum company.  The lodger was a timekeeper for a builder’s company.

1142    Alexander Ross (33) and his wife (name illegible, age 33) lived with Alex’s sister Jessie (22) and a male lodger (name illegible, also age 22). They were Scottish Presbyterians and had arrived in Canada in 1903. Alex worked as a blacksmith at the Mainland Transfer Co., earning $1,164 in the previous year.  The lodger worked as a labourer.

1143    Mrs. Josephine Lindsay, aged 38 and widow of Alex Lindsay, lived with her two daughters.  Both their names are illegible, but they were 16 and 14 years old. There was also a lodger, a 40-year old widower whose name is illegible. Mrs. Lindsay had emigrated from Norway in 1890. The lodger was also Norwegian but had been born in England.  Mrs. Lindsay was a Presbyterian but her children were listed as Anglicans.  The lodger worked, but it is unclear what he did.

1148    Joseph Houston (45) and his 38-year old wife (name illegible) lived with their two sons, Joseph (10) and George (3).  They seem to have moved a lot: Father Joseph was born in the USA and his wife was from Nova Scotia.  The two boys were born in Saskatchewan and the USA respectively.  The family was Presbyterian.  The kind of work that Joseph did is unclear, but he held $10,000 of insurance.  It is interesting to note that the Houston family was counted twice, on page 15 and again on page 17.

1156    Anthony Carlton (aged 61) and his wife (name illegible, age 54) lived with their two daughters Mrs. Campbell and (name illegible, age 24), and Mrs. Campbell’s two daughters (names illegible) aged 5 and 3.  All of the family were born in England and were Anglican.  Anthony Carlton was listed in the census as an “odd jobs” man and as a labourer in the 1912 Directory.

 

This is the section of Goad’s map of December 1912 covering Rose and Lily Streets (click on image for a larger view.) As we can see, by this date Rose Street is built out with 11 of 13 blocks constructed.  The west-side of Lily is also virtually complete, with gaps still open on the east side.