After a hiatus of a couple of years, I've begun to take my sketchbook out into the city looking for derelicts – looking for pending change. One place that's been on my mind is the house at 1885 Venables that was used as rehearsal and administration space next door to The Cultch. The house was … Continue reading The green house next to The Cultch
The 1911 Canada Census, now available online, is an extraordinary resource for historians. For those seeking information about individuals or families, a number of geneaological organizations have transcribed some of the data, making it a relatively easy matter to find people. However, the same cannot be said for those of us who study streets and … Continue reading 1911 Census Finding Aid
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 … Continue reading Notes For The Early History of Rose And Lily Streets
On Thursday evening last, Fr. Eugenio, pastor of the St. Francis of Assisi parish in Grandview, very kindly invited a group of GHG members and friends to the Church on Napier Street where he took us on a tour of both the church and the rectory where he lives. In the early 1920s, Franciscan monks … Continue reading Tour of St. Francis Church and Rectory
Between 1908 and 1912, during the boom that essentially created Grandview, James Guinet was responsible for building at least 45 houses in the community, and probably more. But only the barest of facts are known about him. These are notes for a biography of what might be one of the most important figures of Grandview's … Continue reading James Guinet: A Builder of Grandview
Just the other day I was standing on Commercial Drive looking across at two of my favourite buildings which are in the centre of the east side of the 1600-block. The building on the left is the Odlin Block and the building on the right is the Rodway Block. My interest was piqued because these … Continue reading The Wealthy Barber and The Tin Man
Back in May, I posted a first analysis of the 179 individuals who were counted as living on Park Drive (later known as Commercial Drive) at the time of the census in 1911. In this second part, I'll take a look at immigration patterns, employment, wages and the position of women. Of the 179 people, … Continue reading Who Lived Here In 1911 (Part 2)
In an earlier post, we described how the Brandon Block on Commercial Drive was pushed back by seven feet when the street was widened in 1913. Further to that, I have now found the Local Improvement Schedule that includes the widening. The Schedule was published on 18th October 1911 and called for the widening of … Continue reading Widening Commercial Drive
I have spent more than a few days recently with my head in the Canada Census for 1911. The original census takers' sheets are now available on line (I'll have more to say on that at the end of this post.) and it is possible to build up a fairly detailed picture of the pioneers … Continue reading Who Lived Here In 1911? (part 1)
The Alvarado Block, which still dominates the corner at Commercial & Graveley, opened for business one hundred years ago in 1912. Owners J.Y. Griffin and J.M. Brown received a building permit on the 7th April 1911 and they hired architects Townsend & Townsend to design a $16,000 three-storey brick edifice with stores and apartments. Townsend … Continue reading The Alvarado Block
In honour of International Women's Day, I thought I'd write a short piece on one of the most dynamic women ever to grace Grandview and Commercial Drive. Catherine Bufton (nee Drake) was born in Gloucester, England, in 1881. She emigrated to Manitoba where she met and married Hubert Bufton. After Hubert's service in World War … Continue reading International Women’s Day: Catherine Bufton
Jak's post below shows an ad offering the block bounded by Garden, Parker, Nanaimo and Napier for sale. Six houses had been completed by 1912 when the Goad's Atlas (mentioned in a previous post) was published. The great real-estate boom continued for another year or so before collapsing just before the beginning of the First … Continue reading More about “$300 a lot”
Library and Archives Canada have recently added a copy of a century-old property atlas (used by the fire insurance industry) to its website -- the perfect time-waster for a rainy day. Grandview is in Volume 2. Click on the link above and search on the archives site or use Google to search Goad's + Vancouver … Continue reading Goad’s 1912 fire atlas on line
On February 12th, 1912, Thomas Shiels opened the Grandview Theatre movie house at 1712 Commercial. It is the white-arched building in the middle of this image. The building permit had been dated 10th October 1910, with J.J. Donellan as architect and Jones & Purvis as builders. In his opening advertizing in the Western Call, Shiels … Continue reading Grandview Theatre — 100 Years Ago Today
In August 1911, T.A. Allan and his brother received a building permit to erect a three-storey brick apartment building on the corner of Commercial & Fourth Avenue. In the previous two years, the Allan Brothers had erected large buildings at 1872 Barclay, 1460 Bute, 1860 Comox and 3216 E. First. By the spring of 1912, … Continue reading 4th & Commercial: 1912
Just to the east of Cotton Drive, site of the previous photo, stands Commercial Drive, and these are images taken the same year as the panorama of Grandview, one hundred years ago in 1912. The year 1912 saw the end of a major building boom that had been in play for a couple of years. … Continue reading Commercial Drive in 1912
CVA 377-820 This is a marvelous panoramic shot of part of Grandview looking west from a point somewhere on Cotton Drive. Which avenue or street are we looking down, I wonder?
grandviewheritagegroup.ca 