Many thanks to the nine brave souls who joined us this morning -- in pouring rain -- for the second half of our Centenary House signs walkathon to pick this year's candidates. Today we covered a lot of ground, primarily in the south and far east of the Grandview neighbourhood, where we identified a range … Continue reading No Damping Our Enthusiasm
Notes From The February Meeting
We had a busy, lively and highly productive meeting on Thursday last. The Centenary Birthday House project: We are still exploring options for permanent signs for the Centenary House campaign. These will be offered to those houses that were celebrated in 2012. We followed up on our walk for the 2013 campaign, and will finish … Continue reading Notes From The February Meeting
Walking The Neighbourhood
Many of us of the Grandview Heritage Group took a long walk through the neighbourhood yesterday afternoon. We were looking at the houses we have listed as potentials for the 2013 Centenary House signs and trying to whittle the list down to 25. The walk started in the 2000-block of Pandora and meandered down to … Continue reading Walking The Neighbourhood
Update on York Theatre Sign
While we are talking about historic signs, it seems that the protection of the "Little Theatre" sign on the south fly wall of the re-developed York Theatre has begun. The developer's plans for the preservation (though not display) of the sign is described here.
Update on the Shelly’s 4X sign
A plan is coming together to restore the sign on the side of the Via Tevere restaurant at Victoria and William. A small group of us are applying for grants to try to raise about $3000 for wages and materials to allow us to start work in April or May. The sign looked like this … Continue reading Update on the Shelly’s 4X sign
1911 Census Finding Aid
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
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 … Continue reading Notes For The Early History of Rose And Lily Streets
Notes from the January Meeting
On Thursday evening we had a grand turnout for our monthly meeting. It was, I believe, the largest gathering of its kind that we've had. There were lively discussions about a wide range of topics. We began by discussing the Heritage Workshop put on by the Community Planners that many of us had attended during … Continue reading Notes from the January Meeting
More Building Permits
I haven't been writing blog posts regularly over the last few weeks because I am swimming in an ocean of historical data that I am trying to collate for a project. Part of this data is coming from the extraordinarily important work that Heritage Vancouver is putting in to transcribe all the old Vancouver building … Continue reading More Building Permits
Tour of St. Francis Church and Rectory
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
Merry Christmas!
Just a quick note to wish all of our readers a wonderful season! We have managed to get a lot done for Grandview Heritage in the last 12 months and we are looking forward to even more success in the New Year. Thanks for your interest and donations!
1500-Block Grant Street
In an earlier post, I had discussed James Guinet who began work in our neighbourhood by building himself a family home at 1556 Grant Street. Now, through the generosity of James Guinet's grand-daughter, we have a photograph of that house taken just after it was built in 1909. Those of you who know the neighbourhood … Continue reading 1500-Block Grant Street
Meeting Notes: November 2012
We had a marvelously lively meeting on Thursday evening, dealing with a wide range of topics. We began by discussing the 10-point proposal that GHG has submitted to the Grandview Woodland Community Plan. This led to an animated debate about the role of public engagement allowed under the Plan's Terms of Reference. The 1913 version … Continue reading Meeting Notes: November 2012
Donation of “The Highland Echo” to VPL
The neighborhood of Commercial Drive was served from 1917 to 1995 by a wonderfully quirky local newspaper called The Highland Echo. The Echo was defiantly local, covering no national or international news, but every week detailed the economic and personal stories that animated Commercial Drive and the wider Grandview community. The Echo is a vital … Continue reading Donation of “The Highland Echo” to VPL
Remembrance Day 1930
On Remembrance Day 1930, the flagstaff and cairn to the memory of the Grandview lads who had fallen in the First War were dedicated in Grandview Park by Archbishop DePencier. The memorial had been the idea of Catherine Bufton who, with her husband Hubert, ran the very popular Bufton’s Florists on the Drive. She had … Continue reading Remembrance Day 1930
Heritage and the Community Plan
As part of the ongoing Grandview Woodland Community Plan exercise, the Grandview Heritage Group has submitted a 14-page document to City Planners regarding the protection and enhancement of heritage buildings in our neighbourhood. Note that 50% of all buildings in Grandview were built prior to 1929: Grandview is heritage. The Executive Summary for this document … Continue reading Heritage and the Community Plan
Meeting Notes: October
Even the torrential rain couldn't keep us away from the latest meeting of the Grandview Heritage Group last night! We began by reviewing the latest news on rezoning following Council's approval of the recommendations from the Mayor's Task Force of Housing Affordability. There was a spirited and articulate discussion that noted the economics of the … Continue reading Meeting Notes: October
Come Walk Commercial Drive’s Western Slope
On October 21st, famed guide Maurce Guibord will take us on a unique history walk. As he describes it: Let's head for the tracks! A tour of Grandview, but downhill all the way. On the slope leading down to the railway tracks, we'll see how urban development created a still-changing environment. Among other sites, … Continue reading Come Walk Commercial Drive’s Western Slope
York Theatre Sign
At our September meeting we discussed the wonderful "Little Theatre" sign that has emerged on the York Theatre's south wall, and we agreed to write to the architects and developers in an attempt to preserve this important artifact of our cultural and community past. We have now heard back from the architects and Don Luxton … Continue reading York Theatre Sign
James Guinet: A Builder of Grandview
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
grandviewheritagegroup.ca 