222 Mary Street, Victoria West

Here's another of Victoria's fine old brick heritage homes. I pass this one nearly every morning on my way to the West Bay Walkway for my daily stroll along the shore. I like brick houses in general but I particularly like this one because of how it manages to look so staid and proper despite being an eclectic mix of architectural styles. According to "This Old House", the bible of Victoria Heritage Houses, this dwelling succeeds in uniting Classical Revival, Gothic Revival and Italianate styles in one structure. It was built sometime before 1892 and during its long life has been lived in by a remarkable cross section of Victoria's population, including a draughtsman, a carriage-maker, a merchant, a sailor, a railway conductor, an engineer, 2 painters, a labourer, a biscuit factory packer, a machinist, a blacksmith, a Royal Canadian Mounted Policeman, a garbage man, and a partridge in a pear tree.... I also like the way the surrounding modern condo development mimics the style and materials of this house.

Bankview - 1894

Here's another of Victoria West's fine heritage houses, built in 1894 for Francis and Margaret Hinds, for $2,000. In 1986 the immaculate restoration of this house won its owners a Hallmark Society Award. "This Old House" describes it as being in the "late Victorian Queen Anne" style.

Queen Anne Cottage

In Vic West just above the Selkirk Trestle are many of Victoria's oldest houses, more modest than those in some other neighbourhoods but still fine examples of the styles popular in early Victoria. Here is one of several heritage homes overlooking the Gorge in this area, built in 1892 for Jane and Orlando Warner. Their adopted daughter, Lucy Musters, married Arthur Curry in 1901 and they received this house as a wedding present from Jane Warner, Arthur's great-aunt. The street is named after Arthur Curry, who achieved eminence during the First World War and later became president of McGill University. Heritage homes such as this are not just attractive to look at - in most cases they embody significant aspects of our history. The historical information mentioned here comes from This Old House, Volume 1, a publication of the Victoria Heritage Foundation.

Another Hooper

A week ago I published a photo of one of my favorite heritage houses on Robert Street in Victoria West, and lamented about its sorry looking condition. Just across the street from that house is another heritage home that is actually older by several years (built in 1900) but looks as though it could have been erected yesterday. It was designed by the same architect who designed the house across the street, Thomas Hooper. It is described in "This Old House" as a "finely detailed Queen Ann cottage."

$2,000

That's what it cost to build this house in 1903. It was designed by architects Thomas Hooper and C. Elwood Watkins. It's my favorite house of those I see on my morning walk and, despite its rather dilapidated appearance, it's a remarkable house in that it is one of the few privately owned houses in Canada to have been declared a National Historic Site. I think the main reason I always end up stopping to look at it is that I like to dream about fixing it up, though it did undergo an award-winning restoration in 1976. It also looks like a comfortable and interesting house to live in though it doesn't appear currently to be occupied. I hope it will soon be in the care of someone who can give it the attention it deserves.

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Historical information about this house was drawn from "This Old House," Volume 1, a publication of the Victoria Heritage Foundation.

The Swallowed Anchor

For those of you who are thinking I am going "overboard" on houses, I say, "Avast there, maties!" because the house above, if you look closely, has a distinct nautical flavor. (And I've left out the one-legged pirate on the roof, standing near the stork's nest.) And while it is a house, it provides a cunning segue into the coming week's naval offerings as Victoria hosts the Tall Ships.

This little jewel of a house, "The Swallowed Anchor," is to be found in Esquimalt across the road from the West Bay Marina. And for those of you who might be wondering, it is an actual house, not a part of some theme park. Rumor has it that it was formerly the home of a retired sea captain who willed it to his heirs with the proviso that nothing could be changed.

Huntingdon Cottage - 1889

Here's another of Victoria's heritage houses. This one is described as "folk Victorian" with Queen Anne cosmetic features. This house was twice slated for demolition to make way for high-rises but was moved instead and restored in the early 1980's. In 1983, Norman Pearson received a Hallmark Society Award for his restoration work.

Montview - 1020 Catherine Street, Victoria West

I've just discovered that there is an excellent resource for information about heritage homes here in Victoria. It's called "This Old House" and is produced by the Victoria Heritage Foundation. It lists heritage homes in the city, giving a short history and description of each, a photo and an address, so suddenly I am able to find out a little about some houses I admire and pass often.

This one, for instance, is only a few blocks from where I live and is called "Montview." It was built around 1890.

This late Victorian Queen Anne landmark residence dominates a corner lot and has been meticulously restored.

The original owner was John W. Cherry, an upholsterer with Weiler Brothers and later with David Spencer Ltd.

Not as much information as some but this is a house I particularly like - "meticulously restored" is nearly an understatement. Click to enlarge this photo and look at some of the details like the diamond pattern on the steps and gently curved bannisters. For those of you who want to find out a little more about the architectural style called "Queen Anne," click here.

James Bay - Emily Carr House

Emily Carr is one of Victoria's more famous personages both as an artist and as a writer. The house where she was born in 1871 and where she spent much of her life is in James Bay and is open to the public. Many of her paintings, including the two below, are in the collection of the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria.

James Bay - Summer's coming

I have to post this now because the trees are greening up so fast that these cherry tree photos will be out of date soon. I have mentioned Victoria's benign climate and we are chortling complacently today reading about our Canadian neighbours in Calgary who got 25 centimeters of snow yesterday (that's almost 10 inches).

This photo was taken in a part of Victoria known as James Bay. It is the oldest residential neighbourhood of the city and is home to many fine heritage houses.

Verandah

Here's another old house I enjoy whenever I pass. One of many things I like about these heritage houses is that they often have verandahs. To me a verandah suggests a style and pace of life quite different from today. A verandah is much more than a porch in that it extends right across the front of the house and often around the sides as well. It is quite different from a patio or a deck or a balcony and comes from a time when activities that required good light were best done outdoors. I remember a summer once when I travelled as a boy through the mid-western states of America. For a few glorious days we stayed in an enormous old house with a verandah on all sides that overlooked stretches of the greenest lawn and was shaded by towering oaks. As I drifted into sleep those summer nights I dreamt I'd one day have such a house.

Brick

It's hard to imagine that when houses such as this were being built, modern (Portland) cement had only just been invented. Builders had a choice of wood, brick, or stone for construction materials. Many homebuilders in early Victoria chose brick and this heritage house is a favourite of mine. I particularly like the bay windows on both levels.

Yellow House

The modern City of Victoria was founded in 1843 although indigenous peoples (the Songhees Nation) were living here long before. In comparison with most of the world's cities, at 165 it is not very old. However, its residents treasure what little history they have by preserving many of the older houses under a "Heritage" designation which, while it gives the owner a tax break, also limits the kinds of alterations that can be made. This is one heritage house that I pass nearly every day and its sunshiney brightness always gives me a lift, even on a gray and gloomy day like today.