722 replies to this topic

[Nparker]

The Permanent Loan building could have held its own in Chicago or NYC from the same period. It simply was a gorgeous building.

[IPH]

I think there is still some of that wood paving in Waddington Alley between Yates and Johnson street.

[aastra]

Did anybody ever mention this December 2018 book excerpt in the Times-Colonist re: the Willows exhibition hall? I totally missed it.

 

(Stuart Stark’s book: The B.C. Agricultural Association Exhibition Building at the Willows)

 

I've observed before how modern efforts and attitudes re: "preservation" of old Victoria tend to be inscrutably selective. Methinks nothing makes the point as well as that place. Not only was it a magnificent tower (170 feet tall, with a public viewing platform halfway up), but it was quite a ways away from downtown. In 1891. It's pretty much the epitome of everything that modern Victorians think Victoria shouldn't be.

Edited by aastra, 29 October 2019 - 09:08 AM.

[Nparker]

Architect Cornelius J. Soule had designed “one of the handsomest pieces of architecture on the Pacific Coast,” observed one attendee, while incorrectly noting that the building was “further admired for being completed in only sixty-five days.” Construction had actually taken 90 days, but contractor William Lorimer had indeed delivered a finished building...

https://www.timescol...lace-1.23524049

We should hire Soule's descendants to design and build a new Crystal Pool.

[aastra]

 

Did they never build that little tower over the corner?

 

To answer my own question from last month:

 

 

pic from https://archives.victoria.ca

[aastra]

I know it doesn't jibe with the official (or unofficial) narratives, but there were several decades from the 1920s through to the 1980s when Victorians placed a high priority on flaunting automobile-era modernity and tidiness (as versus trying to flaunt growth and prosperity, as per the previous few decades). The city had lost the growth race to Vancouver, so now the goal was to not seem stale (which eventually took a darker turn when it morphed into the "blight removal" phase). Hence why three of the most notable and unique old buildings in a two-block stretch of Yates were replaced as each one reached 40-50 years old, and hence why the results were rather similar re: their stark modernity.

 

 

Daily Colonist
May 24, 1922

Bank to Build on Central Site

Clarence Hotel Corner Will Be Occupied by New Structure of Bank of Nova Scotia in Near Future

Another business corner in Victoria is to undergo extensive changes... The Clarence Hotel block at the northeast corner of Yates and Douglas Streets, which is owned by the Bank of Nova Scotia, will be torn down about the beginning of July and the bank will erect on its site a fine, modern bank structure of an imposing style of architecture.

The tenants of the Clarence Hotel at present have all received notice to vacate their premises...

Plans for the new building are not in the city yet but it is understood that they are for a structure that will be both imposing and modern in every particular. This corner is one of the best in the business section of the city and the new building will be a valuable addition to the city's public buildings.



pic from https://archives.vic...-of-nova-scotia

 

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Daily Colonist
October 23, 1938

Bank Building is Now Completed at Douglas and Yates

New Premises Rated as the Finest and Most Modern of Their Kind in Canada -- Distinct Charm Is Found in Design, With Severity Relieved by Attractive Grill Work

Modern Character
The design of the building, while extremely modern in character, yet has a pleasing refinement of scale and distinct charm. The severity of the ensemble is relieved by the detail of the bronze grilles, the reeded corner stones with their delicately carved finals and the recessed and carved entrance...

The entire building is air conditioned...

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Daily Colonist
November 25, 1937

Will Erect New Office

Modern Structure

Though comparatively small in size, the building will be the most modern in North America outside New York, it is stated.

Granite Base
Modern in design, the new building will be of Haddington Island stone, with black granite base and trimming, the base reaching a height of four feet. Chromium will be featured in the grill-work of the exterior.



pic from https://archives.vic...85-yates-street

 

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Daily Colonist
December 6, 1947

Modernized Premises of Bank Open for Business on Monday

Shrouded in scaffolding and boarding for several months, the Imperial Bank, on the corner of Yates and Government Streets, will open its completely rebuilt and modernized premises Monday morning.

Nearly 48 years ago the Imperial Bank of Canada opened its Victoria branch at this same location in premises originally occupied by Coles Saloon...

A Worthy Building
...Imperial Bank of Canada opens the doors of a New Bank Building in the City of Victoria -- a building worthy of the tradition and position of this great Canadian Banking Institution, worthy of the fair City it is proud to serve and worthy of the ever-accelerating progress of Vancouver Island.

...the citizens of Victoria will welcome this fine building, set in the very heart of the Capital City of British Columbia on the same strategic spot occupied by the bank since its doors were first opened in Victoria at the turn of the century.

The building is of stone quarried on Haddington Island in our own British Columbia waters, with trim of Quebec Granite...



pic from https://archives.vic...-bank-of-canada

Edited by aastra, 29 October 2020 - 09:44 AM.

[aastra]

It's as if the Dominion Bank and the Imperial Bank were trying to compete with one another re: looking exactly the same.

 

I'd say the Bank of Nova Scotia building is the best of the three of them.

Edited by aastra, 18 November 2019 - 06:48 PM.

[aastra]

Do any of VV's old-timers (if there are any) remember this Esquimalt house?

 

 

pic from https://archives.vic...own-as-beaufort

 

*****

 

The old Vic West school (even taking into account the slope, why does it seem taller than it should be on the back side?):

 

 

pic from https://archives.vic...vic-west-school

 

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pic from https://archives.vic...-sherk-street-2

[Rob Randall]

^Three observations:

 

1. Great old school building
2. I never knew that big property existed. It's really hidden
3. Sterk Street is one of Victoria's oddest streets

[Mike K.]

Whoa. Where did that school stand?

[Rob Randall]

I think the elevated court is still there so you can figure out the location.

[Mike K.]

Aha. So it was along Langford Street? The present day school is on the right of that photo where the houses are? The location of the basketball court today would place the school there. Unless I’m totally thrown off here.

I just hope Mr. Vic West was a decent guy. It would be a shame to have to rename the school.

[aastra]

You just hope she was a decent gal, you mean. Victoria West.

[Mike K.]

Now I'm triggered.

[Jackerbie]

While we're looking at old schools...

 

North Ward School was built in Humber Green near the roundabout intersection of Douglas, Hillside, Government, and Gorge. A design competition was held, with the winning design selected for North Ward School and the runner up as South Park School. Both North Ward School and the infamous roundabout were demolished in the 60s.

 

 

photo via Parks Canada "Architectural Trends in Victoria" publication: http://parkscanadahi...s/mrs/354-1.pdf

 

[Nparker]

...Both North Ward School and the infamous roundabout were demolished in the 60s...

And the CoV is poorer for both decisions.

[Mike K.]

Wow.

[aastra]

Back in the day there were a fair number of buildings east of Blanshard Street that had a legitimate "old town" vibe. I never gave the Haida theatre building enough credit. It was something special in its original form.

 

Looking good in 1890:

pic from https://archives.vic...ck-yates-street

 

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By 1914 it was already suffering some modernization treatment (edit: I thought the date on this pic might be wrong based on the movie/play title, but I suppose it could have been the mid to late 1910s after all):
 

https://archives.vic...10-yates-street

 

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By the late 1940s it was a shadow of its former self:

 

pic from https://archives.vic...ck-yates-street

Edited by aastra, 20 February 2020 - 07:51 PM.

[Rob Randall]

What a tragic loss. Look at that ground floor. It doesn't get any better. I wonder if the original facade still resided under that radical '60s modernization. 

[aastra]

The intersection of Fort and Cook back in the day was rocking a Vancouver vibe. The overhead lines and the old bank building in a neighbourhood setting reminds me a bit of 4th and Alma.

 

pic from https://archives.vic...nd-cook-streets

 

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Capitol Theatre was half-decently impressive from the front but not exactly a beauty on the Blanshard Street side:

 

pic from https://archives.vic...capitol-theatre