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Lovely Vancouver Homes of 1934
I’ve having the immense pleasure of wading through the actual copies of dozens of newspapers from the 1920s, ’30s and ’40s for a book that I’m currently writing. Every now and then I stumble across...
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The Unsolved Murder of Danny Brent
I love it when people tell me that Vancouver was a much safer place back in the good old days. Clearly they haven’t read my books. Vancouver was a violent place full of murders, guns, explosives and...
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Our Missing Hotel Vancouver—What were we thinking? (1916-1949)
When the second Hotel Vancouver opened its doors 100 years ago this year, it became one of the most elegant and ornate buildings that we ever destroyed. CVA 371-884 ca.1920 shown next to what’s now the...
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Women’s History Month: Remembering Kiyoko Tanaka-Goto
Kiyoko Tanaka-Goto may not be the first person who springs to mind for women’s history month, but she was brave and entrepreneurial and succeeded at a time when there were few opportunities for women,...
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Who killed Roddy Moore?
Roddy Moore, 7, was murdered 69 years ago this week. His family still search for answers. This is an excerpt from Cold Case Vancouver: the city’s most baffling unsolved murders. On the morning of...
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The 100-year-old Unsolved Murder of Special Constable Charles Painter
Last year, Constable Graham Walker of the Metro Vancouver Transit Police was asked to research the history for their 10-year anniversary. Graham promptly fell down the rabbit hole and his journey has...
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A Short History of the Canada Post Office Building on Georgia Street
Seriously, is this the best that our architectural minds can conjure up? Take a beautiful mid-century building on a prime downtown Vancouver location and use it as a “podium” for three glass towers and...
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The train that ran down Hastings Street
Did you know that a commuter train used to run right through downtown Vancouver? I found out about it when I was over at Tom Carter’s studio checking out one of his amazing paintings. There it was, a...
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Heritage Streeters with Bill Allman, Kristin Hardie and Pamela Post
This is an ongoing series that asks people who love history and heritage to tell us their favourite existing building and the one that never should have been torn down. Bill Allman is a “recovering...
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Vancouver in 2050
Michael Kluckner’s Vancouver 1996 Fans of Michael Kluckner’s history books—Vanishing Vancouver, Vancouver the Way it Was, and several others of his beautifully illustrated history books, might find his...
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Jim Munro (1929-2016)
I was so sad to hear of Jim Munro’s death last Monday. Jim was a huge promoter and lover of books, heritage buildings, art and authors, including of course, his first wife the Nobel prize winner Alice...
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Our Missing Heritage: The Orillia
Raymond Parker photo, Orillia, 1985 The Orillia at Robson and Seymour Streets was a distant memory by the time I moved to Vancouver, but from time to time I’ve seen a mention or photo of this early...
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The Wigwam Inn at Indian Arm
The Wigwam Inn ca.1913. Photo courtesy Vancouver Archives LGN 1028 One day, someone is going to invite me for a sail up Indian Arm in their luxury yacht so I can get a look at the Wigwam Inn. It seems...
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The Grinch who Stole Lynn Valley
Confused by the new parking restrictions and hostile signage at Lynn Valley? Creeped out by the guy in blue that follows you around the parking lot? Not sure where LV shopping Centre starts and where...
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Top 10 Facebook Group Pages for 2016
For my last post of the year, I’ve chosen the top 10 Facebook group pages. This list is highly subjective and based on a loose criteria—they have to deal with some aspect of the history of Greater...
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The House that Chip Built
The four lots on the right of photo are now 3085 Point Grey Road It’s the first week of January and if you own a house you’ve received your BC Assessment notice. If you’re like us you’re not popping...
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Imperial Roller Skating Rink and the other missing structures of Beach Avenue
More than 100 years before the laughing statues appeared at English Bay, the Imperial Roller Skating Rink opened in Morton Park at Denman and Davie Streets. Roller skating was experiencing a surge in...
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Project 200 and the Waterfront Freeway
Project 200, 1968. Note we’ve kept Woodwards but nixed the 1914 Seabus station. Image courtesy Tom Carter Gordon Price called it “the most important thing that never happened” to Vancouver, and...
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The Missing Elevator Operators of Vancouver
Angus McIntyre recently sent me some photos that he’d taken of operator-run elevators in the 1970s from buildings such as Woodwards, the Bay and BC Electric. I told him that I wanted to write a blog...
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Black History Month: Remembering Joe Fortes
Courtesy City of Vancouver Archives Bu P111 In 1904 Joe Fortes was living in a sweet little cottage at the foot of Gilford, right by where the Sylvia Hotel is today. When he heard that the city wanted...
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