First History of Vancouver in More Than 20 Years

Photo: Jason Vanderhill

Vancouver writer Chuck Davis (left) is preparing a major new history of this region and is doing it with financial support from local businesses. The History of Metropolitan Vancouver is a four-year project and has a unique format: each year in the region's past gets its own chapter. The book covers the history of the entire lower mainland, starting in 1827 with the building of the first Fort Langley. Vancouver is the focus of the book, but Burnaby, New Westminster, Langley, North Vancouver, Surrey, Coquitlam, West Vancouver and all the city's other suburbs are part of the story, too.

The American Page

Americans have had a major influence on the history of Metropolitan Vancouver. An American gave Vancouver its name! William Cornelius Van Horne, of Chelsea, Illinois, was the man who headed the CPR, the Canadian Pacific Railway that opened up the Canadian West... more »

The Scottish Page

Scottish influence in metropolitan Vancouver was important from the very beginning of our post-native history . . . and that’s not counting the statue of Robert Burns in Stanley Park, nor our first purpose-built library, the Carnegie, paid for by Scotland-born U.S. industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie... more »

The Rogers Building
A Seattle creation!

Photo: Joe Goldberg, Flickr

The Rogers Building has been standing at the north-east corner of Pender and Granville in Vancouver for nearly 100 years. (Construction began in 1911, the building opened in 1912.) It gets its name from Jonathan Rogers, who can be counted among Vancouver's earliest pioneers. Rogers was born in Plas Onn, Denbighshire, Wales, and until he was 15 spoke not one word of English. He arrived in Vancouver, a fresh-faced youth of 22, in May of 1887—aboard that famed first CPR train from Montreal. He was, in fact, the first passenger to step off the train, and he recalled that the Vancouver City Band struck up the tune See the Conquering Hero Comes. Rogers later confessed, with some embarrassment, that he thought the band was playing the tune for him, as the first person to emerge from the train.

The city was a simpler place then: Rogers could recall when horse races were run down Granville Street.

Rogers became a builder and contractor, and it's said that more than 300 metres (1,000 feet) of Granville Street footage was built by him. The building for which he will be best remembered—and not just because it's named for him—is the Rogers Building.

Seattle architects

This 10-storey beauty was designed by a Seattle firm, Gould and Champney. The October 20, 1911 issue of B.C. Saturday Sunset gave some of the details of “what promises to be one the finest office buildings on the Pacific Coast . . .” The building, said Sunset, “is designed along the lines of the modern French Renaissance (with an) exterior of polished Glasgow granite, in combination with cream-colored terra cotta facing . . . All the interior finish woodwork is to be of hardwood with white Italian marble corridors and stairs throughout . . . . The building will be a monument to Rogers, whose faith in the future of this city is exemplified in the erection of a building which, when completed, will represent an expenditure of nearly $600,000.”

Writing in The Greater Vancouver Book, Sean Rossiter says: “Carl F. Gould was a Seattle architect who had mastered that city's terra cotta material—glazed tiles formed into classical details with weather-resistant qualities appropriate to this climate. When the worldwide collapse of lumber prices in 1910 ended Seattle's boom, Gould and other architects travelled the short distance north to Vancouver where higher prices persisted because of B.C.'s access to British markets. Gould's Rogers Building (1911-12) at 470 Granville is one sumptuous example of what architects from a more sophisticated city could do in booming Vancouver.”

We contribute brief items on local history to an interesting blog on BC history: www.knowbc.blogspot.com, administered by Daniel Francis, editor of The Encyclopedia of British Columbia. The above is a sample.

Be a Part of History

The book also offers a unique opportunity for local businesses: the chance to sponsor a year. The Vancouver Board of Trade is the lead sponsor for the book, and is encouraging business leaders to join in sponsorship. Each year in the book is sponsorable, and the years are on a first-come, first-serve basis. Join other sponsors such as CIBC, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Deeley Harley-Davidson Canada, UBC, Kal Tire, the Jim Pattison Group, BC Hydro, Sierra Systems, Tom Lee Music, HSBC, Concord Pacific, Placer Dome, Channel M, Telus, BCAA and Boston Pizza, to name just a few.

Secure Your Year!

For a list of sponsors, and for information on how you can be a sponsor for The History of Metropolitan Vancouver, click here

Our site is always under construction, and there are constant additions. Please be sure to check back often. And tell your friends!

 

**************************************************************************
Site administrator and developer:
Quasar Design & Data Management Inc.

Original site design:
Stephanie Davis
Photo accession and supplemental research:
Jim McGraw
Index page slideshow images:
Jason Vanderhill
Vancouver Books page:
Karen Cannon
Biographical research:
Constance Brissenden
Larry Loyie
Donna Jean McKinnon
**************************************************************************

Please note: For optimum viewing experience, set monitor resolution at 1024 x 768 pixels or higher.

Some odd stuff has happened in Vancouver's past.
Click to view a sampling...

Click here »

The Museum of Vancouver has been remaking itself, and the results are worth a visit, both on line and in person.
Pay them a visit!

The BC Historical Federation has been keeping British Columbians well informed about their history for decades!
Drop in!

The Vancouver Police Department has an excellent web site, including a page dedicated to fallen officers.
Visit them here.

The always interesting web site of the City of Vancouver Archives now includes fascinating moving images.
Check them out here.