West End History

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In 1862, a District Lot – number 185 – was bought for $550.75 by a John Morton (hence Morton Avenue)potter, plus two mates – Samuel Brighouse and William Hailstone. The lot comprised of what is now the entire West End – 540 acres.  West of Burrard and south of West Georgia. His speculation was in the hope that they could farm, mine and make bricks on the land but he was not successful.  However, their investment in this remote piece of rainforest was considered a frivolous one and earned them the nickname, “Three Greenhorns”.  Then they tried to sell the land as lots, claiming “New Liverpool” would soon be a major city. Once again they had no success.

In 1886, they were persuaded to donate 1/3 of the property to Canadian Pacific Rail (CPR) as an incentive for them to build their railway through to Coal Harbour, hoping that this may bring people to the area to buy the lots. By the time CPR had made it to Gastown however, the “Three Greenhorns” had parted ways, feeling that they had been cheated.In 1887, the lots began to sell, with prices from $350 to $1000, as people realised the potential of the area. With CPR building rail lines, a hotel was going up, roads were being laid through the area plus the establishment of Stanley Park, lots began to move quickly. By 1888, the area was gaining respectability and had swiftly become an attractive investment to wealthy and elite buyers with fine views across Burrard Inlet and a reasonable distance from the smelly warehouses of Gastown.

For a brief couple of decades the West End catered to the rich. Tram lines were built along Robson, Denman and Davie and shops were established along the lines. With the Klondike gold rush at the turn of the century, tens of thousands of people were enticed to Vancouver and the West End really began to fill up.

The most famous West End Mansion, still standing and “probably the most lavish private home ever constructed in B.C.” was ‘Gabriola’, on the corner of Davie and Nicola. Gabriola was built in 1900 for Benjamin Tingley Rogers, a sugar refiner from New York City. Rogers came to Vancouver at age 24, and in 1892 opened the ‘B.C Sugar Refinery,‘ quickly becoming one of Vancouver’s most important businessmen, known by all as the ‘Sugar King’.  The mansion for the Rogers family was designed by Samuel Maclure, a well known residential architect at the time and was built from stone brought from Gabriola Island – hence its original name. The mansion was sold in 1918 after Benjamin died and his widow moved into Shannon, a new mansion in Shaughnessy, the now fashionable area for the rich. Gabriola was then converted into apartments with over 50 suites, eventually turning into a series of restaurants, as it stands today.

The name ‘English Bay’ commemorates the meeting of the British Captain Vancouver and Spanish captains Valdes and Galiano, in 1792. This is the event that also resulted in Spanish Banks’ name.

Denman Street: named after Admiral Denman, the hero of the bloodiest naval scene ever fought on the coast of B.C. A rebellious Vancouver Island tribe suffered a bombardment of 9 villages and 64 canoes lost.   Davie Street: Vancouver’s Premier of B.C. in 1887, Honourable A.E.B. Davie was Vancouver’s first openly homosexual politician. A group of friends of Davie’s formed the seed of what is now Canada’s largest gay community. Robson Street: named after Honourable John Robson, Provincial Secretary in 1883 and Premier of B.C. from 1889-92. Morton Street: the West End’s original founder, John Morton

The West End boasts some of Vancouver’s most beautiful waterfront views and heritage homes. Here are its schools

Know some West End history you’d like to share with us?

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