Monday, August 29, 2011

Mole Hill

There is a block in the West End that is rich with history. Mole Hill features elegant, restored homes that remind a person of days gone by. On August 20, 2011 the neighbourhood celebrated Vancouver's 125 anniversary and paraded its pride with a street festival.

These Edwardian homes are located at 1114 and 1110 Comox Street and are a mirror image pair that were built by Sam Castleman in 1906. (Castleman was an entrepreneur who had his hand in anything that would make him money)  The original occupants of these houses didn't stay long and soon moved on to wealthier areas of town.

A noted occupant of 1114 was the Vancouver Sanitarium in 1912. A year later the sanitarium had moved on.

It is thought that the turret on 1110 was originally round or at least meant to be round but that couldn't be determined for sure. For many years these two houses as well as their neighbours at 1120 and 1122 Comox were the most well known and visible of those at Mole Hill. They all feature expansive neo-classical front porches, bell-cast eaves and hipped roofs.


The two houses next door - 1120 and 1122 Comox Street - were built in 1904 and 1122 was designed by Thomas Fee and John Parr. The structures were built by Stanley Judson Steeves.

A tailor - Andrew Johnson - was the first resident at 1122 Comox while William Moore, a commercial traveller was first at 1120.

There used to be a house on what is now this greenway. It was built in 1889 by the Curry and Earle family. Now the area has been restored with native plants and a daylighted stream. It is open to the public and leads to the alleyway. This alley is like a little street - paved and providing access to the rear of the homes. The day I was there it was filled with entertainment.
This cowboy was original!

And the alley was filled with music. Although I am a rocker at heart I truly enjoyed the folk sounds of Shannon Ingersoll.
I  have a lot more photos to show you and more information to impart but that is for another day.

I hope you find the beauty around you.

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1 comment:

  1. Wow, I gotta say Karen, I am amazed at the depth of information you un-earth about these places! Awesome job! Brian

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