History & Heritage
History
In 1885, the provincial government gave the CPR 6,000 acres of prime
land in the heart of Vancouver. Of that, the company selected Shaughnessy
Heights as the best location for its premier residential subdivision.
Named after CPR president Sir Thomas Shaughnessy, with its main streets
bearing the names of the CPR's board of directors, the CPR's influence
on the area called Shaughnessy is unmistakable.
In 1907, Richard Marpole, general superintendent and executive assistant
of the CPR, proposed development of an exclusive and prestigious residential
area that would lure the city's elite from the West End. The railway hired
Montreal landscape architect, Frederick Todd, and Danish engineer, L.E.
Davick, to lay out curving streets and generous lots. Although lot prices
were comparable to other Vancouver neighbourhoods, the CPR protected Shaughnessy's
exclusivity by requiring that all houses built in the area cost at least
$6,000; significantly more than the $1,000 a standard bungalow might cost.
The homes of the rich were surrounded by lush lawns, hedges and tree-line
boulevards that followed the contours of the local terrain to the Crescent;
a circular drive of expensive property located on the crest of the hill
overlooking the city.
By 1914, there were 243 houses in Shaughnessy and 80 per cent of the
homeowners were listed on Vancouver's social register. The area's appeal
was so great that the CPR developed adjacent land as "Second Shaughnessy"
and "Third Shaughnessy."
The CPR took great pains to protect Shaughnessy's exclusive character,
and the value of its lots. In 1914, the railway attempted to establish
Shaughnessy as a municipality separate from Point Grey. The provincial
government refused and instead passed the Shaughnessy Settlement Act of
1914, restricting development to single-family houses.
In 1922, Shaughnessy was placed even farther from the reach of City zoning
laws, when the province enacted the Shaughnessy Heights Building Restriction
Act, prohibiting the subdivision of lots and limiting construction to
one single-family dwelling per lot.
In the thirties, the Depression hit Shaughnessy hard. Many Shaughnessy
residents fled to other parts of the city and had their homes repossessed.
Despite provincial restrictions, many single-family houses were converted
into rooming houses or multiple conversion dwellings.
Heritage
Shaughnessy Heights is Vancouver's best example of a planned community.
In 1907, the CPR spent more than one million dollars developing the site
before it began selling the high-priced lots. The estate-like character
of the community is a result of a combination of large lots, winding boulevards,
and extensive landscaping.
Many of the homes in First Shaughnessy were designed by the city's leading
architects including Maclure & Fox, Parr & Fee, Sharp & Thompson,
and Thomas Hooper. The architectural styles used during this period range
from English Arts and Crafts and Tudor Revival to Craftsman and Colonial
Revival.
Today the area is one of the city's most valuable heritage landscapes.
Its premier heritage structures include The Nichol House at 1402 McRae
Avenue, the Frederick Kelly House at 1398 Crescent, the MacDonald House
at 1388 Crescent, the Fleck House at 1296 Crescent, and the two houses
featured below:
Hycroft, 1489 McRae Avenue
Built in 1909 for B.C. industrialist A.D. McRae, Hycroft was the largest
and most expensive mansion in the city. In the 1920s, the McRae's New
Year's Eve costume ball was the highlight of the busy Shaughnessy social
calendar. The grand home had three large gardens, an enormous greenhouse,
riding stables, tennis courts, guest house, and a ballroom underlain with
seaweed to give dancers more bounce. Inside there was a wine cellar, mirrored
bar, a variety of dens, drawing rooms and a solaria. Hidden passageways
ran parallel to the family's quarters, making it easy for servants to
go about their work. In 1962 it was purchased by the University Women's
Club, and every year the public is welcome to view the house during the
annual Christmas craft fair.
Glen Brae, 1690 Matthews Street
Sawmill owner William Lamont Tait instructed architects Parr and Fee to
design him a Scottish baronial-style home that he named Glen Brae (meaning
valley of the mountains). The result is perhaps the most memorable mansion
in Shaughnessy.
This unusual 1910 home features a pair of twin towers with dome roofs
on either side of the grand entrance porch, and an outstanding wrought
iron fence imported from Glasgow. In 1992, owner Elizabeth Wlosinski willed
the home to the City. It is now the home of Canuck Place, a hospice for
children.
Detailed information on the city's heritage and a complete list of heritage
buildings is available at City
of Vancouver Heritage.
Additional information is available through the City
of Vancouver Archives.
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