Today, a stone cairn and a plaque in Marpole Park reminds visitors of the Marpole Midden, evidence of Marpole's earliest settlement. The Marpole Midden was discovered by workers in 1889 during the extension of Granville Street. Many tools, weapons and other artifacts were found in what proved to be one of the largest village sites discovered in North America.
First settled by non-natives in the 1860s, Marpole was originally called "Eburne Station" after Harry Eburne, the area's first storekeeper and postmaster. At the time, it was a small town separated from the rest of the city by many miles of forest.
At the turn of the 20th century, Eburne grew and prospered with construction of the Vancouver Lulu Island Railway and the B.C. Electric interurban train line. Business people realized the riverfront's industrial potential, and gradually sawmills, shingle mills, sand and gravel companies came to the area. In 1916, the area was renamed for CPR General Superintendent Richard Marpole. By 1929, when the community amalgamated with Vancouver, Marpole had become one of the city's major industrial centres.
When the Oak Street Bridge opened in 1957 the historic business district along Hudson and Marine suffered a serious decline as traffic shifted to Oak Street several blocks to the east.
In the 1960s, the area south of 70th Avenue was rezoned and low-rise stucco walkups began to replace the original homes. In 1975, when the Arthur Laing Bridge opened to airport traffic, commercial activity focused once again on Granville Street.
Did you know?
- The first permanent White Spot Restaurant - called the White Spot Barbeque - opened at 67th and Granville during the summer of 1928. Before it opened, owner Nat Bailey sold snack food to motorists off the back of his truck.
- Opened December 1, 1949, the Marpole-Oakridge Community Centre is the city's oldest community centre.
- In 1912, during optimistic and prosperous times, the Grand Central Hotel was built on the northeast corner of Hudson and Marine. The owners went bankrupt and in 1917 the hotel was refurbished and reopened as the Provincial Home for Incurables. The home, which catered primarily to elderly tuberculosis patients, was torn down in the 60s. The only remaining building, the staff house, is used as a community corrections facility.
Marpole
A number of heritage buildings remain in Marpole including Lloyd George School, Colbourne House at 8743 South West Marine Drive, Abbeyfield House, and Firehall No. 22. After the Fire Department outgrew the building the 1924 Firehall No. 22 was converted, with minimal alternation to the exterior, into Marpole Place, a seniors' centre and neighbourhood house.
