Welcome to my April 2017 Great and Powerful 2017 Blogging from A to Z Challenge!

Today, Q is for Quebec Street!

Here is a Google map showing where Quebec Street is located in James Bay.

What I could find out about Quebec Street:

Quebec Street is a little longer than some of the streets I’ve been featuring during this challenge, in that it stretches for approximately 3 blocks (one of them long) from Menzies at the Legislature Buildings, to Montreal Street.

Along Quebec Street, you will find a number of hotels.  Not surprising given its proximity to the Inner Harbour, the Legislature, and downtown.  These hotels include:

• The Embassy Inn: http://www.embassyinn.ca/
• The Royal Scot: http://www.royalscot.com/
• Harbour Towers Hotel and Suites: http://www.harbourtowers.com/

While there are a lot of hotels on Quebec Street, there are also some heritage houses, including

• 221 Quebec Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Quebec221.html
• 225 Quebec Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Quebec225.html

225 Quebec Street is now a restaurant called Nourish (http://www.nourishkitchen.ca/)

Here are some pictures I took of Quebec Street.

Ok, this is all I’ve got.  A picture from last summer.  I have been sick this week, so haven’t really felt much like walking around, and yesterday was cold and windy, and Quebec Street is a bit of a walk…whine, whine, whine.  Imagine a long street with hotels on it!

What else do you want to know about Quebec Street?  Ask away, and I will see what I can find out for you!

Thanks for visiting letter Q of my A to Z Challenge post of 2017.  You can find more I posts at http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/2017/04/atozchallenge-4-20-2017-letter-q.html.  Stay tuned for R is for... tomorrow!!

Welcome to my April 2017 Great and Powerful 2017 Blogging from A to Z Challenge!

Today, O is for Oswego Street!

Here is a Google map showing where Oswego Street is located in James Bay.

What I could find out about Oswego Street:

Oswego Street stretches from Belleville by the inner harbour, all the way down to Dallas Road near the Breakwater.

From http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/Neighbourhoods/jamesbayhistory.html:

“James Bay’s earliest subdivision streets were named after places in eastern North America that were familiar to the HBC officers: Superior, Huron, Michigan, Belleville, Niagara, Ontario, Kingston, Montreal, Toronto, Oswego, Erie and Quebec. A few names have been changed, such as St. John, now Pendray Street, and Ottawa and Hamilton, now part of Dallas Road. Dallas itself (named after A.G. Dallas of the HBC) now skirts only the western and southern edges of James Bay, but once was the name popularly used for the entire shoreline roadway, including what is now Belleville Street. ”

And

“The east sides of Oswego, San Jose and Lewis Streets comprise almost intact streetscapes of modest houses of the late 1800s and early 1900s, but nearby streets boast many other working and middle class enclaves, notably along Niagara, Menzies, Rithet, South Turner, lower Government, Toronto, Heather, Parry, Battery and Alma Place (off Michigan) and Avalon.”

Some of the interesting stops along the way are:

• The Harbour House Restaurant (one of mom and dad’s favourites): http://victoriaharbourhouse.com/
• The Oswego Hotel: https://www.oswegohotelvictoria.com/
• James Bay Community School: http://www.jamesbaycentre.ca/
• The Surf Motel (really ON Dallas, but on the corner of Dallas and Oswego): http://surfmotel.net/

Being a longer street, it should be surprising that there are quite a few heritage houses on Oswego:

• 52 Oswego Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Oswego51.html
• 55 Oswego Street: http://www.historicplaces.ca/en/rep-reg/place-lieu.aspx?id=3869
• 59 Oswego Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Oswego59.html
• 65 Oswego Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Oswego65.html
• 101 Oswego Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Oswego101.html
• 117 Oswego Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Oswego117.html
• 119 Oswego Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Oswego119.html
• 151 Oswego Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Oswego151.html
• 247 Oswego Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Oswego247.html

Here are a few pictures I took of Oswego Street.

The Owego Hotel

The Surf Motel

What else do you want to know about Oswego Street?  Ask away, and I will see what I can find out for you!

Thanks for visiting letter O of my A to Z Challenge post of 2017.  You can find more I posts at http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/2017/04/atozchallenge-4-18-2017-letter-o.html.  Stay tuned for P is for... tomorrow!!

Welcome to my April 2017 Great and Powerful 2017 Blogging from A to Z Challenge!

Today, N is for Niagara Street!

Here is a Google map showing where Niagara Street is located in James Bay.

What I could find out about Niagara Street:

Niagara Street is long – it runs from Douglas Street (at Beacon Hill Park), all the way to Dallas (which it parallels for most of the way) until it turns into….wait for it….St. Lawrence!

From http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/Neighbourhoods/jamesbayhistory.html:

“James Bay’s earliest subdivision streets were named after places in eastern North America that were familiar to the HBC officers: Superior, Huron, Michigan, Belleville, Niagara, Ontario, Kingston, Montreal, Toronto, Oswego, Erie and Quebec. A few names have been changed, such as St. John, now Pendray Street, and Ottawa and Hamilton, now part of Dallas Road. Dallas itself (named after A.G. Dallas of the HBC) now skirts only the western and southern edges of James Bay, but once was the name popularly used for the entire shoreline roadway, including what is now Belleville Street. ”

And

“It was not until the late 1880s and 1890s that living in the southern end of James Bay, closer to the Strait of Juan de Fuca, became popular, in large part because the electric street railway ran lines to the Outer Wharf, along Menzies and Niagara Streets to Beacon Hill Park. Here large homes were interspersed with subdivisions of smaller ones. Dr. Charles Newcombe’s house (138 Dallas Rd) overlooking Ogden Point and the Macaulays’ Queen Anne mansion, Pinehurst, (originally fronting Dallas, now off 617 Battery St) are two notable surviving mansions. The east sides of Oswego, San Jose and Lewis Streets comprise almost intact streetscapes of modest houses of the late 1800s and early 1900s, but nearby streets boast many other working and middle class enclaves, notably along Niagara, Menzies, Rithet, South Turner, lower Government, Toronto, Heather, Parry, Battery and Alma Place (off Michigan) and Avalon. ”

Things on Niagara Street:

Niagara Grocery (near Government Street): http://getfreshwithalocal.com/;  .  We love our local grocery store, but we did almost lose it last year when the property (and the property next door) went up for sale.  Everyone worried that developers would swoop in and put up condos, as they do on so many other properties here in Victoria, but it was saved!  From http://www.jamesbaybeacon.ca/?q=node/1869:

“In recent months the owner of the building placed it on the market. As there is no heritage protection for the old store, it was feared a new owner would knock it down and build a multi-unit condominium in this prime location. How great was the relief when Seamus McKeating and his wife Jennifer Gunter purchased the property, offered Jen a new lease for the business. Seamus went to work in the market himself.”

The old Christ Church Cathedral school (now a private residence) (http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Niagara520.html)

Don’s Food and Floral (at the corner of Niagara and Menzies)

Edelweiss Club (near Dallas Road): http://www.victoriaedelweiss.ca/

Armadale (sadly no longer there):

• http://search-bcarchives.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/armadale-senator-william-john-macdonalds-residence-241-niagara-street
• http://search-bcarchives.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/armadale-residence-of-senator-william-john-macdonald-241-niagara-street-in-victoria
• http://search-bcarchives.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/armadale-former-residence-of-senator-william-john-macdonald-241-niagara-street-victoria

And some Heritage houses to  check out:

• 570 Niagara Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Niagara570.html
• 614 Niagara Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Niagara614.html
• 646 Niagara Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Niagara646.html
• 647 Niagara Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Niagara647.html
• 648 Niagara Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Niagara648.html
• 652 Niagara Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Niagara652.html

Here are a few pictures I took of those Niagara Street landmarks I mentioned above.

The Edelweiss Club

What else do you want to know about Niagara Street?  Ask away, and I will see what I can find out for you!

Thanks for visiting letter N of my A to Z Challenge post of 2017.  You can find more I posts at http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/2017/04/atozchallenge-4-17-2017-letter-n.html.  Stay tuned for O is for... tomorrow!!

Welcome to my April 2017 Great and Powerful 2017 Blogging from A to Z Challenge!

Today, M is for Marifield Avenue!

Here is a Google map showing where Marifield Avenue is located in James Bay.

What I could find out about Marifield Avenue:

Before I began my search, I realized that I can tell you that Marifield Avenue is two blocks long (kind of).  The one block runs from Government Street, and ends abruptly (there is no footpath exit here!).  And the other block runs from the opposite side of Government until it bends and turns into  (poof!!) St. Andrews Street.

Now, after I have dug a bit online, I have pieced together some interesting things.  I believe Marifield Street was names for the house called “Marifield” that was built in 1875 for Bishop Edward and Mary Cridge  (https://oakbaychronicles.ca/?page_id=12), who were important historical figures in Victoria.  Also, one of the older houses on the street (or perhaps the oldest?  Not sure…) is the Coach House, which is down at the St. Andrews end (http://evelazarus.com/the-coach-house/), and was originally a servants house for a mansion called Castlewood (long gone).  So, a few interesting tidbits!!

• The Coach House on Marifield:  http://evelazarus.com/the-coach-house/
• Oak Bay Chronicles:  https://oakbaychronicles.ca/?page_id=12
• The Cridge Residence, “Marifield”: http://search-bcarchives.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/cridge-residence-marifield-in-james-bay-victoria-c-c-pemberton-collection
• Marifield House: http://www.marifieldhouse.com/history.html
• Marifield House History:  https://marifieldhistory.wordpress.com/

Here are some pictures I took of Marifield Avenue.

That down there?  That is where St. Andrews begins…it’s where the Coach House is.

What else do you want to know about Marifield Avenue?  Ask away, and I will see what I can find out for you!

Thanks for visiting letter M of my A to Z Challenge post of 2017.  You can find more I posts at http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/2017/04/atozchallenge-4-15-2017-letter-m.html.  Stay tuned for N is for... Monday!!

Welcome to my April 2017 Great and Powerful 2017 Blogging from A to Z Challenge!

Today, L is for Lewis Street!

Here is a Google map showing where Lewis Street is located in James Bay.

What I could find out about Lewis Street:

First of all, let me say that Lewis Street is a one-block street with only one exit – one exit for cars, that is.  It’s only car entrance/exit is onto Dallas Road, which makes it a really quiet street.  There are, however, three footpaths from Lewis onto nearby streets – two onto Menzies, and one onto Luxton Avenue.

From http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Lewis39.html:

“Lewis Street forms an intimate streetscape where the houses are built in close proximity to the street with no sidewalks or boulevards. The one-block long dead-end street is connected to Menzies St to the east by a narrow walkway known as Brotchy Lane and to Luxton Av to the west through a small playlot. ”

From http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/Neighbourhoods/jamesbayhistory.html:

“It was not until the late 1880s and 1890s that living in the southern end of James Bay, closer to the Strait of Juan de Fuca, became popular, in large part because the electric street railway ran lines to the Outer Wharf, along Menzies and Niagara Streets to Beacon Hill Park. Here large homes were interspersed with subdivisions of smaller ones. Dr. Charles Newcombe’s house (138 Dallas Rd) overlooking Ogden Point and the Macaulays’ Queen Anne mansion, Pinehurst, (originally fronting Dallas, now off 617 Battery St) are two notable surviving mansions. The east sides of Oswego, San Jose and Lewis Streets comprise almost intact streetscapes of modest houses of the late 1800s and early 1900s, but nearby streets boast many other working and middle class enclaves, notably along Niagara, Menzies, Rithet, South Turner, lower Government, Toronto, Heather, Parry, Battery and Alma Place (off Michigan) and Avalon. ”

• 39 Lewis Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Lewis39.html
• 50 Lewis Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Lewis50.html
• 53 Lewis Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Lewis53.html

Here are some pictures I took of Lewis Street.

See?  No exit!

Footpath to Menzies

Footpath to Luxton Avenue (through a nice little park)

The footpath at the end of Lewis, also to Menzies.

What else do you want to know about Lewis Street?  Ask away, and I will see what I can find out for you!

Thanks for visiting letter L of my A to Z Challenge post of 2017.  You can find more I posts at http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/2017/04/atozchallenge-4-14-2017-letter-l.html.  Stay tuned for M is for... tomorrow!!

Welcome to my April 2017 Great and Powerful 2017 Blogging from A to Z Challenge!

Today, K is for Kingston Street!

Here is a Google map showing where Kingston Street is located in James Bay.

What I could find out about Kingston Street:

Kingston Street stretches from Menzies Street and runs towards the Fisherman’s Wharf, where it turns into St. Lawrence (which turns into Erie – remember Erie Street??)

One of our favourite restaurants is on Kingston Street:  the Blue Crab Seafood House.

From http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/Neighbourhoods/jamesbayhistory.html:

“James Bay’s earliest subdivision streets were named after places in eastern North America that were familiar to the HBC officers: Superior, Huron, Michigan, Belleville, Niagara, Ontario, Kingston, Montreal, Toronto, Oswego, Erie and Quebec. ”

And

“Starting in the 1860s trades and working class people purchased modest houses on town lots a few streets away from the harbour and generally farther away from the James Bay Bridge. Thus Quebec, Superior, Kingston and Michigan Streets west of Birdcage Walk became popular residential areas. During the 1890s many more homes for middle class and working class families were constructed. Of the dozens of houses built on these streets in the 1860s and 1870s, the James Irving House at 428 Superior Street (1873) is a notable survivor. In the 1880s and 1890s houses for longshoremen at the Outer Wharf and other workers were clustered along St. Lawrence, Ontario, Erie, Quebec, Kingston and Superior Streets. Though hundreds of houses were demolished in the 1950s and 1960s to make way for apartment blocks, enclaves of 1890s houses survive. ”

• 243 Kingston Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Kingston243.html
• 301 Kingston Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Kingston301.html
• http://search-bcarchives.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/home-of-mr-and-mrs-edgar-john-ridout-427-kingston-street-victoria

Here are some pictures I took of Kingston Street.

Looking down from Menzies

Hotel row

A glimpse of the inner harbour

Italian restaurant at the end of the street

Looking back

The end…

What else do you want to know about Kingston Street?  Ask away, and I will see what I can find out for you!

Thanks for visiting letter K of my A to Z Challenge post of 2017.  You can find more I posts at http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/2017/04/atozchallenge-4-13-2017-letter-k.html.  Stay tuned for L is for... tomorrow!!

Welcome to my April 2017 Great and Powerful 2017 Blogging from A to Z Challenge!

Today, J is for San Jose Avenue!

Here is a Google map showing where San Jose Avenue is located in James Bay.

What I could find out about San Jose Avenue:

Another one-block street in James Bay, San Jose Avenue used to be San Juan Avenue.  Why, oh why do they keep changing the street names???

According to http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/Neighbourhoods/jamesbayhistory.html:

“It was not until the late 1880s and 1890s that living in the southern end of James Bay, closer to the Strait of Juan de Fuca, became popular, in large part because the electric street railway ran lines to the Outer Wharf, along Menzies and Niagara Streets to Beacon Hill Park. Here large homes were interspersed with subdivisions of smaller ones. Dr. Charles Newcombe’s house (138 Dallas Rd) overlooking Ogden Point and the Macaulays’ Queen Anne mansion, Pinehurst, (originally fronting Dallas, now off 617 Battery St) are two notable surviving mansions. The east sides of Oswego, San Jose and Lewis Streets comprise almost intact streetscapes of modest houses of the late 1800s and early 1900s, but nearby streets boast many other working and middle class enclaves, notably along Niagara, Menzies, Rithet, South Turner, lower Government, Toronto, Heather, Parry, Battery and Alma Place (off Michigan) and Avalon. ”

• San Jose Avenue properties at Hallmark: http://victoriahistory.ca/property.php?fun=browse&page=53&limit=50
• 40 San Jose Avenue:  http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/SanJose40.html
• 35 San Jose Avenue:  http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/SanJose35.html

Here are some pictures I took of San Jose Avenue.

Facing Dallas Road and the ocean.

Love the little libraries around town.

Facing back towards Niagara.

Also love the art on the city whatever-this-is things.

Kevin pondering the ocean after our walk down San Jose Avenue.

What else do you want to know about San Jose Avenue ?  Ask away, and I will see what I can find out for you!

Thanks for visiting letter J of my A to Z Challenge post of 2017.  You can find more I posts at http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/2017/04/atozchallenge-4-12-2017-letter-j.html.  Stay tuned for K is for... tomorrow!!

Welcome to my April 2017 Great and Powerful 2017 Blogging from A to Z Challenge!

Today, I is for I Love Heather Street!

Here is a Google map showing where Heather Street is located in James Bay.

What I could find out about Heather Street:

So, sue me.  There is no “I” street in James Bay, but I was reading a bit about Heather Street, and had to share.  Plus, I already had an “H” and this was a convenient excuse for an “I”.  Oh my!

According to my reading, Heather Street is the oldest street in James Bay, with the oldest home in James Bay, which supposedly dates from the 1850s, 438 Heather Street.  Heather Street was also not its original name.  According to the James Bay Beacon:

“Five different names have graced that picturesque little alley in our community. Originally it was called Beckley Farm Road [Remember Beckley Street???]. Then in the late nineteenth century, it was coined Prince’s Street. With continuous errors in spelling, it became Princess Street. Named after Sir James Douglas’ son-in-law, its title changed again to Helmcken Street. For reasons unknown, we now call it Heather Street. ”

• 428 Heather Street: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Heather428.html
• The oldest street in James Bay:  http://www.harborwalk.ca/jamesbay_history.html
• The Street with 5 Names:  http://www.jamesbaybeacon.ca/?q=node/389

Here are some pictures I took of Heather Street.

See how narrow it is?  No sidewalks at all!

A cute little house for sale, if you’re looking.

Looking down towards Michigan – you can see the legislature in the distance.

What else do you want to know about Heather Street?  Ask away, and I will see what I can find out for you!

Thanks for visiting letter I of my A to Z Challenge post of 2017.  You can find more I posts at http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/2017/04/atozchallenge-4-11-2017-letter-i.html.  Stay tuned for J is for... tomorrow!!

Welcome to my April 2017 Great and Powerful 2017 Blogging from A to Z Challenge!

Today, H is for Huntington Place!

Here is a Google map showing where Huntington Place is located in James Bay.

What I could find out about Huntington Place:

Huntington Place runs (one block) from Toronto Street to Avalon Road, near Beacon Hill Park.  It used to be called Phoenix Place, but I don’t know when or why the name changed.  And I only know this from a picture reference from the BC Archives.  One one side of the street are apartment buildings, and on the other side are houses.  Two of those houses are on the Heritage register: 310 and 314, “twins”, right next door to each other – you can read more about them by clicking on the links below.

So, there you have it.  That’s all I know about this street.  Short and sweet!

• 310 Huntington Place: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Huntington310.html, http://victoriahistory.ca/single.php?sec=property&id=1341
• 314 Huntington Place: http://www.victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/HReg/JamesB/Huntington314.html
• Huntington Place 1890s: http://search-bcarchives.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/huntington-place-first-house-on-left-home-of-mrs-d-fraser-victoria
• Home of Reverend Donald Fraser, Huntington Place: http://search-bcarchives.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/home-of-reverend-donald-fraser-huntington-place-victoria

Here are some pictures I took of Huntington Place.

Looking toward Avalon.  That’s Kevin walking ahead of me, wondering why I’m posting about Huntington Street when I haven’t been able to find out anything interesting about it…

I just liked this sign.

The turn onto the dead end part of Avalon.

Looking back towards Toronto.

What else do you want to know about Huntington Place?  Ask away, and I will see what I can find out for you!

Thanks for visiting letter H of my A to Z Challenge post of 2017.  You can find more H posts at http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/2017/04/atozchallenge-4-10-2017-letter-h.html.  Stay tuned for I is for... on Monday!!