Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Shake Clad House on Dempsey

The two storey shake clad house at 1640 Dempsey Road was built for $1500 in 1938 by J. Greenwood.  The is no listing of the 1640 Dempsey Road address in the 1940 City Directory.  However, the house is indicated by the notation "ns Greenwood J." as the owner.  In the 1945 City Directory the address is listed, and J. Greenwood is still recorded as living there. 

However, by 1948 the owner was Mrs. K. A. Vaughan, the widow of E. W. Vaughan.   In 1940 Edgar and Cathy A. Vaughan had been the owners of a home on the north side of the 1200 Mill Street in North Vancouver.  Edgar Vaughan was a cartoonist.  Mill Street is two streets north of Dempsey.  So Mrs. Vaughan's move from Mill Street to Dempsey after the death of her husband, was not a big one.  Mrs. Vaughan continued to own the house at 1640 Dempsey Rd. at least until 1971.  Over the years her name was listed in the City Directories as Mrs. K. A. Vaughan, Cath A. Vaughan and in 1971 as Molly Vaughan.

In 1981 Gunter Karl Essinger was the owner of the 1640 Dempsey Road house.  Gunter Essinger worked as a maintenance man at Delta Smelting and Refining. In 1991 the City Directory reported that Ralph, Karen, and Patrick Essinger as well as Pfiel Jens were all residents of the house.  Ralph and Patrick Essinger were both employees at the Spaghetti Factory.  Karen Essinger's employment was Scandal's Bar and Grill Restaurant.  In the 1995/1996 City Directory Ralph and Patrick Essinger were reported as living in the house.  Other residents at least from 1991 to 1995 were Harold and Marie Scott.  In 1995 Ralph and Patrick Essinger were still working at the Spaghetti Factory.  Although, Karen was not listed as living at 1640 Dempsey Road, her employment was reported as president of My Place Cafe.  Ralph Essinger was listed in the 2006/2007 North and West Vancouver Phone Directory as still living at the 1640 Dempsey Road address at that time.

Patrick Essinger adds," My father Gunther Karl Essinger  passed away in the house in 1989.  The house was left to his sons Ralph Peter Essinger and Patrick Carsten Essinger. The house had a renovation to the basement to make it livable.  Both brothers lived in and out of the basement for a few years.  Ralph married S. Essinger and lived in the house til early 2000. They had one daughter S. N. Essinger.  Patrick Essinger took sole possession of the house in 2004.  Patrick a City of Vancouver Firefighter and his wife J. A. Essinger a Registered Nurse at Lions Gate Hospital lived in the house until 2010 with their daughter N. G. Essinger. " They will be  demolishing the existing home and building a new heritage style home.

Dempsey Road and Mill Street are in the northern part of the Lynn Valley known as Upper Lynn.  This is at the base of the North Shore Mountains where the hikers park before heading up the trails.  The house at 1640 Dempsey Road is also just up the street from Kilmer Park.


Thank you: To Patrick Essinger for his contribution to the history of the home at 1640 Dempsey Road.
Demolition: Permit applied for to the North Vancouver District in September of 2010.
Photo: Taken in September of 2010 by SW. (Actual house color is a brown tone.)

Thursday, September 9, 2010
A Week of Black and White
Westlake and Marshall

It seems that this large house with the Tudor trim at 4375 Underwood Avenue in the Upper Lynn area of Lynn Valley was only owned by two families, the Westlake's and the Marshall's.

F. A. Westlake built the house in 1950 for $5000. Three years later, in 1953 he applied for a Building Permit for a $150 carport. Frank A. and Louise M. Westlake owned the house at least until 1971. In 1955 Frank Westlake worked as a warehouse foreman at Pacific Coast Wholesale Drugs. In  1960 he was a foreman at Pacific Coast Wholesale Drugs. And by 1971 Frank Westlake was retired.

The 1980 City Directory reports Garry and Ann Marshall as the owners of 4375 Underwood Avenue. They owned the house at least until 2007, as indicated by the North and West Vancouver Phone Directory. In 1980 Garry Marshall was employed as a bodyman at Tip Top Collision Ltd. In 1991 he was working as a bodyman at Bodo Motors.

In August 0f 2009 the house at 4375 Underwood Avenue was sold for $942,000.

A Week of Black and White

The Black and White photos of all the homes this week were taken in July of 2007 as part of the Demolition and Construction North Vancouver Archives Project by Suzanne Wilson. On notification of City and District applications for Demolition Permits the photos were taken and documented. Negatives and contact prints were filed at the North Vancouver Archives as part of their permanent photo collection. The project ran from 2001 to 2010.


Demolition Permit: Applied for in 2007.
Photos: The black and white photo Demolition and Construction Project photo Roll # 85 Negative 10 on file at the North Vancouver Archives. (The photo above was taken of the contact sheet with a digital camera.)

Monday, August 9, 2010
In the Rainforest

The single floor house of brick at 1605 Kilmer Road is in the Upper Lynn area of Lynn Valley in the District of North Vancouver. It was built in 1959 for $1300 by M. Hatter. Just a year later, in 1960 the owners were George W. K. and Mildred G. Slack. George Slack was employed as a surveyor for the B. C. Government.

In 1971 and 1980 the owners were Frank D. and Marie Pagnan. In both of these years Frank Pagnan worked as a storeman at B. C. Tel. In 1991 and in 1995 John Y. and Belinda Kan owned the house. During this time John Kan worked as an accountant at the Hong Kong Bank. In 1955 the Kan's reported to the City Directory that they had lived in the house for 5 years, so they must have moved into it in 1990. Today the lot is covered with dense trees and shrubs typical of North Vancouver's rainforest. North Vancouver is snug against the North Shore Mountains and has rainfall of 111.76cm/44in, (See Link.) the highest in the Lower Mainland. Trimming back the vegetation is a regular North Vancouver home owners task.

On the east end of Kilmer Road is Kilmer Park. The park runs between Dempsey Rd. and Kilmer Rd. just west of Lynn Valley Road. It features a water park and soccer fields

Demolition Permit: Applied for in July if 2010.
Photo: Taken in July of 2010 by SW.
Link: http://www.hellobc.com/en-CA/Geography/North-Vancouver.htm