Sunday Church Feature

Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain

"The Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família (official Catalan name; Spanish: Templo Expiatorio de la Sagrada Familia; "Expiatory Church of the Holy Family"), often simply called the Sagrada Família, is a massive, privately-funded Roman Catholic church that has been under construction in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain since 1882 and is not expected to be complete until at least 2026. A portion of the building's interior is scheduled to open for public worship and tours by September 2010[1].

"Considered the master-work of renowned Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí (1852–1926), the project's vast scale and idiosyncratic design have made it one of Barcelona's (and Spain's) top tourist attractions for many years. The church is to be consecrated by Pope Benedict XVI on November 7, 2010, during his visit to Santiago de Compostela and Barcelona.[2]

"A total of eighteen tall towers are called for, representing in ascending order of height the Twelve Apostles, the four Evangelists, the Virgin Mary and, tallest of all, Jesus Christ." Wikipedia

Tourists can see evidence of the on going construction in the moving cranes and buckets of cement being carried to the top of the towers.

Photos: Taken of the Sangrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain, in April 2010 by SW.  The top photo is of the back entrance of the church and was taken from the park across the street  that features a large lagoon and children's play area.  The bottom photo is of the front entrance of the church and was taken from another park across the street which features a fenced in children's play area, a fenced in doggy area, and a rose garden.

Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sagrada_Fam%C3%ADlia

Photo: Taken in April 2010 in Barcelona, Spain by SW.

Saturday Travel Feature
Customs and Columbus,  Barcelona, Spain


"This wonderful Customs house was built in 1902 by Enric Sagnier. He was a follower of Gaudí's style and he mixed Modernist and the Neo-Gothic aesthetics in this building, which is very rich in engravings and sculptures. There are lots of Barcelona's coat of arms along its façades with the characteristic bat over them. The Spanish coat of arms is over the main gate between two big eagles. Where mercantile loot was levied. The building is labeled Port de Barcelona. It appears that the Spanish-language version was scratched out and replaced with Catalan."Virtual Tourist-Port Vell, Barcelona, Spain.  Nearby is the Columbus Monument, starting off point for tourists from the cruise ships to explore Barcelona.

"The Columbus Monument ... is a 60 m (197 ft) tall monument for Christopher Columbus at the lower end of La Rambla, Barcelona, Spain. It was constructed for the Exposición Universal de Barcelona and is located at the site where Columbus returned to Spain after his first voyage to the Americas.[1] The monument serves as a reminder that Barcelona is where Christopher Columbus reported to Queen Isabella and Ferdinand after Columbus' most famous trip.[2]

"At the very top of the monument stands a 7.2 m (24 ft) tall bronze statue atop a 40 m (131 ft) tall Corinthian column. The statue was sculpted by Rafael Atché and is said to depict Columbus pointing towards the New World with his right hand, while holding a scroll in the left. As it was sited, instead of pointing to the west towards the New World, the statue points east towards Columbus's supposed home city of Genoa.[3] The statue is atop a socle, on which the word "Tierra" (land) is inscribed.

"The column, hung with a device bearing an anchor stands on an octagonal pedestal from which four bronze winged Victories or Phemes take flight towards the four corners of the world, above paired griffins. Four buttresses against the octagonal pedestal bear portrait medallions that depict people related to Columbus:...An elevator inside the column takes visitors up to a viewing platform at the top.  The canted octagonal plinth is inset with eight bronze bas-relief panels that depict important scenes in Columbus's first voyage to the Americas:...The base of the monument is a 20 m (66 ft) wide circle, with four staircases. Each staircase is flanked by two lions....All of the funding came from Spanish sources and the entire construction (labor and materials) was done by Catalans. Construction began in 1882 and was completed in 1888 in time for the Exposición Universal de Barcelona.[4]" Wikipedia

 Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbus_Monument,_Barcelona

Photo: Taken in April 2010 in Barcelona, Spain by SW.

Friday, May 14, 2010
Christmas on 14th Street

The stucco and brick clad house at 424 East 14th Street was at least built by 1960. No record of its construction is listed in the Building Permit book or 1925, 1940, 1950, or 1955 City Directories at the North Vancouver Archives. But in 1960 the owners are reported to be Keith M. and Magaret R. Yelland. Keith worked as a train clerk for the Canadian Pacific Railroad. By 1980 only Margaret is listed as the owner.

In 1991 Linda D. Blaine was the owner. Linda was employed by the Botanical Gardens at the University of B.C. She continued to work at UBC in 1995 and reported that by that time she had lived at 424 East 14th Street for six years.

Linda is not listed in the year 2000 phone book as living at 424 East 14th Street. But since this is the year the photo above was taken whoever was living there was celebrating Christmas with strings of Christmas lights.

The photo of 424 East 14 Street was taken by Suzanne Wilson as part of her Year 2000 Photography Project, Your House/Our Home. 2000 photos of homes in the City of North Vancouver were photographed. Approximately 800 of these were accompanied by some history of the house or a photo.


In the month of June 2007 Suzanne Wilson celebrated the City of North Vancouver's 100 birthday by distributing to their home owners copies of 1000 photos taken for the Y2K Project. At this time it was discovered that the home photographed at 424 East 14th Street had been demolished and a new house had been built.


Photos: Taken in the year 2000 by SW.
Reference: The Year 2000 project was donated by Suzanne and Alan Wilson to the North Vancouver Archives and is available for viewing.

Thursday, May 13, 2010
Two for One

The 300 and 400 blocks of East 14th Street in the City of North Vancouver are sandwiched between St. Andrew's Avenue and Lion's Gate Hospital on the west and Moody Avenue and Grand Boulevard Park on the east. The three storey house at 325 East 14th Street was an oldie. It was built in 1911 by owner C. Duplissie for $300. The house on 14th Street had three storeys: main floor, upstairs, and basement. In 1912 Chase Duplissie was reported as being a carpenter and living on the ss of East 14th Street near St. Andrew's Avenue. Duplissie continued to be listed in the City Directories as living at 325 in the years 1913, 1914, and 1915. He is not listed in 1916. But in 1921 C. Duplissie did build a house at 323 East 13th Street for $2000.

By 1925 the house on 14th was owned by J. Millar, but now a (rear) address was also reported. Living in this (rear) residence was Fred C. Paint. Fred was employed as an iron worker. The Millar family continued to own the house at least until 1950. In 1931 John worked as a blacksmith. In 1940 Catherine J. is also listed as living in the house. John Jr. is listed as being a florist for Livingstone Floral. In 1950 an "a" address is also listed with the resident being Mrs. M. Perry, a widow.

The 325 (rear) East 14th Street address that was listed in 1925 and then again as 325 "a" East 14th Street refers to an addition on the west side of the house.( See photo below.) It had its own front door, front porch, and front steps.

In 1960 the owners of 325 East 14th Street was listed in the City Directory as being Don W. and Margaret Smith. Don was employed as a mill worker at Kill Lumber. The other residents listed at that address were Earl M. and Jewel C. Commodore. Earl was working as a longshoreman. In 1971 the 325 owner continued to be Don Smith. The 325a resident was Mrs. D. Spurrel. In 1980 the 325 owner was Denise Flemming and the 325a resident was Terry Pollock who was employed at Canada Safeway. In 1991 Norm Milsted, a retired gentleman, was living at 325. Brad Cochlin, a clerk at Canada Safeway, was living at 325a. In 1996 Norm and Liz Milstead reported they had lived at 325 for 9 years.  Brad Cochlin who was still working as a clerk at Canada Safeway also reported that he had lived at 325a for 9 years.

A Demolition Permit was applied for in 2008. Much of the 300 block of East 14th Street near the corner with St. Andrew's Avenue was now owned by Lion's Gate Hospital. The public information sign indicated that the land of several lots in that area was going to be used for the building of a 15 bed Hospice.

Demolition: Permit applied for January 2008.
Photos: Taken as part of the Year 2000 Photography Project, Your House/Our Home by SW. (See Blog Post February 26, 2010.)

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

They Liked to Celebrate Halloween

The house at 529 East 13th Street is in the block facing the tennis courts on Grand Boulevard in the City of North Vancouver. This home with its scalloped gable was built in 1941 by Paul Horthey Homes for owner J. Stewart. The construction price was $3,300. John and Rose Stewart were also living in the house in 1945 when John was a foreman at Burrard Dry Dock.  Another home in the area, at 535 East 12th Street (See Blog Post May 11, 2010.) has similar features to this one: the scalloped gable and the unique six sided window next to the front door.

Thomas and Thirza Ollis owned the house from approximately 1950 to sometime after 1971.  During this time Thomas was an accountant for the North Shore Medical Dental Corp. until his retirement that was reported in the City Directory in 1971. The house was reported as vacant in 1980.

In 1991 two resident families were reported in the City Directory. James and Teresa Taylor and the owner D. Port.  James Taylor worked as a piano technician. Evidently the Taylors didn't live there very long after that for in the 1995/96 City Directory David W. and Anita Powell reported that they were the owners and had lived there for four years. David Powell was employed as a computer programmer for Graphic Response Systems Inc. Anita S. Powell worked as a legal secretary at Douglas, Symes, and Brissenden.  D. Port continued to live in the house and reported in 1995 that he had lived there for 5 years. David Port's employment was as a service representative for Honda.

None of these families is listed in the year 2000 phone book. However, we do know by the decorations in the front window that who ever was living in the house at this time "liked to celebrate Halloween". (See Year 2000 photo below.)

The photo of 529 East 13th Street was taken by Suzanne Wilson as part of her Year 2000 Photography Project, Your House/Our Home. 2000 photos of homes in the City of North Vancouver were photographed. Approximately 800 of these were accompanied by some history of the house or a photo. This was true in the case of 529 East 13th Street.


In the month of June 2007 Suzanne Wilson celebrated the City of North Vancouver's 100 birthday by distributing to their home owners copies of 1000 photos taken for the Y2K Project. At this time it was discovered that the home photographed at 529 East 13th Street had been demolished and a new house had been built.

Photos: Taken in the year 2000 by SW.
Reference: The Year 2000 project was donated by Suzanne and Alan Wilson to the North Vancouver Archives and is available for viewing.

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Built by a Shipwright

The 1960 owner of the house with the unique hardwood front hall flooring at 535 East 12th Street  was E. R. Maconnell. He continued to live in the house into the 1980's and by this time was listed as retired. In 1991 Paul Culling was the owner and shortly after Joseph Hind moved in. In 1995 Joseph Hind reported he had lived in the house for 4 years. He was also living in the house in the year 2000 when the photos were taken and at least into the year 2006.

The photo of 535 East 12th Street was taken by Suzanne Wilson as part of her Year 2000 Photography Project, Your House/Our Home. 2000 photos of homes in the City of North Vancouver were photographed. Approximately 800 of these were accompanied by some history of the house. This was true in the case of 535 East 12th Street.


Demolition: Permit applied for in 2007.
Photos: Taken in the year 2000 by SW.
Reference: The Year 2000 project was donated by Suzanne and Alan Wilson to the North Vancouver Archives and is available for viewing.

Monday, May 10, 2010
White Horizontal Clapboard

The white horizontal clapboard home at 338 East 12th Street in the City of North Vancouver is not listed in either the Building Permit book or the 1950 City Directory at the North Vancouver Archives.But by 1960 Don H. and K. Jane Owen were the owners of the house. Donald worked as a forester for the B.C. Forest Service. In 1971 they still owned the house and Donald was now a protection officer for the B.C. Forest Service. By 1980 Isobel and Clyde M. Nichols, retired, lived in the house. There was another change by 1991, now Dan and Louise Hosford were the residents. Dan was a painter at McKenzie Barge and Marine Ways Ltd. Shortly after, Heather and Paul Miles moved in and in 1995 reported that they had been living there for four years.

The photo of 338 East 12th Street was taken by Suzanne Wilson as part of her Year 2000 Photography Project, Your House/Our Home. 2000 photos of homes in the City of North Vancouver were photographed. Approximately 800 of these were accompanied by some history from the present or previous home owner sometimes including personal photographs.



In the month of June 2007 Suzanne Wilson celebrated the City of North Vancouver's 100 birthday by distributing to their home owners copies of 1000 photos taken for the Y2K Project. At this time it was discovered that the home photographed at 338 East 12th Street had been demolished and new housing was under construction.


Photo: Taken in the year 2000 by SW.
Reference: The Year 2000 project was donated by Suzanne and Alan Wilson to the North Vancouver Archives and is available for viewing.