Monthly Archives: February 2011

Photo Credit: Comox Valley Echo

Well, sadly it is official.  As a follow up to a previous story I posted this morning, the Lorne Hotel and Pub in Comox, one of British Columbia’s oldest and longest serving hotels, has been completely destroyed by fire today. It’s a very sad loss for heritage in British Columbia.

If you would like to read the story at the Vancouver Sun by Tamara Cunningham, please click here to take you directly to the story.

Below is a picture of the Lorne Hotel in the 1880s, courtesy of the Comox Archives and Museum.

Photo Credit: Comox Archives and Museum

Photo Credit: City of Toronto Archives Fonds 1244, Item 1

Although the date of April 19, 1904 would suggest it must have been a very pleasant and mild spring day in Toronto, it was actually quite the opposite. The temperature was -4 Celsius and there were flurries in the air that evening in the downtown core. But the winter-like conditions were the least of Toronto’s worries. People were furiously jumping off the streets and onto the sidewalks to avoid the charging horse teams that pulled 7,500 pound fire engines down Wellington Street West at about 8:30 that evening. When the night was over, Toronto had lived through the worst city fire in its history.  (more…)

Historic Lorne Hotel and Pub, Comox BC. Built 1878. Photo Credit: Bob_2006

Yet, another heritage building tragedy to report this morning, this time out of British Columbia. I just got an email from a friend that the historic landmark Lorne Hotel and Pub in Comox is on fire. This historic landmark was built by an American investor in 1878 and is one of British Columbia’s longest running hotels. It is a beautiful structure with many of it’s original interior features and is a supurb example of local, vernacular craftsmanship.

Let’s hope the fire isn’t too serious and this building can be saved. I’ll keep you up to date on developments with this story.

Photo Credit: TOBuilt

This edition of The Great Canadian Architects series looks at two Toronto based architects who contributed greatly to the development of commercial and banking architecture in the early twentieth century in not just Toronto, but across western Canada. Frank Darling and John A. Pearson would create a solid association that lasted from the early 1890s until 1923. They are best known for their banks of which many were built in the Beaux-Arts and Classical Revival styles. Darling and Pearson observed what was happening in the architectural spaces of Chicago, New York and London and created their own architectural interpretations to reflect the unique Canadian experience of commercial development in the early twentieth century.  (more…)

Photo Credit: Manitoba Archives

The Canadian Expeditionary Force in WWI was no stranger to regimental mascots and pets. Lt. Col John McCrae had two of them and it is said that there were at least two regiments that had bears as mascots and one even had a beaver! Yet, the most famous Canadian mascot of all from 1914-1918 was a little black bear from White River, Ontario that would inspire a British author to create a character that is known around the world today to millions of children.  (more…)

Like many of you, I have been riveted by what has been transpiring in Egypt over the last few days and hope this conflict comes to a speedy and safe conclusion. I know this story is a day old now, but I still wanted to show how vulnerable history and heritage protection can be in the wake of a political and social crisis no matter where it happens.

Reports are coming out of Egypt of how looters have tried to make their way into many locations from the Cairo Museum to the tombs of Saqqara to “steal” back Egypt’s history and keep it from leaving the country. Yet, there are other stories of young people rushing to defend places from looters like the Bibliotheca Alexandria, which contains some of Egypt’s oldest and most culturally significant heritage artifacts. In the wake of political crisis, it is difficult to determine just how truthful any allegations are. Yet, it raises a very interesting question about who is “in charge” of heritage protection. Is it the political system? Is it academics who tell us what is historically important? Or in this case, in the words of Dr. Zahi Hawass, is it the responsibility of all people of the world? regardless, it is an interesting look into the political motivations and values of cultural heritage of a nation whether it is Egypt or anywhere else.

For more about the situation in Alexandria, here is a link to an article by Benedicte Page for the Guardian Newspaper.

Hello everyone,

It has always been a pleasure to have been interviewed throughout my career on various projects I have been involved with. But, when it comes down to being interviewed by a fellow heritage professional on working in the industry…well that surely ranks as a “top 10″ event for sure.

I was recently interviewed by my colleague and fellow “warrior in heritage”, Kayla Jonas, for her wonderful blog Adventures in Heritage. That interview was posted today on her blog and you can read it right here. This is part of series of interviews Kayla is conducting over the next several weeks with people who are involved in many aspects of the heritage industry. Please check it out. And while you are there, read through Kayla’s posts. Adventures in Heritage is a great blog and I applaude both Kayla’s work and insight into built heritage.