Name/Title
Union Club of B.C., Third Clubhouse, 805 Gordon St., Victoria, B.C., ca. 2010Entry/Object ID
2023.04.02Description
Photograph
This black and white image depicts the southwest corner of the Union Club at 805 Gordon Street at Humboldt, Victoria, B.C. It shows the the Club’s architectural features prior to the five-year building renovation project, initiated in 2017.
Founded in 1879, The Union Club of British Columbia is a landmark institution in the heart of downtown Victoria., B.C., considered the foremost business, social and cultural club in the city.Photograph Details
Type of Photograph
DigitalSubject Place
Region
Pacific NorthwestContinent
North AmericaContext
This reproduction is of the Club on Gordon Street. This venue is the third clubhouse, and has been in operation since 1913. In 1910, construction began and three years later, the first Grand Ball was staged in the new Clubhouse, under the Presidency of Mr. John A. Mara, whose portrait by Wiley Grier (see 2001.01.24) hangs in the main stairwell of the Club to this day.
For further detail see - see Susan Mayse, The Union Club of British Columbia - Our First 125 Years (Victoria: The Union Club of British Columbia, 2004).
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This Union Club building was recognized as nationally significant in 1995 by the joint federal, provincial and territorial administered registry, Canada’s Historic Places. And in 2017, The Union Club of British Columbia was declared a National Historic Site by the Government of Canada. The Union Club, completed in 1913, earned the prestigious status for its important early history and outstanding architecture of Beaux-Arts Italian Renaissance Revival Style.
Designed by noted San Francisco architect Loring P. Rixford (1870-1946), plans for the building were drawn up with the help of prominent Victoria architect Francis Mawson Rattenbury (1867-1935). Of note, in addition to the building's elegant design, is it's juxtaposition with The Empress Hotel (1908), a nationally significant Château-style hotel, built for the Canadian Pacific Railway and the Belmont Building (1912), significant for its early use of concrete frame construction and as a gatepost to Victoria's commercial core. Together these buildings form a backdrop of historic places in the northeast corner of the Inner Harbour, and mark the entrance to Victoria's Old Town District.
In 2017, an extensive $4 million five-year building renovation project was completed, including exterior restoration. The restoration of the exterior terracotta was documented and the photographs now form part of the Club's collection. See 2018.06.01 - 2018.06.15.Made/Created
Artist Information
Artist
John Taylor, RCARole
PhotographerDate made
circa 2010Time Period
20th CenturyDimensions
Dimension Description
SupportHeight
33 cmWidth
47 cmRelationships
Related Entries
Notes
By John Taylor:
2018.06.01 - 2018.06.15 UCBC Terracotta Restoration Project Nos. 1-15
2023.04.02 Union Club of B.C., Third Clubhouse, 805 Gordon St., Victoria, B.C., ca. 2010
2023.04.05.a The Original Union Club in Victoria [First venue, 907 Government Street at Yates, Victoria, B.C., ca. 1880]
2023.04.05.b The Original Union Club in Victoria [First venue, 907 Government Street at Yates, Victoria, B.C.], ca. 1975
2023.04.11 Designation of Union Club of B.C. as National Historic Site of Canada
2023.04.12.a Architectural Detail, Exterior of Union Club, 805 Gordon Street, Victoria, B.C.: Nos. 1-2 (Shield and Window)
2023.04.12.b Architectural Detail, Exterior of Union Club, 805 Gordon Street, Victoria, B.C.: Nos. 3-4 (Urn and Stairs)
2023.04.12.c Architectural Detail, Exterior of Union Club, 805 Gordon Street, Victoria, B.C.: Nos. 5-6 (Keystone and Main Entrance)
2002.04.06 Victoria Real Estate Board 25th Annual Commercial Building Award for Heritage Restoration of Union Club of B.C.
2022.04.07 Heritage BC - Heritage Conservation Award for The Union Club of B.C. Restoration and Conservation Project
2022.05.01 Hallmark Heritage Society – Michael Williams Award presented to The Union Club of British Columbia for restoration of 805 Gordon Street
