Connaught School, December 20, 1913. Source: Greater Vancouver Chinook newspaper, UBC Library
While browsing the Greater Vancouver Chinook newspapers online at the UBC library website, I discovered a photo in the 1913 edition showing Connaught School, which confirmed my previous research. The school was renamed John Norquay Annex (1933–1955) before changing to Sir Wilfred Grenfell School (opened in 1958). Grenfell school is still in operation as of 2024 at 3323 Wellington Avenue.
I wrote about this in detail in the November 2019 issue of the Renfrew-Collingwood Community News.
Rupert Street School on Bayley’s Claim, incorrectly named. Source: Vancouver Archives, 1910s.
In the Vancouver archive photos, the school is incorrectly named Rupert School. The description should read Connaught School, as confirmed in the BC Directories and other sources.
I had no real proof that these photos were of Connaught School until now. The UBC library website is free to use and has a wealth of information about the past. Please use this free resource to explore Collingwood history for yourself.
Loretta Houben and her young son watching the demolishing of the warehouses on Wellington Avenue, 1992. Photo by John Williams
Do you remember a train whistle blowing late at night in the 1960s and 1970s when the freight train would arrive at the back of the large warehouse complex located on Wellington Avenue and Joyce Street? The train used the former interurban tracks from the east. I lived on Monmouth Avenue and the sound would comfort me in the middle of the night.
The warehouse was opened in March 1957 at 3450 Wellington Avenue and owned by Robert K. Arkley. For many years it was McGregor Warehouses Ltd., until it came under new management in 1973 and was changed to Vancouver Distribution Centres Ltd. The owner at the time was George A. Carey, and the general manager was Harvey Allen. The warehouses were a huge facility consisting of 120,000 square feet. Some of the businesses located here were Castrol Oils, Nestle Canada, DuBois Chemicals of Canada and Johnsons Wax.
Looking north from behind the warehouses from the SkyTrain tracks, 1992. Photo by John Williams
It was difficult gleaning this information from online newspapers at Newspapers.com. Not much has been written about this complex, which was in the Collingwood neighbourhood from 1957 until 1992, a period of 35 years, when it was demolished to make way for townhomes and condos. The area was rezoned in 1988.
The warehouses were torn down in 1992. The apartments and townhomes were sold from 1992 to 1994, advertised in the Vancouver Sun for as low as $4,000 down payment. Apartments started at $74,500 and townhomes started at $210,000, from VLC Properties. Eventually, the area included Wellington townhomes on Wellington Avenue, with the Avalon and Connaught townhomes behind them. Also included were two high rise towers, the tallest in the neighbourhood at the time: the Regent Court and Queen’s Court.
My dad, John Williams, took the two photos included with this article. I inherited my love of old buildings and documenting neighbourhood changes from him. These are the only two photos I have seen of the warehouses on Wellington.
The one thing I remember about this area is the beautiful green lawn in the front, with picnic tables for the staff. McGreer Street was once an unnamed gravel lane, running along the west side of the property.
Do you have memories or photos of this warehouse complex? Please get in touch with the editor, Paul Reid, if you do, at rccnews-editorial@cnh.bc.ca.
Looking south up Joyce to Westminster Road (now Kingsway),1912. The Community Credit Union was recently on the left. Photo from UBC Library, the Chinook newspaper
The area at Joyce and Vanness is changing dramatically. In December 2023, the Community Savings Credit Union closed, after 22 years. (They merged with the branch on Commercial Drive.)
5104 Joyce and Vanness, on the southeast corner, 1974. Vancouver Archives, CVA 1095-04418
This location has always been a thriving corner because of the British Columbia Electric Railway (BCER) interurban track, built in 1891 to connect downtown Vancouver to New Westminster. Today the Skytrain runs along the same route, built in 1985. The Joyce-Collingwood station was enlarged recently on the east side of Joyce, and it’s a very busy corner.
5103 Joyce and Vanness, on the southwest corner, 1974. Vancouver Archives, CVA 786-98.13
Back in the early 1900s, two large office buildings were built on the southeast corner of Joyce and Vanness and across Joyce on the southwest corner.
Recently I discovered photos from 1974 in the Vancouver archives that show the two buildings 60 years later. I realized that I would have passed by them frequently as a young girl, but I have no recollection of them at all. Do you remember these two buildings?
Renfrew-Collingwood Community News 