Point Ellice house

Point Ellice House is like the house that Jack built. At first glance from the outside, its not easy to figure out which door is the main entrance. From inside the house, guests are faced by a labyrinthine layout of hallways and rooms and may be left wondering why the dining room is next to the bedrooms. "Rambling Italianate" is one of the popular architectural terms used to describe this National Historic Site, which houses British Columbias largest collection of Victoriana still in its original setting. The homes charms are enhanced by its beautifully restored nineteenth - century gardens, but its heritage character is overwhelmed by the surrounding noise and dust produced by one of Victorias few heavily industrial zones.

The house sits at the top of a bank overlooking Selkirk Water, a tidal channel between Victorias Upper Harbour and the Gorge Waterway. Once the traditional territory of the Sweng - whung First Nation, the property was acquired by the Hudsons Bay Company under treaty in 1850 and purchased by Chief Factor John Work as part of his vast Hillside Farm. It is generally believed that the original portion of Point Ellice House was built in 1861 for Works daughter Kate and her husband Charles Wentworth Wallace, and that it was designed by Wright and Sanders, Victorias first professional architects. The original wing was a simple one - storey, four - room cottage with a lean - to kitchen. Exterior wood - frame walls were covered with a stucco finish scored to resemble stone blocks.

Colonial magistrate Peter OReilly bought Point Ellice House in December 1867 when the colonial capital was moved from New Westminster to Victoria. In the home, OReillys wife, Carry, gave birth to Kathleen, their second child, on New Years Eve in 1867. As the family grew to four children, the cottage was enlarged at least three times under the guidance of two other architects: William Ridgeway Wilson and John Teague. The first addition, a wing with two rooms on the west side, provided a bigger drawing room and possibly a nursery.

Stas

Verandahs and bay windows were added later, and the north wall of the drawing room and Kathleens bedroom were eventually moved out to create extra space.

In the 1880s, a spacious wing was built to create two more bedrooms, a bigger kitchen, a servery, scullery and pantry. However, each new addition somehow didnt quite mesh with the older parts of the house, resulting in winding hallways and the odd juxtaposition of rooms.

Until the mid - 1960s, the house was heated only by coal burning fireplaces. The lack of any insulation and the dirt - floor crawl space underneath most of the building ensured that the house was chilly and damp in the winter, stuffy and hot in the summer and always prone to earthy smells. Proximity to the waterfront encouraged rats, which Peter OReilly was constantly trying to evict, without lasting success.

Today, Point Ellice House is a showplace of an upper class Victorian household. Afternoon tea in the garden, a stroll past the period flower beds and a tour through the fascinating house provide visitors with a memorable glimpse of life in a bygone era.