3475 Empress Avenue - Cobble Hill BC

3475 Empress Avenue - Cobble Hill BC -
Angela & Richard Williams October 2007

Our house, in Cobble Hill BC, was built in the early 1900's. The exact date is unknown, but the old timers around here tell us that it was begun before the first world war, and completed sometime before 1918 when Donald MacPherson and his wife Sarah moved in. The floors are all fir hardwood, and the structure is built from clear fir beams and posts. The rooms are huge, with 10 foot ceilings throughout, and a large, grand sitting room and a bay window - to look out at the field that has been a part of this property since it was built.

We laugh - it's on the "wrong side of the tracks" - the side that you have to cross over onto a small country lane. Giving directions is easy - stop at the stop sign, go across the railroad tracks straight ahead of you, and we're the first place on the left.

Our family (Williams) is related to many pioneer families in the Cowichan Valley. My husband's parents were born on Vancouver Island (Father in Duncan, and Mother in Qualicum), and his Grandparents on his father's side owned a garage in "downtown Cobble Hill" - the site is now occupied by Victoria Truss. His grandfather on his Mother's side was a section foreman for the E&N Railway, and his mother was born and raised for her first few years at the section house outside Qualicum Beach. His grandfather's house was built in the 1940's after he retired from the railroad, "four houses down" from the one we now live in - right on the E&N tracks he used to take care of.

Our home was built by Donald MacPherson. Donald was related to a well-off, local farming family from Glenora. Donald was also the first section foreman for Cobble Hill, and his job was to inspect the track before every train. His home (now ours) was built ¼mile down from the Cobble Hill train station and hotel - at the Cobble Hill Station crossing. Donald met his wife-to- be Sarah Chapman and they were married in 1889. Construction on the house was started in the early 1900's, but it is not clear when it was completed. There is some speculation that it was completed after 1914 because the First World War got in the way - materials and labourers were hard to find during this time period, and the priority was on the war effort.

This oil lantern was left in our house when we purchased it, and we assume it must have been left behind by Sarah Chapman when she moved. This was the style of lantern used by the railway workers and has a metal coil 'sleeve" where (apparently) colored glass could be inserted (e.g., red for stop/danger). The owners just prior to us (Wass/Dean) had no official role with the railroad. If this is indeed a railway lantern, it would have been used by the section foreman to warn trains about the conditions ahead on the tracks, just prior to when they entered the station in Cobble Hill.

Much of the wood that was used to build our home was sourced from the local open burner sawmill, which was located approximately ¼ mile away from the house site. Other items, like the windows and doors, are believed to have been sourced from another house being demolished in Victoria - an early form of recycling!

The house was originally heated by coal burning stoves, evidence of these is in "holes" in the walls (which are now covered up with gyproc) where the pipes for the old pot bellied stoves went through before they exited to the outside of the house. Hot water was made through a hot water tank attached to a wood burning kitchen stove.

The water took at least 4 hours to heat - so one had to get up pretty early in the morning to get the stove going and the water on! Current CSA regulators would be horrified to have seen that, I'm sure! We still have both the original hot water tank and the original wood burning stove - in storage, not in use.

The front of the house would have been imposing to view from the road _ and the railroad tracks. A long staircase _ at least 20 steps _ led the visitor from the entrance gate and sidewalk up to a large verandah.

The original color of the house was a brown with a light brown trim (we found this out when we were repainting and had to scrape the siding and trim. The siding is likely cedar, and the trim is most likely fir - all still in original condition (underneath the paint! When we purchased it in 1988, the house was painted white, with dark green trim. My mother in law (now deceased) told us that as long as she could remember, the house was white with dark green trim - and she'd lived in the area since the 1930's.

She was surprised (but supportive) when we painted our home blue with white trim, in the summer of 2002. She passed away in the fall, but never forgot to remind us that the house looked strange after it was painted, given her memories of it having always been white! The verandah is now enclosed, and a deck has replaced the stairs after they became too rotten to repair after all those years exposed to the elements.

The Shawnigan Lake-Cobble Hill Road was originally situated at the front of our home and led to the hotel and train station. The Cobble Hill Station Hotel was built in 1902, and was the center of the heart of the district. The Hotel was on the opposite side of the railroad tracks from our home, and would have been visible at the time as the trees that are currently in the way would not have been there. The Hotel burned down in 1942 and was never rebuilt.

People were welcomed into the house from Shawnigan Lake-Cobble Hill Road (east entrance of the house), and it was the norm for them to go into the parlour, which overlooked the field - and probably at the time had a view of the Cobble Hill Station and the Hotel which were situated to the north east of our home.

The Cobble Hill School was also located kitty corner to our home, and is now a coffee shop _ at the corner of Hutchison and Shawnigan Lake-Cobble Hill Road. Our home is still kitty corner but now you can't see it for the trees!

A well-known character in the early 1900's, was a Chinese named Kaiway who owned a store on the east/opposite side of the tracks from our property. This part of the Shawnigan Lake - Cobble Hill Road was moved to the opposite side of the tracks and is now known as Empress Avenue. We now enter the house from the "new road" side - which is actually the back of the house as it was designed.

Donald and Sarah lived here until Donald passed away in 1930. Sarah continued to live in the house for a few years, and took in boarders. As a single woman who took in male boarders, rumours may have started that she was actually running a brothel, but her great-nephew, a good friend of ours, assures us that this is not the case.

Sarah moved away, and the house was purchased by the Wass family. Florence Wass was one of the early Postmasters in Cobble Hill. She and her son, Alf Dean, lived in the house until Alf passed away in late 1987. We purchased the house in early 1988, and started renovations that continue to this day.

When we purchased the house in 1988, it was 3 bedrooms, living room, kitchen and bathroom - all on one floor. The basement was ½ concrete, ½ dirt - and the majority of the space was used as cold/cool storage. The basement is now completely dug out, and 3 more bedrooms, a family room, a laundry room and another bathroom have been added in the 20 years we have lived here. Maybe next year we'll add a hot tub and another deck - in keeping with the heritage style of course!

Our 100 year old home is our pride and joy.... and perhaps we'll become the "Donald and Sarah" for someone who will write more about this house in another 100 or so years.