Heritage Register
James Bay

255 Government Street (ex-8 Carr St)
Arcadia

Built 1892
Heritage-Designated 1976

For: Frederick & Lillie Sherborne

Builder: Frederick Thomas Sherborne

ARCHITECTURE:

This two-storey, hip-roofed Victorian Queen Anne house has a prominent pedimented gable on the front left, and small front-and-rear-facing gables-on-hip on the main roof. On the left side to the rear is a two-storey box bay with a gable-on-hip roof. There are sandwich brackets along the front and right side of the house, and on the left side up to the rear of the bay, with longer sandwich brackets on all the corners. Below the pedimented gable on the façade are three windows to the left of an inset balcony with one turned post and sawn balusters. A hipped roof shelters the full-width front verandah, which has turned posts, spindles and brackets. A pedimented gable below the balcony sits over the entrance steps which lead to double doors with a transom. Left of the entry is a wide angled bay. The main front gable has a decorative-shingle fan motif; the gable on the verandah roof has fishscale shingles. The three gables-on-hip have vertical V-joint T&G, which is also used on the beltcourse which surrounds the house; fishscale shingles are also used on a wide band above the beltcourse on the two sides of the house towards the front. The body of the house is clad in drop siding. It retains two corbelled brick chimneys. An early garage exists at the left rear.

ORIGINAL OCCUPANTS:

Frederick Thomas Sherborne, born in Bristol, England, came here via Cape Horn in 1884 as ship’s carpenter. In 1892 he built the house and married Lily Mesher, daughter of Charles and Elizabeth, and niece of contractor George Mesher (154 South Turner St, James Bay). Fred partnered with George Bishop (303 Government St) in the contracting firm Bishop & Sherborne from 1889-99. In 1901 Fred moved to Vancouver with his family and was proprietor of Sherborne Contracting (he built the Marine Building) until retiring in 1937. Lillie died at 36 in 1910, Fred in 1950 at 86.
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OTHER OCCUPANTS:

William and Lucy Vickers owned the house in 1902-3. William (1862-1929) was born in Devon, ENG, came to Canada in the early-1880s, and worked for the CPR in the Kootenays. He later joined the Provincial Police, becoming police chief in Atlin, BC, and later Prince Rupert. William transferred to Victoria police headquarters c.1900. In 1901, he married Lucy Mellor (1881-1965), recently arrived from Manchester.

From 1906 to the mid-1920s, George and Ethel (née Duffie) Tripp lived here. George (1875-1946) was born in Woodstock, ON, Ethel (c.1870-1931) in Montreal. They married here in 1901. George married Alice Howell (1887-1949) of Bristol, ENG, in the mid-1930s. He worked with the BCER, from operator up to general superintendent. Under his leadership, BCER expanded on Vancouver Island, with the establishment of plants at Goldstream (1898) and Jordan River (1909-10); considered one of the greatest achievements in hydro-electric development; also a steam plant at Brentwood Bay. He retired in 1944.

By 1929, this house was known as the James Bay Hotel Annex. In the 1930s it became James Bay Court Apartments. By 1939, Mary Ann (née Pedley) Barlow (1891-1983), widow of Fred, was the resident. Born in Macclesfield, Cheshire, ENG, she lived here until selling the house in 1979 to Marc Pakenham, who restored it. In 1997 he and partner Kenna Barradell won a Hallmark Society Award for their work on the house.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION & IMAGES:

• Map of Victoria's Heritage Register Properties

• James Bay History

• James Bay Heritage Register



• This Old House, Victoria's Heritage Neighbourhoods,
Volume Two: James Bay