ARCHITECTURE:
This one-storey, hip-roofed, shingled bungalow has a shallow gabled bay on the left front over an inset porch. The gable, which was originally bellcast, has a multi-light awning window, no eaves and now ends in a pent roof. Side-facing front steps with a sloped, solid shingled balustrade lead to a landing and a flat-topped, arched entry porch. Of three original banded brick chimneys, the front one is now corbelled.
ORIGINAL OCCUPANTS:
This simple, shingled house, built for Charlotte Brown, is one of a similar set of three. In an age before government pensions, annuities for widows were provided by investments in rental property; this was the case for 26, as well as 32 and 38 Paddon Av.
OTHER OCCUPANTS:
1907-09: However, Andrew Blygh (b. Manchester, ENG 1875-1948) and Eulalie (née Stoneman, b. London, ON 1880-1969) purchased 26, 32 and 38 Paddon Av in 1907, then moved to Vancouver.Andrew came to Victoria in 1898; he and Eulalie were married by 1901. They divorced, and Andrew remarried in 1917 to Ruby Mollie Lee, a ballet instructor.Andrew sold furniture and by 1920 was a Liquor Control Board inspector. He was a notary public, a Liberal Party member, and a travelling Justice of the Peace. Andrew died while giving a presentation to the Vancouver Centre Liberal Assn.
For six years Eulalie was a court reporter in Victoria, then in Vancouver until retiring in 1950. She was one of only two women court reporters at the time. Her work took her around the province for trials and hearings; one was held in a mineshaft due to inclement weather. Her career began as a stenographer, but her skills as a listener made her valuable to the judicial system. She took shorthand at 250 words a minute, twice as fast as the average business school graduate. Eulalie was a member of Royal Vancouver Yacht, Vancouver Lawn Tennis, Connaught Skating, Vancouver Riding and Marine Golf Clubs.
1910-14: Mary (Ferguson), wife of Horatio White and proprietor of the Balmoral Hotel, owned the property from 1910 until her death in 1914. Born in Glasgow in 1886, she came to Victoria in the mid-1890s with Horatio, a farmer at Stelly’s Cross Rd in South Saanich. Horatio remarried in 1916 to Olivia Hodgson.
1920s: Henry and Gertrude (Wormirsley) Burt-Smith lived here in the early- to mid-1920s. Henry was born in Melbourne, Australia, Gertrude in Scarborough, England. They came here in 1911. For many years, Henry was a wool merchant. Later he and Gertrude became antique dealers. Henry died in 1935 at 66, Gertrude in 1960 at 88.
1927-41: Charles and Gladys Ockenden lived here. Gladys Shepherd was born in Evansville, IL, in 1896, Charles in London, England, in 1882. They lived in Edmonton in 1916, when Charles was overseas with the 202nd Battalion, CEF. The Ockendens moved to Victoria in 1924, and Charles was a BC Provincial Police clerk for many years. Charles, a war amputee, was a member of the War Amputees Association.
1942-76: Alicia (Reading) Sandy lived here. Alicia and Euphemia Sandy (162 Medana St, James Bay) are the same person, but it is unknown when she changed her name. She divorced William Sandy in 1928 and he returned to England. Alicia was proprietor of the Zetland Tearooms at 647 Fort St for 33 years. The family came here from England in 1912, but fell upon hard times. Alicia befriended a wealthy benefactor, Dolly Harrison, who sold a pair of diamond earrings to raise the capital needed to open a good tearoom, which, according to Dolly, Victoria was lacking. With no business or cooking experience, Alicia taught herself and as business increased, hired a cook. The tearoom opened at noon each day, and closed in the early evening, but Alicia often worked till midnight cleaning and preparing for the next day. Many early customers were Dolly’s friends, but word-of-mouth soon brought in a diverse range of customers. Alicia retired in 1945, and lived in this house until a month before her death in 1976 at 96.