Canadian Historic Sites: Occasional Papers in Archaeology and History No. 24

Second Empire Style in Canadian Architecture

by Christina Cameron and Janet Wright

Houses in British Columbia

In British Columbia, the Second Empire style seems to have appeared only occasionally for residential building. Like the Prairies, development of this western province occurred in the latter years of the 19th century at a time when the vogue for Second Empire was already declining. As usual, houses of Second Empire design were concentrated in the urban centres, especially around the capital city of Victoria.

The presence of professional architects and the erection of several public buildings in this style may have encouraged the choice of this idiom for domestic building. Houses in Victoria (Fig. 118) and nearby Esquimalt (Fig. 119) indicate that local builders were well aware of Second Empire design principles even if, as in the case of Esquimalt, the interpretation remains individual.