Sylvia Hotel

Originally built as an apartment building in 1912, the Sylvia offered rooms to the merchant marine crews during World War II, and became a full hotel in the 1960s.  It lays claim to having the first cocktail bar in the City, and was the tallest building in Vancouver at the time of its construction. Boston Ivy has been slowly enveloping the Sylvia for over 70 years, changing colours with the seasons. (1932 Stuart Thompson photo from Vancouver City Archives).