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 This building was constructed in 1927, with Crystal Dairy as its first occupant. The company was taken over by Palm Dairy in the 1950s, but ice cream continued to be made here until the early 1960s. It currently houses a guitar shop in the heart of bustling Commercial Drive. 

The only reason a photo was taken of these two nondescript buildings in 1936 was for a court case.  Some would-be robbers rented the empty store at 662 Kingsway under the guise of growing mushrooms. They were caught digging a tunnel under the dry cleaner with the intention of robbing the Royal Bank next door. 

 This well-preserved 1904 building overlooking Victory Square has seen many tenants, including Wrigley Directories and the Odd Fellows shown here. Today it's home to a high-end furniture store. 

 This 1909 building has both architectural and historical significance in the city. The CBA was instrumental in advocating for the rights of Chinese Canadians, who faced severe discrimination in the first half of the 20th century. The building itself set the tone for the Chinatown style of architecture, such as recessed balconies and inscribed parapets, many of which are still visible today. 

 When it was built in 1910, this building had five floors. Several months later, a sixth floor was added, shown in this picture. In 1966 a fire destroyed the top floor and it went back to 5.  In 2018 another fire damaged several suites.  And that's the 'storey' of Washington Court. 

The West End experienced a massive building boom during the 1920s, including the Marlboro, and the Queen Charlotte, pictured here. Built by Dominion Construction for a businessman and politician named H H Stevens, whose beliefs in white supremacy led to his active involvement in the shameful  Komagata Maru incident. It was restored by the late Robert Ledingham and now consists of 25 million-dollar condos.

 If you look closely you can see two small children posing in front of the bandstand. When I took this photo, a homeless guy was camped under the shelter of the overhang. The Heritage Foundation claims it was built in 1914, but the photograph is dated 1912. The North Shore mountains in the background of the old photo appear much closer than in my shot, because the original photographer used a much longer lens than mine. You can see the old English Bay Pier in the background. 

 This 1928 image shows the Marlboro in the last stages of completion, and as you can see it hasn't changed much over its 92-year life. It was built by one of the Lightheart Brothers, prolific builders of apartment buildings in the West End. 

If you have ever driven down Davie Street toward Denman you would have noticed this West End landmark. Its unique architecture is matched by the legends that surround it, including bootlegging, brothels, and secret tunnels to the Rogers family mansion a few blocks up the street. All that remains is the front façade of the original building. The rest has been gobbled up by a 21-storey condo development - its 4 floors of underground parking failed to unearth any tunnels, but did awaken a few ghosts. 

 This 1907 building was the first purpose-built fire hall in North America for motorized trucks. Very few buildings in Vancouver have survived as long as this one.  And it is still an operating fire hall.