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 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. 

When it was built in about 1895, the Templeton Block sat on one of the busiest intersections of the city. It was among the first brick buildings constructed after the Gastown fire. Over the years it attracted a wide variety of tenants. In 1910 Knowlton’s Pharmacy moved in, and stayed there until just a couple of years ago, still using its original display cases and shelving.

Originally built as a private school for boys, the school had to move after only a few years to make room for a military hospital. The RCMP took it over in 1920, and it has served as a training facility and barracks through the years. In 2014, the property was acquired by First Nations members, and a joint venture between them and Canada Lands Company is in the works. Not surprisingly, the rich history of the Fairmont Barracks is a source of great pride for RCMP members, and great pain for the indigenous community, so its future is being hotly debated.

This beautiful old-timer has outlasted all of its original neighbours, and now stands alone at the entrance to Mount Pleasant. It was originally built in 1912 by Dr. Israel Powell, whose accomplishments include organizing and naming the streets in the area after provinces.  Fortunately it’s designated as a Heritage ‘B’ structure so it should stick around for a while. It’s current retail tenant sells donuts, giving you yet another reason to check it out.

There has been a working hospital on this site since 1894, but the present structure was built in 1913, with several more additions throughout the years. Recently a new location was established for the hospital, and the Burrard Street location has been sold and will be redeveloped.

Built in 1889 after the Gastown fire, The Hickey Block at 228 Abbott was originally a hotel with a saloon on the ground floor. Recently renovated, today it is the home of Montauk Sofa Company.

108 years separate these two photographs, and the church looks as good as it ever did. Soon a 60-storey megatower will rise above it, right where the Hobbit House used to be. (Image source City of Vancouver Archives).

The building at 340 Cambie street has had many names over the years. Its life started in 1898 as the Commercial Hotel, when this corner of the city was a magnet for the riches of the Klondike Gold Rush. In the 1970s it was transformed into the El Cid, boasting  crushed velvet wallpaper and heart-shaped waterbeds. Today it has a heritage designation due to some of its Richardsonian Romanesque architectural features, although it's a run-down SRO hotel. Sandwiched in between the hotel and the massive Flack Block is Vancouver’s smallest building, known only as Rose Brothers Barbers, after one of its tenants over its 125-year-old life. (Photo courtesy City of Vancouver).