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This 1927 apartment building at 1311 Beach Ave was designed by Townley and Matheson. Although its unique look stands out in the West End neighbourhood, the Tudor affectations are really just an added cosmetic design to an otherwise bland apartment block. A  post-modern tower was added in the late 1980s and the interior was extensively remodeled, retaining the exterior facade. Nowadays a luxury unit in this building will run you about $1,300 per square foot. (1928 photo from Vancouver City Archives).

In 1919 the building at 1295 Seymour Street was a truck dealership, which lasted until around 1932, when it became a tire repair garage.  There were other tenants over the years, but in 2008 it became a Shoppers Drug Mart. The famous Vancouver nightclub Luv-A-Fair lived next door until 2003.  (1920 photo from Vancouver Photo Archives).

Built in 1910, the Beaconsfield at 884 Bute Street is one of the West End's first apartment buildings.  It's exterior courtyard runs deep into the middle of the structure, providing light and air circulation to all rooms. The 39-suite building cost $85,000 to build, and was recently offered for sale for $26,000,000. (1910 Major Matthews photograph from Vancouver City Archives). 

This building at 314 West Hastings Street is often mistaken for an old movie theatre, but it was actually built in 1948 specifically for Tip Top Tailors.  The interior of the store was just as striking as the unique exterior, often using catwalks to stage fashion shows. Surprisingly, the building went up for sale a mere six years after it was built, and has had a variety of tenants ever since. Current plans are to redevelop the block for rental apartments, while preserving the look of some of the original buildings, including Tip Top's curved aluminum façade. (1949 photo from Vancouver Photo Archives). 

Like its neighbour the Yale Hotel down the street, this old timer has stood on the corner of Davie and Granville since 1889, when it was known as the Golden Gate Hotel. It has gone through several ownership changes over the years,  and for a while was known as the Tourist Hotel. In 1920 the hotel was converted to apartments, and remains that way today, with the Two Parrots Bar and Grill operating on the main floor. (1910-ish photograph from Vancouver City Archives). 

Built in 1908 by R.D. Rorison, a prominent real estate developer who bought the English Bay Cannery, tore it down and built this house for himself. It's in the heart of Kitsilano, just blocks from West 4th, the hippie capital of Canada in the 1960s. The Peace House, as it became known, was a popular crash pad used by the Grateful Dead, Ginger Baker, and Timothy Leary, among others. 

When this photo was taken in 1912, the building was already 25 years old.  It has been a tobacco store, plumbing supply business and government liquor store before becoming the Blarney Stone, the oldest Irish pub in the City. (1912 photo from Vancouver city Archives). 

At one time, BC had the country's largest interurban rail system. Passengers could ride from this station on Carrall Street east to Chilliwack and south to Steveston. The trains ran from about 1890 until 1958. Power was supplied by stations at Buntzen and Stave Lakes. Gradually these routes were replaced by bus and trolley lines, which are currently operated by Translink.  (1912 photo from Flickr.com).

This 1886 warehouse is the oldest brick building in Vancouver.  Originally a food warehouse owned by the Oppenheimer brothers (one of whom became Vancouver's second mayor), it also served as City Hall, jail and morgue for a time, as it was one of only a few buildings that survived the Great Fire.  Over the years additions have made the building taller and longer. Musician Bryan Adams bought it in 1991 and turned it into a recording studio, featuring acts such as Michael Buble, Billy Joel, Slayer and others. (1886 photo from the Warehouse Studio).

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).