Fred Galbraith House
3203 26th Street, Vernon, British Columbia, Canada
Formally Recognized:
2000/02/21
Other Name(s)
n/a
Links and documents
n/a
Construction Date(s)
1937/01/01
Listed on the Canadian Register:
2010/05/25
Statement of Significance
Description of Historic Place
The Fred Galbraith House is a one-storey flat-roofed stucco bungalow located on 26th Street in Vernon. The house is in the Spanish Eclectic style.
Heritage Value
The Fred Galbraith House is valued as a distinctive example of the Spanish Eclectic Style. The style appeared in California and Florida in the 1920s and by the 1930s began to occur in British Columbia. While not as widespread as the Moderne houses of the same era, the style is scattered throughout the Okanagan. On Vernon’s East Hill, the Galbraith brothers, Fred and Harold, built Spanish Eclectic-style houses side by side in 1937 and in 1938. Charles Smith built both of the houses. The Galbraith brothers were typical of the second-generation Vernon families who built smaller houses on the East Hill in the 1920s and 1930s. These house stand in contrast to the more substantial houses and estate lots of the previous generation.
Fred and Harold were partners in J. S. Galbraith & Sons farm machinery, with their father. Horace Galbraith, the third brother, lived in the house on the corner of 32nd Avenue and 26th Street, next to Harold’s house. Horace was a well-known war veteran and lawyer in Vernon. The Galbraiths’ father, J. S. Galbraith, lived in a Queen Anne-style house on 39th Avenue. J. S. Galbraith had been Mayor of Vernon (1924-25) and was very active in the community. Harold’s son, George Galbraith, is well known for bringing public cable to Vernon (he sold Vercom Cable to Shaw Cable in 1991) and for his community work, especially with the Vernon Hospital.
The house is designed to emphasize its horizontality, with flat wall surfaces of stucco and a flat roof. The steep front gable extends toward the ground where it is pierced by an oval gateway. The gable frames the three-arched accent window. The oval motif is repeated three times in the gateway, the window and the entry doorway.
Source: City of Vernon Planning Department
Character-Defining Elements
Key elements that define the heritage character of the Fred Galbraith House include its:
- low-profile one-storey flat-roofed massing
- location on 26th Street, next door to the Harold Galbraith House
- stucco cladding and stuccoed chimney
- arch motif in the entry door, exterior gateway and in three-arched windows
- decorative clay pipe vents
- steep front gable
Recognition
Jurisdiction
British Columbia
Recognition Authority
Local Governments (BC)
Recognition Statute
Local Government Act, s.954
Recognition Type
Community Heritage Register
Recognition Date
2000/02/21
Historical Information
Significant Date(s)
n/a
Theme - Category and Type
- Expressing Intellectual and Cultural Life
- Architecture and Design
- Peopling the Land
- Settlement
Function - Category and Type
Current
Historic
- Residence
- Single Dwelling
Architect / Designer
n/a
Builder
Charles Smith
Additional Information
Location of Supporting Documentation
City of Vernon Planning Department
Cross-Reference to Collection
Fed/Prov/Terr Identifier
EbQt-94
Status
Published
Related Places
n/a