Description of Historic Place

The Boyd Residence is a two-storey residence sited on a rocky ledge overlooking the waterfront in Oak Bay, B.C. Built in 1927, it represents the late 1920s trend away from large multi-room mansions to smaller, more modest seven or eight room dwellings. The architect, Samuel Maclure, designed alterations in 1933 and John di Castri made further alterations in 1959.

Heritage Value

The Boyd Residence has aesthetic and historic value for its associations with architect Samuel Maclure and its Georgian Revival architectural style as well as social value for its connection with the pioneer Boyd family.

The home has aesthetic and historic value as a good example of a Georgian Revival residence. Revivals of previous architectural styles were prominent in the early twentieth century as property owners sought to allude to the stability and glory of a former age. In Victoria, this style can be seen on residential buildings ranging from small cottages to large opulent houses. Originally this style arose during the reign of the four King Georges, and was filtered through three American regions, before making its way to the Pacific Coast. In B.C., Georgian Revival homes are generally two storeys in height and rectangular in footprint, featuring rigid symmetry, based on well-defined geometric proportions and order.

The Boyd Residence also has aesthetic and historic value for its association with architect Samuel Maclure (1860-1929). Born in New Westminster, Maclure became the foremost domestic architect in B.C. from 1890 to 1920 and established a building style that gave Victoria and parts of Vancouver a distinctive Canadian West Coast flavour. His works influenced a generation of B.C. architects. Maclure's influence on B.C. building design was so pervasive that into the 1940s government buildings and schools throughout the province continued to emulate his early commissions. Maclure utilized many stylistic influences and could adapt his use of indigenous materials with versatility. This historic place is an excellent example from his post war phase, when those who could afford to hire architects to design their homes wanted simpler, more compact structures. Maclure used technology to deal with the need for open spaces in a smaller building which is demonstrated in this home in a disappearing wall, which was suspended from a hidden space in the ceiling by heavy weights. One, two or all three sections could be lowered to create a division in the main living space. There are also unique carvings on the fireplace surrounds.

The Boyd Residence has historic and social value due to its association with its original owner and his connection to early logging in B.C. Gardiner Cust Boyd (known as Cust) was born on September 21, 1885 in Bobcaygeon, Ontario to Mossom Martin Boyd (1855-1914) and Lillian deGrassi (1857-1942). He was educated at the prestigious Trinity College School in Port Hope, Ontario with university education at Oxford. The Boyd family was known for their lumber holdings in Ontario and across the country. Cust married Grace Edith Henderson (1894-1987) in Toronto on December 15, 1915. The following year, Cust and his brother Laurence were sent to B.C. to run the Cowichan Lumber Company. The family moved from Lake Cowichan to Victoria so that their children could have a quality education.

SOURCE: The Corporation of the District of Oak Bay Planning Department

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of the Boyd Residence include its:
-Association with the pioneer Boyd family
-Location overlooking the Oak Bay waterfront on Beach Drive
-Views of the waterfront from the residence
-Siting on a rock base
-Characteristics of the Georgian Revival including wood frame construction, brick chimneys, roughcast stucco exterior, symmetrical design with windows on either side of entrance, restrained ornament
-Unique interior features including the disappearing wall and the carved heads on the fireplaces
-Association with architect Samuel Maclure