Home / Accueil

Murchison House

1781 Abbott Street, Kelowna, Colombie-Britannique, V1Y, Canada

Reconnu formellement en: 2001/12/17

Exterior view of Murchison House, 2003; City of Kelowna, 2003
Front elevation
Pas d'image
Pas d'image

Autre nom(s)

s/o

Liens et documents

Date(s) de construction

1939/01/01

Inscrit au répertoire canadien: 2007/03/12

Énoncé d'importance

Description du lieu patrimonial

The Murchison House is a one-storey stucco residence, built in the Moderne style in 1939, located at 1781 Abbott Street in Kelowna's South Central neighbourhood, and within the Abbott Street Heritage Conservation Area.

Valeur patrimoniale

The Murchison House is valued as a rare example for Kelowna of a house in the Moderne style, and for its association with a man who sold the essence of modernity - the automobile.

The house was built for Earle A. Murchison in 1939, at a time when the Abbott Street neighbourhood was mostly filled in with Arts and Crafts and period revival style residences, and its unusual Moderne design contributes to the eclectic character of the area. It was built by a Mr. Alton; no architect has been identified with it. The austere simplicity, white stucco, and horizontal banding are features that distinguish the style.

The house has value as well for its association with Murchison, a prominent local businessman. He came to Kelowna after having been a commercial fisherman on the coast. Murchison and his partner, Harold A. Truswell, purchased Kelowna's Ford dealership in 1927, in the same year that the Model A was introduced. Their business, Orchard City Motors, located in the 400 block of Bernard Avenue, served individual customers and the fruit-growing industry, as it also sold Cletrac tractors and Hardy sprayers. After the Ford dealership was acquired by Arena Motors in the 1950s, Murchison and Truswell, together with H.R. McClure, operated Kelowna Tractor-Sprayers Ltd. for some years at 1560 Water Street.

Murchison was resident here until 1966. A later owner constructed an addition in 1994, but the house retains its integrity as seen from the street.

Source: City of Kelowna, Planning Department, File No. 6800-02

Éléments caractéristiques

The character-defining elements of Murchison House include its:
- Yard with mature trees and shrubs
- Moderne architectural style
- Semi-circular door opening at the entrance off the raised landing
- Simple design with two projecting bands of trim below the roof parapet
- Rough textured stucco finish throughout, which unifies the design
- Straight stepped chimney
- Central symmetrical window facing Abbott Street with a central fixed four component unit and double hung windows on both sides
- Decorative, repeated motif which runs between the two projecting bands

Reconnaissance

Juridiction

Colombie-Britannique

Autorité de reconnaissance

Administrations locales (C.-B.)

Loi habilitante

Local Government Act, art.954

Type de reconnaissance

Répertoire du patrimoine communautaire

Date de reconnaissance

2001/12/17

Données sur l'histoire

Date(s) importantes

1994/01/01 à 1994/01/01

Thème - catégorie et type

Économies en développement
Commerce et affaires

Catégorie de fonction / Type de fonction

Actuelle

Historique

Résidence
Logement unifamilial

Architecte / Concepteur

s/o

Constructeur

Mr. Alton

Informations supplémentaires

Emplacement de la documentation

City of Kelowna, Planning Department, File No. 6800-02

Réfère à une collection

Identificateur féd./prov./terr.

DlQu-55

Statut

Édité

Inscriptions associées

s/o

RECHERCHE DANS LE RÉPERTOIRE

Recherche avancéeRecherche avancée
Trouver les lieux prochesTROUVER LES LIEUX PROCHES ImprimerIMPRIMER
Lieux proches