Frederick & Edna Cunningham House
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Description
- Set back from Douglas Road, the Frederick and Edna Cunningham House is a picturesque wood-frame one and one-half storey British Arts and Crafts-style residence, clad with rough-cast stucco and featuring half-timbering in the gable ends. Set far back on a large east-sloping site in a mature landscap…
- Associated Dates
- 1923
- Formal Recognition
- Heritage Designation, Community Heritage Register
- Street View URL
- Google Maps Street View
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Geographic Access
- Douglas Road
- Associated Dates
- 1923
- Formal Recognition
- Heritage Designation, Community Heritage Register
- Enactment Type
- Bylaw No. 10470
- Enactment Date
- 04/11/1996
- Description
- Set back from Douglas Road, the Frederick and Edna Cunningham House is a picturesque wood-frame one and one-half storey British Arts and Crafts-style residence, clad with rough-cast stucco and featuring half-timbering in the gable ends. Set far back on a large east-sloping site in a mature landscape setting, it is located in the Douglas Road neighbourhood located in the central valley of Burnaby.
- Heritage Value
- Considered a landmark in the Douglas Road neighbourhood, the Cunningham House is valued as a good example of a British Arts and Crafts-style residence. The house blends into its surroundings, which are extensively landscaped with rockeries, lawns, shrubs, trees and perennial beds. The two majestic copper beech trees, over 60 years old, are among the best specimens of their type to be found in Greater Vancouver and are protected under covenant.
The Cunningham property is significant as one of the last estate homes remaining on the old Douglas Road, at one time noted for its beautiful estates set within the rural character of Burnaby’s Central Valley. Insurance agent Frederick Woodman Cunningham (1882-1963) and his wife, Edna Elizabeth Cunningham (1884-1982), built this country residence in 1923. Fred was the only son of James Cunningham, a pioneer of New Westminster who arrived in 1862 and served as the City’s Mayor from 1872 to 1874. The landmark flagpole that once stood in the garden was moved to this site when Fred Cunningham's prestigious family home in New Westminster at Third Avenue and Seventh Street was demolished in 1938. Kept within the family until 1982 and largely maintained in its original condition, the Cunningham House is an excellent example of one of Burnaby's best estate homes from the 1920s and was designated by the City of Burnaby in 1996.
- Defining Elements
- Key elements that define the heritage character of the Cunningham House include its:
- location on Douglas Road, in Burnaby’s Central Valley
- views from the property to the east and towards the North Shore
- residential form, scale and massing as exemplified by its one and one-half storey height and rectangular plan
- side gabled roof with front gabled dormer and cedar shingle cladding
- British Arts and Crafts elements such as its rough-cast stucco, tapered porch columns, large eave brackets, exposed purlins and half-timbering
- irregular fenestration including double-hung 1-over-1 wooden-sash windows, multi-pane wooden-sash casement windows and multiple-assembly windows in the gable ends
- front entrance porch with shed roof
- two internal red brick chimneys
- early cedar-shingled garage at side of house
- associated landscape features, including two landmark Copper beech trees and landscaped rockeries at the front of the property
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Burnaby Lake (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Douglas-Gilpin Area
- Function
- Primary Historic--Single Dwelling
- Primary Current--Single Dwelling
- Community
- Burnaby
- Cadastral Identifier
- 003-118-746
- Boundaries
- The Cunningham House is comprised of a single residential lot located at 3555 Douglas Road, Burnaby.
- Area
- 4446.5
- Contributing Resource
- Building
- Ownership
- Private
- Names
- Cunningham, Fred
- Cunningham, Edna
- Street Address
- 3555 Douglas Road
- Street View URL
- Google Maps Street View
Less detail
Aerial photograph of Douglas Road and Sperling Avenue
Aerial photograph of the Burnaby Village area
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1946] (date of original), copied 1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 3.5 x 4.4 cm print on contact sheet 20.5 x 26.7 cm
- Scope and Content
- Aerial photograph of the Sperling Avenue/Douglas Road Burnaby Village area.
A Pig's Tale
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Date
- Oct. 2020
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 3 video recordings (mp4) (5 min., 28 sec.) : digital, col., sd., stereo, subtitles
- Scope and Content
- Item consists of part two in a two part video series "A Taste of History" created by Debbie Liang and Joty Gill, University of British Columbia alumni and graduates from the Asian Canadian & Asian Migration Studies program (ACAM). Part two is titled "A Pig's Tale".
The film highlights the history o…
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum fonds
- Series
- UBC Partnership series
- Subseries
- A Taste of History Video series - 2020 subseries
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 3 video recordings (mp4) (5 min., 28 sec.) : digital, col., sd., stereo, subtitles
- Material Details
- Script: Debbie Liang; Joty Gill
Narration: Joty Gill
Editor: Debbie Liang
Subtitles: English; Simplified Chinese; Traditional Chinese
Video Appearances: Kathy Lee; Eleanor Lee
Illustrations and Animations: Debbie Liang
Photos, Images & B-roll: Piggery photo, image courtesy of Elwin Xie; Douglas Road: City of Burnaby Archives, 477-841; Canada Way, City of Burnaby Archives, 556-522, photo by Peg Campbell; Red pig by Debbie Liang; Piglets sleeping, image courtesy of RoyBuri from pixabay, free to use; Chinese Zodiac, image courtesy of RoofOfAllLight from wikimedia, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license; Pictograph for Home by Debbie Liang; Pigs lying down, image courtesy of Elwin Xie; Council minutes all from heritageburnaby.com; Cleanliness illustration set by Debbie Liang; "The Heathen Chinese in British Columbia" from Library and Archives Canada; Laundryman spitting from Daily News, Prince Rupert in 1911; Slicer on counter at Way Sang Yuen Wat Kee & Co., Burnaby Village Museum BV017.7.290; Way Sang Yuen Wat Kee & Co. Store front, Burnaby Village Museum BV017.7.191; Medical Practices Disagreement illustration by Debbie Liang; Butchering pig, image courtesy of Elwin Xie; Chinatown brolls, courtesy of Food2 group from UBC's 2019 ACAM 390 Class; Black Rotary telephone beside ball pen on white printed paper, image courtesy of Pixabay from pexels.com, free to use; Burnaby Lake on a cloudy day, image courtesy of Flying Pegunin from wikipedia; The Vancouver Sun May 4, 1921 from newspapers.com; Vancouver Daily May 3, 1921 from newspapers.com; Reduce number of pigs illustration by Debbie Liang; Black and white photo of piggery, image courtesy of Elwin Xie; 2019 Piggery illustration by Debbie Liang
Music and Sound Effects: "Acoustic Mediation 2" from audionautix; Pig Grunting sounds from Kiddopedia Animasl, Creative Commons 0; "Piano moment" & "November" from bensound.com; "Ding sound effect" from freesoundlibrary; Wuxia2_Guzheng_Pipa by PeriTune http://peritune.com; Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com; Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Video adapted from 2019 BVM intern project by Debbie Liang and Marcela Gomez
Special thanks to: UBC: Joanna Yang, Jenny Lu, Denise Fong, Henry Yu; BVM: Kate Petrusa, Amy Wilson
Changes to music may have been made for the purposes of this video
- Scope and Content
- Item consists of part two in a two part video series "A Taste of History" created by Debbie Liang and Joty Gill, University of British Columbia alumni and graduates from the Asian Canadian & Asian Migration Studies program (ACAM). Part two is titled "A Pig's Tale".
The film highlights the history of Chinese pig farms also known as "Piggeries" in Burnaby. The film tells the story of how many of these farms were established by Chinese immigrants along Douglas Road (now Canada Way) between the 1890s and 1920s; the importance of the pig in the Chinese Culture as well as a way for Chinese immigrants to make a living and the racism and discriminatory bylaws that the Chinese pig farmers suffered that finally led to the closure of many of these farms. Content references three documented piggery ranches along Douglas Road: Ah Sam; Young Chung and Hop Hin Yen. The films are supported with voice over in english, subtitles, animation along with historical photographs. One version of the film is supported with subtitles in English while two other versions of the film are supported with subtitles in Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese.
- History
- In 2020, due to the restrictions of COVID-19, University of British Columbia student interns with the Burnaby Village Museum Chinese Canadian History in Burnaby project were asked to create virtual experiences to reimagine Burnaby Village Museum's historical Chinese Canadian programming in remote online spaces. Debbie Liang and Joty Gill (UBC alumni and graduates of Dr. Henry Yu's 2019 summer ACAM 390A Global Seminar to Aisa) returned to work with Burnaby Village Museum to create two short films showcasing the history of Chinese Canadian Chop Suey restaurants and piggeries in Burnaby.
- Creator
- Liang, Debbie
- Debbie Liang
- Subjects
- Persons - Chinese Canadians
- Social Issues - Discrimination
- Social Issues - Racism
- Regulations
- Agriculture
- Agriculture - Farms
- Agriculture - Ranches
- Animals - Pigs
- Names
- Liang, Debbie
- Gill, Joty
- Burnaby Village Museum
- University of British Columbia
- Xie, Elwin
- Way Sang Yuen Wat Kee & Company
- Ah Sam
- Young Chung
- Hop Hin Yen
- Responsibility
- University of British Columbia
- UBC Initiative for Student Teaching and Research in Chinese Canadian Studies
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Geographic Access
- Douglas Road
- Canada Way
- Accession Code
- BV020.28.7
- Access Restriction
- No restrictions
- Reproduction Restriction
- No known restrictions
- Date
- Oct. 2020
- Media Type
- Moving Images
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Burnaby Lake (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Douglas-Gilpin Area
- Notes
- Transcribed title
Less detail
Bernard Hill farm
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [190-] (date of original), copied 1986
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 12.7 x 17.8 cm print
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of the Hill brothers Frank, Claude and Gerry and their pet dog riding on hay wagon on their father's farm.
Bernard Hill's home
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1905]
- Collection/Fonds
- Peers Family and Hill Family fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 7.5 x 10 cm on page 21.5 x 28 cm (pasted in album)
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of the house belonging to Bernard Hill in the Burnaby Lake area on what is now Canada Way. Douglas Road runs through the foreground.
Bert Porter on a steamroller
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1919] (date of original), copied 1985
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 8.8 x 12.5 cm print
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of Bert Porter with a municipal steamroller on Douglas Road. He worked many years operating a steam roller for the municipality, flattening out gravel streets after grading, and was the husband of Lillie Lewis Porter.
B. R. Hill home
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1910
- Collection/Fonds
- Hill family and Vidal family fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : sepia ; 12 x 17 cm
- Scope and Content
- Photograph shows a wood house, identified as Bernard Hill's home, situated beside a road identified as Douglas Road.
B.R. Hill house
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Date
- [1910]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum Photograph collection
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w photogravure ; 8.1 x 10.7 cm
- Scope and Content
- Photograph is photogravure printed on paper of a house on the side of a path. The area appears wooded. The inscription and the accession register identify the house as the residence of Mr. and Mrs. B.R. Hill on Douglas Road, built about 1892, with an addition to the house built about 1905.
Burnaby Lake Store
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1911] (date of original), copied ca. 2004
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : sepia ; 21 x 26 cm print
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of two unidentified men standing outside the Burnaby Lake Store on Douglas Road and Sperling Avenue (old street naming system, this portion of Douglas Road is now Canada Way).
Car Accident
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1937 or 1938] (date of original), copied 1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 3.3 x 2.5 cm print on contact sheet 20.6 x 26.1 cm
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of a damaged car belonging to Bob Pontifex, after an accident at Sperling Avenue and Douglas Road.
C.F. Sprott's house
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1908
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : sepia ; 12.8 x 17.7 cm mounted on cardboard 14.8 x 19.7 cm
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of C.F. Sprott's House at Douglas Road and Norland Avenue. A unidentified man is standing on the porch steps.
Child on Douglas Road sidewalk
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1915 or 1916] (date of original), copied 1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 4.5 x 3.4 cm print on contact sheet 20.6 x 26.5 cm
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of a child in a baby carriage on a board sidewalk on Douglas Road.
Clearing Douglas Road
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Date
- [190-?] (date of original), copied 1977
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum Photograph collection
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 20.2 x 25.2 cm print
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of men in work clothes clearing Doulgas Road. A group of men to the right side of the photograph have shovels in their hands and are clearing rocks from the road. There is a small girl in a blouse and skirt standing beside two horses pulling a cart. Behind her is a group of men in wor…
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum Photograph collection
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 20.2 x 25.2 cm print
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of men in work clothes clearing Doulgas Road. A group of men to the right side of the photograph have shovels in their hands and are clearing rocks from the road. There is a small girl in a blouse and skirt standing beside two horses pulling a cart. Behind her is a group of men in work clothes as well. There is fenced land to the right of the photograph, and electric power poles and trees line both sides of the road. The accession register and inscription on the photograph identify this as Douglas Road (later renamed in part Canada Way). An annotation on the back of the photo reads: "Working on Douglas Road on hill above Burnaby Lake. No Date."
- Subjects
- Transportation - Horses
- Construction Tools and Equipment
- Construction - Road Construction
- Geographic Access
- Douglas Road
- Canada Way
- Accession Code
- HV977.99.2
- Access Restriction
- No restrictions
- Reproduction Restriction
- May be restricted by third party rights
- Date
- [190-?] (date of original), copied 1977
- Media Type
- Photograph
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Burnaby Lake (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Scan Resolution
- 600
- Scan Date
- 2023-07-11
- Notes
- Title based on contents of photograph
Less detail
Common Good Co-op Store
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Date
- [1938]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum Photograph collection
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : sepia ; 6.8 x 11.2 cm
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of a man in an apron standing in front of a co-op store bearing the sign "C.G. Co-operative Association", otherwise known as the Army of the Common Good. Window displays include the goods he carries and advertising signs for Coca-Cola and Orange Crush are put up below the windows. In fro…
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum Photograph collection
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : sepia ; 6.8 x 11.2 cm
- Material Details
- Inscribed in pencil, recto, b. "Co op store Douglas R." and in blue ink, verso, t. "Coop Store Douglas Road/ C.G. Co-op 1939", b. "Mr Love Mayor of/ store/ no 2", in blue ball point pen, l.l. "Main Store was at McKay station/ this is No 1 Branch store"
stamped on verso, c. "VANCOUVER/ DRUG CO. LTD/ SEP 12 1938/ Nu-Gloss"
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of a man in an apron standing in front of a co-op store bearing the sign "C.G. Co-operative Association", otherwise known as the Army of the Common Good. Window displays include the goods he carries and advertising signs for Coca-Cola and Orange Crush are put up below the windows. In front of the store is wood plank sidewalk.
- Subjects
- Geographic Features - Sidewalks
- Buildings - Commercial - Stores
- Occupations - Clerks
- Names
- C G Co-operative Association
- Army of Common Good
- Geographic Access
- Douglas Road
- Accession Code
- HV976.46.1
- Access Restriction
- No restrictions
- Reproduction Restriction
- No known restrictions
- Date
- [1938]
- Media Type
- Photograph
- Scan Resolution
- 600
- Scan Date
- 2023-06-20
- Notes
- Title based on caption of photograph
Less detail