The Mary England Residence is a one and one-half storey, wood-frame, Period Revival cottage with a steeply pitched, cross-gabled roof. Situated on Griffiths Drive within the Edmonds neighbourhood of Burnaby, the Mary England Residence has an original attached garage.
The Mary England Residence is a one and one-half storey, wood-frame, Period Revival cottage with a steeply pitched, cross-gabled roof. Situated on Griffiths Drive within the Edmonds neighbourhood of Burnaby, the Mary England Residence has an original attached garage.
Heritage Value
The Mary England Residence, built in 1930, is valued as a representation of the period revival styles that were popular in the era between the two World Wars. At this time, it was considered the height of fashion for a house to reflect historical styles, even when combined in an eclectic manner, that expressed a domestic ideal of cozy traditionalism. The Mary England Residence is an exuberant example of this trend. Half-timbering, multi-paned and leaded casement windows and a steeply pitched, cross-gabled roof impart a storybook cottage charm. Its first owner, Mary England, was employed for several years as stenographer at the old Burnaby Municipal Hall. An original attached garage is evidence of the growing presence of automobiles in domestic life of the 1930s.
Additionally, the Mary England Residence is a testament to the continued suburban growth of the Edmonds neighbourhood. During the Edwardian era, the area experienced a housing boom. Its proximity to New Westminster, coupled with its regional transportation links, made it an attractive area for middle-class residences. Despite the economic recession of the 1930s, the Edmonds area continued to develop with modest but handsome housing.
Defining Elements
Key elements that define the heritage character of the Mary England Residence:
- location, in the Edmonds neighbourhood of East Burnaby
- residential form, scale and massing as expressed by its one and one-half storey height with full basement, rectangular plan and steeply pitched cross-gabled roof
- Period Revival elements such as rough-cast stucco, half-timbering, minimal eave overhangs, arched entry with glazed wooden front door, and arched-top feature window
- mixture of windows including: double-hung, multi-paned wooden sash windows in double assembly; 6-over-1 double-hung wooden sash windows in multiple assembly; multi-paned casement windows; and straight-leaded feature windows
- external parged chimney and two internal chimneys
- attached front-gabled garage
- associated landscape features including mature deciduous trees and fruit trees
A history of the Burnaby school district and individual school buildings in Burnaby, BC, between 1893 and 2013.
The “First Nations cemetery” described on page 109 in Mary Johnson’s recollections was originally written as “Indian” and may refer to the Khalsa Diwan Society’s Sikh cremations at the Vancouver Cemetery.
Photograph of Mary England (nee Gooding) standing outside on the lawn of her home located at 2125 Griffiths Street in Burnaby. The house was built by Mary England in 1930 in a revival style and has been recognized on the Burnaby Community Heritage Register.
Photograph of Mary England (nee Gooding) standing outside on the lawn of her home located at 2125 Griffiths Street in Burnaby. The house was built by Mary England in 1930 in a revival style and has been recognized on the Burnaby Community Heritage Register.
Photograph of Joan Lee, the principal of Stride Avenue Community School and soon Taylor Park Elementary School, leaning against a fence in front of the school, facing Griffiths Drive.
Photograph of Joan Lee, the principal of Stride Avenue Community School and soon Taylor Park Elementary School, leaning against a fence in front of the school, facing Griffiths Drive.
Collected by editorial for use in a June 2001 issue of the Burnaby NewsLeader
Caption from metadata: "Joan Lee, the principal of Stide Avenue Community School, will face a unique challenge in 2002, when she'll also be running the new Taylor Park School, with a busy thoroughfare, 20th St., between them."