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Heritage Register
Fernwood

1439 Pembroke Street
(ex-South Rd, 111 North Pembroke St)

Built 1893
Heritage-Designated 1992

For: Oliver & Gudrun Johnson


ARCHITECTURE:

This single-storey, hip-roofed Queen Anne house is a major feature on Pembroke because of its elevated location. The wide flattened portion of the roof once housed a widow’s walk with elaborate scrollwork. Sandwich brackets decorate the frieze. There are two hip-roofed dormers, one on the right and one in front. A rear extension has a shed-roofed dormer. On the left is a pedimented gable over a square bay, and a porch towards the rear. The front pedimented gable has a Queen Anne window below a small bracketed, pent roof. It is over a bracketed, panelled cutaway bay. To the right on the bay is an inset corner porch with bracketed, turned square posts and a spindled frieze. The porch balustrade has both turnings and cutouts, and the stair balustrade is Eastlake. There are decorative shingles in the gables and beaded double-bevelled siding on the body. The foundation is brick and the front is covered with lattice. The basement windows have segmental arches. An interesting feature is the scrollwork at the lower ends of the front bargeboards.

ORIGINAL OCCUPANTS:

1893-1916: Oliver Johnson (b. Iceland, 1863-1941) and Gudrun (née Finson, b. Iceland, 1863-1915) came to Canada in 1881 and 1885, respectively. They married in Victoria in 1888. Oliver Johnson was an expressman and teamster. Among his specialties was house moving, including one of the “Bird Cages” (the old legislative buildings) to a new site on Government St. Oliver left the house after Gudrun’s death. He died in Grande Prairie, AB but was buried in the family mausoleum in Ross Bay Cemetery.

The Johnsons’ sons, Byron Ingemar “Boss” (from the Icelandic “Bjossi” or Bjorn, 1890-1964) and John Valdimar “Johnny” (1889-1963; see 2744 Avebury Av, Oaklands & 251 Howe St, Fairfield) were outstanding athletes at rugby and on championship baseball and basketball teams in 1906-08. Boss joined the Pro Lacrosse league in 1913, but played just two games before the league folded. He served 1914-18 during WWI with the British Army 33rd Field Ambulance Corp, as a Sgt. in the Mechanical Transport Div, then joined the Royal Flying Corp. On his return to Victoria, he and Johnny borrowed money and started Johnson Bros Hauling & Cartage. [Note: In 1920 Boss was living with Johnny at 2744 Avebury, then married Kate Simpson. In 1933 Boss won a seat in the BC government, but was defeated in 1937. During WWII he was technical advisor to the Federal Air Minister in connection with new air bases in Western Canada, and was awarded the MBA. Boss ran again in 1945 and by the time he became BC premier in 1947-52 he headed eight companies. He introduced compulsory hospital insurance in BC and described himself as a “Liberal Socialist.” He was a member of the Union Club, Vancouver Club, Westminster Club, Vancouver Golf Club and the Kiwanis Club. Boss and Kate lived for some years in New Westminster but died in Oak Bay.]

OTHER OCCUPANTS:

1921-24: Civil servant William Sydney and Margaret Shepherd. William served eight years in the Royal Navy before coming to Canada, then enlisted in WWI a month before they married in Victoria in December 1914. 1928-29: New Method Laundry foreman John Francis Mark and Isabel Hartley married in Victoria in 1912.

1930-50: City of Victoria paymaster Joseph John Wittcomb (1880-1971) and Olive Gwendoline (née Young, 1888-1963). Joseph, a Boer War and WWI veteran, was master of United Services Lodge No.24, AF&AM and a member of the Royal Candian Legion, Trafalgar Branch. He had retired by 1949. Their only son Philip George was born in Victoria but died aged 18 of a chest infection in 1932.

1951-71: General contractor and sash and door maker E. Frank and Lois Frewing.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION & IMAGES:


• Fernwood History

• Fernwood Heritage Register


• This Old House, Victoria's Heritage Neighbourhoods,
Volume One: Fernwood & Victoria West


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