Wendy McKinlay Gas Town Steam Clock
The Gastown Steam Clock.
Words by Dennis Begin
Gastown is a unique Vancouver neighbourhood and is acclaimed as a National Historic Site of Canada. It’s located one block east of Waterfront Station, the former Canadian Pacific Railroad (C.P.R.) terminus, and while walking along Water Street, it’s obvious that tourism is its main business.
Businesses in this hip district include art galleries, ultra-modern furniture, boutiques, well-known restaurants, nightclubs, coffee shops, iconic hotels, and upscale condos. The buildings consist of redbrick Victorian architecture with vintage lamp posts and cobblestone-asphalt streets. If food is your interest, join a Gastronomic Food Tour to experience the range of flavours, cuisines, and unique dining establishments. Water Street may be only a couple of blocks long, but its history is much longer.
Gastown has three major tourist attractions. At the corner of Cambie and Water Street is the famous steam clock, built in 1977 by Raymond Saunders. It was really built to prevent the homeless from sleeping on the steam gate to stay warm. The steam clock operates by both steam and electricity, producing a puff of steam and whistles on the hour.
The second attraction is Hotel Europe, on the corners of Water, Alexander, Carrall, and Powell streets. Architects were John Parr and Thomas Fee of Vancouver. The hotel’s exterior design is the best example of concrete triangular architecture and the owner/developer was Angelo Calori who opened the hotel in 1909. It’s now used by the Affordable Housing Society.
Dennis Begin
The iconic Hotel Europe.
Hastings Mill
Although Captain George Vancouver explored Burrard Inlet in 1792, he was not impressed with the area. It would not be until 1865 that Captain Edward Stamp saw the potential of Burrard Inlet and built a sawmill at the foot of Dunlevy Street. Although the mill went bankrupt by 1870, the new U.S. owners renamed it Hastings Mill after Admiral George Hastings. For the next 57 years (from 1870 to 1927), Hastings Mill became famous for exporting quality lumber around the world. The third major attraction is the iconic statue of Gassy Jack Deighton.
John “Gassy Jack” Deighton [1830-1875]
His legal name was John Deighton but he was known as ‘Gassy Jack.’ Coming from England, he worked in the goldfields and was a steamboat pilot on the Fraser River. His first business was a saloon in New Westminster called The Global, but when it proved unprofitable, the family moved on. Deighton arrived in what was to become Gastown in 1867 with his indigenous wife, dog, two chickens, $6 in his pocket, and numerous barrels of valuable whiskey.
Since sawmill owners never permitted liquor on their premises, Deighton had a monopoly on both supply and demand. The story goes that the mill workers built a 4 x 7 m (12 x 22 ft) saloon for Deighton in exchange for a free barrel of whisky. This new saloon was near the corner of Water and Carrall Street, which is now known as Maple Tree Square.
Dennis Begin
Statue of Gassy Jack in Maple Tree Square.
As for his nickname ‘Gassy,’ it evolved due to his exaggerated stories and garrulous nature. In simple terms, he talked excessively but his stories helped him sell his barrels of whiskey. By 1870, he built Deighton House, an upscale hotel located in Byrnes Block.
Since Deighton became a successful businessman, his brother Tom joined him in 1873. The purpose was for Tom and his wife Emma to operate the Deighton Hotel, while Deighton returned to work on the Fraser River. The problem was both families never got along. Gossip emerged that he could not father a son, only adding to family squabbles. Adding to the problems, his health deteriorated and on May 29, 1875, he passed away and was buried in New Westminster.
Gastown
When Deighton first arrived in 1867, there was no Gastown or Vancouver. Within a few years, a little town emerged with Deighton as its unofficial mayor and in 1870, Gastown was renamed ‘Granville’ after the British Secretary. Granville or Gastown was not pretty. It consisted of shacks, wood sidewalks, mud, stray dogs, drunken sailors, and more mud. Squatters pitched a tent or built a shack anywhere, and there weren’t organized streets or legal titles to any of the property. Gastown fronted Burrard Inlet, consisted of three saloons, two hotels, two stores, a few houses, and was described as ‘filthy.’
In the meantime, Vancouver was incorporated as a city on April 6, 1886, yet the Great Vancouver Fire two months later destroyed most of the city’s business district, including the Deighton Hotel. Vancouver rebuilt and in the following year, the Canadian Pacific Railroad arrived in the city on May 23, 1887. Canada was now joined by rail from ‘Sea to Sea.’
Dennis Begin
Hastings Mill General Store in Kitsilano.
Hasting Mills General Store
When the Hastings Mill was torn down in 1928, the Hastings Mill General Store was destined for the same fate. The store, however, was more than a dry goods establishment. It served as a post office, library, and community centre for Vancouver. The public came together to save the historic general store. On July 29, 1930, the store was barged to its present location. It took two years for the Native Daughters of B.C., Post #1, to convert the store into a museum. The museum can be found near Jericho Beach at 1575 Alma Street and Point Grey Road. It remains Vancouver’s oldest building.
The Legacy of Gassy Jack
Gassy Jack Deighton, the Founder of Gastown, left a controversial legacy of his character, both for his business decisions and his private life. When Vern Simpson, a local expressionist artist created the statue of Gassy Jack in 1970, he couldn’t imagine someone spraying it with red paint on June 16, 2020. The reason for this vandalism was to protest the oppression of indigenous people, particularly Squamish women. The specific problem involved his two native wives. History has not yet passed judgment on the life of Gassy Jack.
But as a tourist, enjoy the stroll down Water Street and the ambiance of being downtown. Take time to visit the statue of Gassy Jack in Maple Tree Square and walk in his footsteps. As for the fate of the statue of Gassy Jack, that still needs to be determined.
Dennis Begin