1200 block Homer Street west side
There are three buildings here that remain one of the last undeveloped industrial premises in Downtown South (often called Yaletown these days, although technically that’s the other side of the street). 1293 on the corner was developed in 1925, and 1285, the 3-storey section, five years later, designed and built by Dominion Construction for $8,000. 1277 Homer, the smaller element beyond it dates from 1948. Remarkably, they hang on as the last remaining manufacturing operation in a location surrounded by residential towers.
Both the southern buildings were developed by C E Mahon, an Ontario insurance and real estate broker who moved to Vancouver in 1907. This seems to have been his only investment property, apart from his home on West 13th. Born in Paisley, Ontario, in 1871, he retired from his real estate and insurance business in 1946. He was elected as an alderman in 1913, and four subsequent years. He was appointed police commissioner from 1930 to 1933. He had six children, all but one living in Vancouver when he died.
1293 Homer, the older building, was occupied by Crown Cartage. They also operated Crown Messenger Service, and were looking for ‘Messenger Boys and Solo Riders’ in 1930. The same operation was there in 1941, when the classified add specified they were seeking boys with bicycles for delivery and messenger work. In 1943 5,658 gasoline vouchers, representing almost 17,000 gallons of gasoline were stolen from the premises – confirming the existence of a black market in gasoline (if that had ever been in any doubt).
In 1944 thieves blew open the safe with explosives in the middle of the night, taking $365, a victory bond, and a $66.70 cheque. A year later there was another break in, but one of the thieves left a fingerprint on a piece of broken glass, that led to him receiving a 2-year prison sentence. In 1946 $1,000 was stolen from the safe, with police having no clue how the safe had been opened. It was reported as the fourth time in a year that the safe had been opened, and several other attempts had been unsuccessful. Extraordinarily, the money was found five days later in a sawdust bin in the lane behind the business. The address disappeared in the early 1950s when the premises were occupied by the company in the next building along.
The first mention of 1285 Homer in the press was in 1934, when there was a break in at Electrical Power Equipment Ltd. The same company continues to occupy the premises today. In 1956 thieves chopped through a strongbox and stole $1,000 in paycheques. The thieves also took the corresponding insurance books which might allow them to cash the cheques. In 1967 brothers Alan and Roy Pearson were given suspended sentences when they broke into the premises, stealing a radio, camera and tools.
For many years Barvic Engineering also operated here. They specialised in translation sets, that allowed simultaneous French-English translation. They supplied 22 sets to the Canadian Bar Association convention in 1968, but The Sun, under the headline ‘Lost in Translation’ reported that only three of them were returned.
Electrical Power Equipment Ltd still manufacture here, as they were in our 1981 image. We think the company probably own the premises these days. They supply one-off switchgear for high voltage applications like power plants and production facilities. The company design, build and install their equipment, which also includes complete fire detection and suppression systems for industrial applications.
Image source: City of Vancouver Archives CVA 779-E08.10
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