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Point Ellice House

2616 Pleasant Street, Victoria, British Columbia, V8W, Canada

Formally Recognized: 1975/02/21

Exterior view of Point Ellice House and gardens; BC Heritage Branch, 2000
Front (east) elevation, 2000
Exterior view of Point Ellice House and gardens; BC Heritage Branch, 2000
South and west elevations
No Image

Other Name(s)

Point Ellice House
O'Reilly House

Links and documents

Construction Date(s)

1861/01/01 to 1864/01/01

Listed on the Canadian Register: 2004/02/22

Statement of Significance

Description of Historic Place

Point Ellice House consists of a one-storey Victorian Italianate residence and carriage shed, and Victorian gardens located on a treed parcel of land at the edge of the Gorge Waterway in Victoria, BC.

Heritage Value

Point Ellice House an excellent example of a Victorian Italianate villa owned by one family for more than one hundred years. As the residence of the O'Reilly family from 1867 to 1975, this house portrays the evolution of the social status of a well-to-do Victorian family. The influence of the Victorian period on the scope of the O'Reillys' inhabitancy at this place is reflected in its eclectic architectural development, lavish garden setting, and interior spaces filled with all of the family's possessions. Situated in an area of industrial development, the house survives as a lone monument to what was once one of Victoria's most fashionable residential neighbourhoods.

Source: BC Heritage Branch property files

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of Point Ellice House include:
- the house's location next to the Gorge Waterway, with access to the place from both land and water
- the design of the house as a single storey (plus attic) rambling Victorian Italianate villa with all of its details, such as the shallow-pitched gabled roofs, wide overhanging bracketed eaves, verandahs and porches, medieval style chimneys, tall spacious windows and classical detailing
- the asymmetrical floor plan and spatial configuration of the interior, with its narrow halls and enclosed rooms, and the physical integrity of its finishes, such as floors, wall coverings, ceilings, doors, moldings and architectural hardware
- all of the mature historic garden and landscaping features, which include the croquet/tennis lawns, pathways, rose bushes, flower beds, mature trees and shrubs, and the sequoia tree planted by Peter O'Reilly
- the unobstructed views and relationship between house and garden
- the existing form and materials of the carriage shed

Recognition

Jurisdiction

British Columbia

Recognition Authority

Province of British Columbia

Recognition Statute

Heritage Conservation Act, s.9, s.13(1)(a)

Recognition Type

Provincial Heritage Site (Designated)

Recognition Date

1975/02/21

Historical Information

Significant Date(s)

1867/01/01 to 1975/01/01

Theme - Category and Type

Expressing Intellectual and Cultural Life
Architecture and Design
Peopling the Land
Settlement

Function - Category and Type

Current

Leisure
Historic or Interpretive Site

Historic

Residence
Single Dwelling

Architect / Designer

W.R. Wilson

Builder

n/a

Additional Information

Location of Supporting Documentation

BC Heritage Branch property files

Cross-Reference to Collection

Fed/Prov/Terr Identifier

DcRu-127

Status

Published

Related Places

General view

Point Ellice House / O'Reilly House National Historic Site of Canada

Point Ellice House / O'Reilly House National Historic Site of Canada, is located on a treed parcel of land overlooking the Gorge Waterway in Victoria, British Columbia. It is an…

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