Address: 585 John Street
Built: c. 1910
1912 householder: Claude Hamilton, saw filer

This house with a tall front gable and a side shed-dormer is similar in design to an adjacent house at 581 John Street. They were among five houses built as investment properties in 1905 by a well-known master of sealing schooners, Captain Victor Jacobsen. Three of the houses were demolished in 1989. This survivor has lost almost all of its original features, including its front porch and box bay front window.

When this place was enumerated in 1911, it was the residence of Claude Hamilton, a 55-year-old saw filer; Louise Hamilton, a 39-year-old homemaker; and their son, 14-year-old Walter Hamilton, who worked in the automobile repair business. The 1912 Victoria City Directory reveals that Walter Hamilton was employed as a "tube repairer" in a tire vulcanizing shop at 503-505 Yates Street. ("Vulcanizing" is a method of repairing cracks and punctures in a tire by affixing a rubber patch to the damaged area and then subjecting it to heat and pressure.)

Revised February 2024.

---