Description of Historic Place

The Boeur House and Cottage are two dwellings located on a single parcel in the Kitsilano neighbourhood of Vancouver, on the south side of West 5th Avenue immediately west of Collingwood Street.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of the Boeur House and Cottage lies in their associative and architectural significance.

The Boeur Cottage and House at 3532 West 5th Avenue are of heritage value principally because of their association with early and long-term owners. The property was originally a Crown grant to Henrietta Isabel Boeur dating back to 1907. She and her husband, Antoine J. Boeur, longshoreman and stevedore, had the Cottage built in 1912 by Victor Fontaine, carpenter. It is one of the earliest houses built south of West 4th Avenue and west of Macdonald Street, marking the beginning of expansion of Kitsilano west as far as Alma Street.

In 1921, the growing family had the Boeur house completed on the same property. The family continued to occupy both dwellings. The two dwellings demonstrate an evolution of the family: the Cottage was built only to serve its short-term needs, with plans to build a larger house on the same site soon after. Finances dictated that they remained in the Cottage much longer than anticipated, until the family house was completed. For many years both dwellings housed various members of the Boeur family including children and grandchildren of Joe Boeur (son of Henrietta and Antoine) and Elizabeth Boeur.

To this day the property is still owned in part by descendants of Joe and Elizabeth. The Cottage is set back at the rear of the site, with the House set prominently forward. In the 1950s the House was covered with stucco and much of the front porch enclosed, while the Cottage retained its original appearance to the present day. In 2005 the House was restored at the front to its original appearance.

Source: City of Vancouver Heritage Conservation Program

Character-Defining Elements

Key elements that define the Boeur House’s Craftsman architectural design include:
- full-width front porch with three large equally spaced wood columns, with an arched spandrel between each and an enclosed shingled base below the railings
- wood front door flanked by upper sidelights and lower wood panel
- variety of casement and double hung wood windows, which fronting the main porch are set in a triple arrangement (casement and fixed) with paired multi-pane transom
- upper floor sleeping porch framed by a column on either side and open balustrade, balanced by a piano (light) window on each side
- shingle cladding
- exposed rafter ends
- flared facia board ends

Key elements that define the heritage character of the Boeur Cottage include its:
- setback from and relationship to the street
- modest size with a symmetrical rectangular plan
- recessed front entry porch with simple decorative wood and a small attic window centrally placed above the entry porch
- front of upper floor dominated by a shed roof dormer spanning the entire front width
- shiplap siding with corner boards
- small rectangular windows placed on either side of entry porch
- simple single wood front door
- double hung windows

Key elements that define the location of the Boeur House and Boeur Cottage include its:
- location in Vancouver’s Kitsilano neighbourhood, being one of the earliest properties constructed west of Macdonald Street