Description of Historic Place

The Elsdon Residence is a wood-frame Period Revival cottage located in the residential area of Moody Centre, south of Port Moody's historic downtown core. Situated on a terraced, sloping lot among houses of a similar scale and vintage, the front of the house is distinguished by a bracketed and curved front door hood, and a steeply-pitched open front gable.

Heritage Value

The Elsdon Residence is valued as an example of the middle class, suburban-style housing constructed in Port Moody in the late 1930s, as the local economy started to improve. It was constructed between 1937 and 1938 for Leonard A. Elsdon and his wife, Ethel Elsdon. The plans were prepared by Vancouver-based architect Harold Cullerne (1890-1976), who was known for his standard residential plans for modest housing, which were intended to provide 'comfortable, aesthetically-pleasing' homes for lower-income families. Characteristic of the influence of Period Revival residential designs between the two World Wars, the picturesque roofline and garden setting reflect a romantic representation of traditional domestic ideals and an idyllic suburban lifestyle. The late persistence of this influence on Port Moody's housing reflects an underlying conservatism in this tightly-knit community.

Leonard Elsdon (1914-1992) played a significant part in the community and cultural development of Port Moody. He served for twenty-five years on City Council as an alderman, and was instrumental in the establishment of the first Port Moody Public Library in 1939. He also sat as Chairman on the Library Board and the Police Board, and was given the first Freedom of the City award in 1971. Elsdon Bay on Port Moody's north shore is named in his honour.

Additionally, the Elsdon Residence reflects the importance of the Imperial Oil Refinery as a local employer and economic driving force. Established in 1914, it was one of the first refineries on the West Coast, and provided jobs for many Port Moody residents. Imperial Oil brought stability to the local economy; Leonard Elsdon worked there as a lab technician for over forty years until his retirement.

Indicative of the city's early development patterns, the Elsdon Residence sits near the base of the slope directly south of the downtown area, the original limit of residential expansion. The City of Port Moody is naturally constrained by water and steeply sloping topography, and as it grew it expanded southwards up the slope as far as houses could be easily constructed.

Source: City of Port Moody Heritage Planning Department

Character-Defining Elements

Key elements that define the heritage character of the Elsdon Residence include its:
- corner location at Elgin and St. George Streets, on a large sloped lot
- residential form, scale and massing, as expressed by its one-and-one-half storey height and irregular, rectangular plan
- picturesque roofline, with cedar-shingled, side-gabled roof with steeply-pitched, lower front gable, and open eaves with exposed purlins
- wood-frame construction, with wide lapped wooden siding
- additional exterior elements, such as bracketed and curved front door hood, front notched window-boxes supported by projecting beams, and internal red brick chimney
- fenestration, including double-hung six-over-one and eight-over-one wooden-sash windows in double and triple-assembly on the front elevation; other wooden-sash windows on the side and rear elevations; and wooden front door with glass insets
- interior features dating from the original construction, including plaster walls, oak floors in the living room, dining room and hall, other floors of yellow cedar and fir, and wooden trim
- associated landscape features, with terraced front lawn and small, natural stream