Description of Historic Place

The historic place is a three-storey brick commercial building, located at 224 East Georgia Street, with retail shops on the ground floor and apartments above, in the southeast part of Vancouver's historic Chinatown.

Heritage Value

This building, constructed at the height of Vancouver's pre-World War I building boom, has heritage value for its architecture, its association with one of Vancouver's better-known architects, and for its history.

The architecture of this block is typical of small commercial/residential blocks built during this period. Vancouver architect Edward Evans Blackmore, who designed this building, designed several other small commercial blocks, as well as some very well known structures, such as the English Bay Bathing Pavilion and the Normal School (Teacher's College). This block represents a good example of both Blackmore's work and of the commercial architecture of the day.

Blackmore was employed by George King, after whom the block is named. George King arrived in Vancouver from Fort William (now Thunder Bay), Ontario, in 1903, establishing himself in the real estate business. In 1911, when the block was completed, King's offices (Fidelity Real Estate) occupied the entire ground floor. King owned property in Vancouver and its suburbs and had an interest in a bed-making factory. King is representative of the many small businessmen who invested in, and profited from, Vancouver real estate in the early twentieth century. While the speculative character of their work means that most are no longer known, they played an important role in shaping Vancouver's contemporary urban landscape.

Like many similar buildings, this one was designed with retail/commercial space on the lower floor and rooms above. In this instance, the rooms were known as the 'Shakespeare Rooms.' This division of use has remained constant through the years, although, with the gradual movement eastward of Chinatown, the mix of tenants has changed. For many years, part of the ground floor and upper floors have been occupied by the Yee Fong Toy Society, providing offices and housing to society members. This was especially important in the early twentieth century, when discriminatory legislation meant that the Chinese community was made up of single males.

A grocery store has been located on the ground floor from as early as 1916. The grocery business is likely associated with the warehouse behind the building, which was constructed about 1921.

Source: City of Vancouver Heritage Conservation Program

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of the King Block include:
- three-storey brick building occupying the entire lot
- architectural features, such as the cornice above, the window arrangement, and the separate entry to the upper floors
- the enduring mixture of residential above and retail below
- the depression of the wall plane to create panels surrounding the windows which emphasise four brick pilasters
- the ash grey brick
- the arrangement of the glazing bars that divide each window of the upper floors into three equal-sized rectangles of glass