Description du lieu patrimonial

Elworth is a one and one half storey wood frame residence set within in a garden landscape. The house and its adjacent garage are the only historic buildings standing on their original site within the grounds of the Burnaby Village Museum, a single municipally-owned property at 6501 Deer Lake Avenue, Burnaby.

Valeur patrimoniale

Elworth was constructed in the Deer Lake Crescent subdivision, that was originally promoted in 1911 as an upper class suburban neighbourhood. It represents one of the first residential developments in the City of Burnaby that required buildings to be of a specific value, thus demonstrating the desire for exclusivity among the successful businessmen who chose to settle in the area.

The house and grounds illustrate the reduced scale of upper class residential construction at a time of modest returning prosperity that followed the end of the First World War, and the social, cultural, lifestyle and leisure sensibilities of the owners in the Deer Lake Crescent subdivision: such values as social aspiration, racial exclusivity, demonstration of architectural taste, and importance of a landscaped garden.

The heritage value of Elworth is its comprehensive representation of an upper middle class suburban residence of the early 1920s. It was built for retired Canadian Pacific Railway executive Edwin Wettenhall Bateman (1859-1957) and his wife, Mary (Dale) Bateman (1865-1935), by contractor William Dodson in 1922. Elworth was designed by English born and trained architect Enoch Evans (1862-1939) of E. Evans and Son, and is an important surviving residential design by Evans, and a typical example of the eclectic Period Revival influences that were common to domestic architecture in the post First World War era. The symmetry of the imposing front verandah, supported by exaggerated Ionic columns, gives the relatively modest house an image of grandeur and formality. Named after Edwin Bateman's birthplace in Cheshire, England, Elworth also symbolizes allegiance to England and the patriotic tenor of the time.

The heritage value for this house also lies in its interpretive value within the Burnaby Village Museum. The site is an important cultural feature for the interpretation of Burnaby's heritage to the public. Elworth was purchased by Burnaby in 1970 and became the focal point for the development of the Museum. Both the interior and exterior of the house have been restored and interpreted to the date of original construction, including recreated room interiors and period furnishings.

Source: Heritage Site Files: PC77000 20. City of Burnaby Planning and Building Department, 4949 Canada Way, Burnaby, B.C., V5G 1M2

Éléments caractéristiques

The elements that define the heritage character of Elworth include its:
- rectangular form and massing with central entry on long side
- side gable roof with front shed dormer with cedar shingle cladding
- symmetry of front facade
- full open front verandah inset under the roofline, supported with Ionic columns
- cedar shingle siding
- multi-paned double hung wooden sash windows, mixture of 6-over-1 and 8-over-1
- symmetrical disposition of fenestration, with double assembly units on the ground floor
- exterior shutters
- two flanking brick chimneys on the side elevations
- interior room layouts and original interior features such as quality millwork and original hardware
- original garage at the rear of the house