Description of Historic Place

The Harding House is a one and one-half storey wood-frame, stucco-clad cottage style residence incorporating picturesque qualities and period revival references. It is situated close to the city centre, on a corner lot on Marshall Street at Buckland Avenue in the Marshall Street Heritage Conservation Area.

Heritage Value

Built in 1929, the heritage value of the Harding House is associated with its modest, picturesque, cottage style architecture. The popularity of traditional period revival styles during the interwar years illustrates the reluctance to relinquish historical references in domestic architecture. Homeowners of the period understood and found comfort in traditional, historically referenced architecture, yet appreciated the domestic comforts of the modern home. This charming house is an example of the work of prominent local developer and contractor, Hector Maranda (1879-1967), who was responsible for a number of similar houses in the area.

Additionally, the Harding House is significant for its associations with its original owner Percival Francis Harding (1881-1965), who was born in London and came to Kelowna in 1912. He married Rosina May Duggan, and their family ultimately included seven children. Percy Harding made his living in the hardware business, first as a partner in Dalgleish and Harding and later during the 1930s, he owned his own business, Independent Hardware.

Source: City of Kelowna, Planning Department, File No. 6800-02

Character-Defining Elements

Key elements that define the heritage character of the Harding House include its:
- corner location with west facing orientation;
- residential form, scale and massing, as expressed by its one and one-half storey height (with basement) and irregular, rectangular plan;
- dual pitched side gabled roof of a moderately steep pitch with lower front gabled roofs of varied heights and a shed roof over the front porch;
- wood-frame construction with smooth stucco exterior cladding and stucco-clad coved eaves;
- picturesque cottage style elements such as the rustic stone front steps, arched porch opening and multi-paned windows;
- two stucco-clad chimneys (one internal and one external); and
- asymmetrical wooden-sash fenestration: double-assembly double-hung 8-over-1 front windows on the first storey, double-assembly double-hung 4-over-1 windows on the upper storey, other double-hung 6-over-1 windows, 6-pane casement window in the attic front gable, and fixed single pane windows in the basement.