Gastown is the original settlement that became the core of the city of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and a national historic site and a neighbourhood in the northwest section of the Downtown Eastside, adjacent to Downtown Vancouver.
The Worshipful Company of Clockmakers was established under a royal charter granted by King Charles I in 1631. It ranks sixty-first among the livery companies of the City of London, and comes under the jurisdiction of the Privy Council. The company established a library and its museum in 1813, which is the oldest specific collection of clocks and watches worldwide. This is administered by the company's affiliated charity, the Clockmakers’ Charity, and is presently housed on the second floor of London's Science Museum. The modern aims of the company and its museum are charitable and educational, in particular to promote and preserve clockmaking and watchmaking, which as of 2019 were added to the HCA Red List of Endangered Crafts.
A clockmaker is an artisan who makes and/or repairs clocks. Since almost all clocks are now factory-made, most modern clockmakers only repair clocks. Modern clockmakers may be employed by jewellers, antique shops, and places devoted strictly to repairing clocks and watches. Clockmakers must be able to read blueprints and instructions for numerous types of clocks and time pieces that vary from antique clocks to modern time pieces in order to fix and make clocks or watches. The trade requires fine motor coordination as clockmakers must frequently work on devices with small gears and fine machinery.
John Deighton, better known as "Gassy Jack", was a bar-owner in British Columbia. The Gastown neighbourhood of Vancouver, British Columbia takes its name from him.
Cambie Street is a street in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It is named for Henry John Cambie, chief surveyor of the Canadian Pacific Railway's western division.
The 9 O'Clock Gun is a cannon located in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, that is ordinarily fired daily at 21:00 (9 p.m.) PT.
Storyeum was a short-lived tourist attraction, located at 142 Water Street, Vancouver. Storyeum was located in the largely touristy area of the Gastown neighbourhood of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Storyeum offered up a live, interactive, educational, re-creation of British Columbia's history through special effects, actors and actresses in a 65-minute show.
Thomas Tompion, FRS (1639–1713) was an English clockmaker, watchmaker and mechanician who is still regarded to this day as the "Father of English Clockmaking". Tompion's work includes some of the most historic and important clocks and watches in the world, and can command very high prices whenever outstanding examples appear at auction. A plaque commemorates the house he shared on Fleet Street in London with his equally famous pupil and successor George Graham.
Hotel Europe is a six-story heritage building located at 43 Powell Street in the Gastown area of Vancouver, British Columbia. The building was commissioned by hotelier Angelo Calori and built in 1908-1909 by Parr and Fee Architects. Situated on a triangular lot, the building is designed in the flatiron style. It was the first reinforced concrete structure to be built in Canada and the earliest fireproof hotel in Western Canada. Contractors had to be brought in from Cincinnati, Ohio for the necessary expertise; the Ferro-Concrete Construction Company began this project six years after constructing the first tall concrete building in the world.
The Vancouver Police Department (VPD) is the police force for the City of Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of several police departments within the Metro Vancouver Area and is the second largest police force in the province after RCMP "E" Division.
Downtown Vancouver is the central business district and the city centre neighbourhood of Vancouver, Canada, on the northwestern shore of the Burrard Peninsula in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. It occupies most of the north shore of the False Creek inlet, which cuts into the Burrard Peninsula creating the Downtown Peninsula, where the West End neighbourhood and Stanley Park are also located.
A steam clock is a clock which is fully or partially powered by a steam engine. Only a few functioning steam clocks exist, most designed and built by Canadian horologist Raymond Saunders for display in urban public spaces. Steam clocks built by Saunders are located in Otaru, Japan; Indianapolis, United States; and the Canadian cities of Vancouver, Whistler and Port Coquitlam, all in British Columbia. Steam clocks by other makers are installed in St Helier, Jersey and at the Chelsea Farmers' Market in London, England.
Water Street is a street in the Gastown area of Vancouver, British Columbia. It is named for its proximity to the water, in this case the south shore of Burrard Inlet, and was briefly known as Front Street. Water Street is popular amongst tourists; its most famous landmark is the steam clock.
Creative Energy is a private district heating company. The company was founded on November 1, 1968, by group of engineers with a desire to lower heating bills for buildings and reduce the amount of pollution being created to provide heat downtown. In 2014, Central Heat Distribution was rebranded as Creative Energy and began taking on additional district heating projects in Vancouver and Toronto.
This is a timeline of the history of Vancouver.
The Global Relay Gastown Grand Prix is a criterium cycling race held in Gastown, the oldest neighbourhood in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The race is part of BC Superweek, a series of nine races held over 10 days in July in the greater Vancouver area.
St. James' Anglican Church is a unique church building in the Diocese of New Westminster of the Anglican Church of Canada located at the north-east corner of East Cordova Street and Gore Avenue in the City of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada in what is now its east Downtown and Strathcona neighbourhoods containing the Downtown Eastside district.
The architecture of Vancouver and the Greater Vancouver area consists of a variety of modern architectural styles, such as the 20th century Edwardian style and the 21st century modernist style, as well as many others. Initially, the city's architects embraced styles and ideas developed in Europe and the United States, with only limited local variation.
A statue of John Deighton was commissioned in 1970, and was sculpted by Vern Simpson. Its location moved to various spots in Vancouver's Gastown neighborhood, in British Columbia, Canada. It was finally installed at a spot near where Deighton had opened the Globe Saloon in 1867. On February 14, 2022, the statue was toppled by protesters.
