Province of British Columbia
Which site was the heritage designation of Emily Carr House in late 1970s?
Emily Carr House Carr House is a National Historic Site of Canada located in Victoria , British Columbia . It was the childhood home of Canadian painter Emily Carr , and had a lasting impression on her paintings and writings . Early history . Built in 1863 for the affluent Carr family , the house address was originally 44 Carr Street on a large property owned by Emily Carrs father , Richard . The building was designed in an Italianate style by prominent local architects Wright & Sanders , who also built another Victorian National Historic Site , the Fisgard Lighthouse . The area was the heart of 19th century Victoria , with many other merchants , businessmen , and politicians such as the Dunsmuirs living in the area , many of whom commissioned other important buildings , such as Helmcken House . Structurally , the building is an excellent and well-preserved heritage example of the Italianate villa style popular at the time . The site is most notable for its association with Emily Carr ; artist and writer . Born in 1871 , Carr spent much of her life within walking distance of her family home , and the environment left a lasting impression on her which is mentioned in all of her books . In The Book of Small , a young Emily offers a description of Carr street , and her house , as it appeared around 1880 : Our street was called Carr Street after my Father . We had a very nice house and a lovely garden.. . Carr Street was a very fine street . The dirt road waved up and down and in and out . the horses made it that way , zigzagging the carts and carriages through it . The rest of the street was green grass and wild roses . [ ... ] In front of our place Father had made a gravel walk but after our trees stopped there were just two planks to walk on . As far back as I can remember Fathers place was all made and in order . The house was large and well-built , of Californian redwood , the garden prim and carefully tended . Everything about it was extremely English . It was as though Father had buried tremendous homesickness in this new soil and it had rooted and sprung up English . There were hawthorn hedges , primrose banks , and cow pastures with shrubberies . Emily lived in the house for most of her childhood , before leaving to pursue artistic training in San Francisco , London and Paris . Her fathers death in 1888 left ownership of the farm to her elder sister , Edith Carr , who divided up the estate into lots which were sold off , with the Carr sisters retaining five of them . Upon her return to Victoria in 1913 , Emily built her own house adjacent to Carr House at 646 Simcoe Street . Her time here was immortalized in her book The House of All Sorts — the structure still stands to this day and contains a mural she painted on the attic roof in the style of First Nations . Her sisters Edith and Alice also built houses surrounding Carr House — Alice Carr House was run like a kindergarten by Alice , and Emily occasionally held art lessons in the building . Later history and restoration . Carr House passed through the Carr family for several years , before being sold to a private owner for use as a rental property . The building was extensively modernized following a fire in 1938 . In 1964 , MP David Groos saved the building from demolition and turned it over to the Emily Carr Foundation three years later , for use as an art gallery and school known as the Emily Carr Arts Centre . In 1976 , the provincial government purchased the property , and helped return the building to its original condition . The building was extensively restored by two different architects , undoing many of the additions and modernizations that had been added to the house since the 19th century . The wood finishes , mentioned by Carr , were restored from scratch , while the exterior of the house was returned to its original design and color using period photos from Emily Carrs lifetime . The interior of the house is faithful to the original , following the painstaking removal of layers of newer paint and wallpaper to discover the original pattern and colors used inside . Most of the original artifacts in the home have long-since been replaced ; however , a handful have been recovered and restored . The Carr family Bible was recovered , along with some of the original pieces of hardware for the doors and windows . Most items from the house have been replaced with replicas , or other period artifacts — such as the piano in parlour , which was originally owned by neighbours of the Carr family . Carr House is currently a cultural centre celebrating Emily Carrs life through seasonal tours , rotating exhibits , programming and events . It is operated by a site manager and owned by the Province of British Columbia . Carr House is located at 207 Government Street , six blocks from Victorias Inner Harbour and the Parliament Buildings . In addition to the heritage rooms Carr House is surrounded by a Victorian styled garden . During the summer season Carr House is open for tours by appointment . Programming and events take place during the rest of the year , building upon themes of Emily Carrs life such as art and environmentalism , respect for First Nations Communities , feminism , and mentorship of emerging artists and writers . Heritage preservation and gardening workshops are also offered .