Hallmark Heritage Society

Check out the latest on this building at our blog.

As we prepare for our move to the Craigflower Schoolhouse and the establishment of the Hallmark Heritage Education Centre, the office will be closed for a short while. Watch this site for further information.

With our move to Craigflower Schoolhouse on March 1, 2015, we will need approximately 50 folding chairs for our heritage classroom.

We are seeking donations of folding chairs, or for $20, you can purchase one for us.

See the official document for details. You can also use the “donate now” button on our main page.

The Hallmark Heritage Society presents “The Parfitt Brothers of Fernwood” membership drive event.

Spend an evening with the descendants of  5 English brothers who emigrated to Victoria in 1889 and were responsible for building more than 40 significant commercial/religious structures along with almost 100 houses during the construction boom of the early 1900’s. These buildings include: Christ Church Cathedral, Bay Street Armouries, George Jay Elementary School, James Bay Inn,  Royal Jubilee Hospital, several buildings in Chinatown and the entire 1900 block of Fernwood Road to name a few. Speakers Glenn, Daryl & Dewayne Parfitt share the family’s history with never before seen pictures and film of Victoria’s early years along with some excerpts from their personal diaries and historical family artifacts. This event is “Free” to all members of the Hallmark Heritage Society or $25.00 for non-members who’ll receive a one year membership with their admission. Refreshments available.

Wednesday, October 22, 2014 in the “Art Room” at the Fernwood Inn located at the corner of Fernwood and Gladstone Ave. Doors open at 8:00pm with the presentation starting at 8:30pm

The Hallmark Heritage Society Annual General Meeting will be held on Monday, September 15, 2014 at the James Bay New Horizons Centre, 234 Menzies Street starting at 7 pm. Guest speaker is Mike Sweet on the move of a building from 1082 Richmond Road to 1016 Pemberton Road and the resulting restoration.

Letter to members

For some time now, the Hallmark Heritage Society Board of Directors has been discussing the future of the organization and looking for opportunities to enhance and expand our mission.

For the past three years our office has been in a small, re-purposed, bedroom at the Ross Bay Villa. While this room provided space for our files and a desk, it was quite small and precluded others working in the office at the same time.

Recently an opportunity has arisen. The historic Craigflower Schoolhouse has for the past two years been used as a contractor’s office for the construction of the Craigflower Bridge. Prior to that time it was a part of The Land Conservancy’s tenure at Craigflower Manor.

The Heritage Branch of the provincial government is now seeking proposals for a long-term lease of the property. The lease must meet a number of criteria and one of these is a use that would reflect the historical nature of the building. Your Board of Directors has unanimously voted to pursue this opportunity and are putting together a proposal to utilize the Schoolhouse as an office, meeting, and educational space and we are seeking support from the heritage community as well as the general public.

We have prepared a budget and a business plan which is within our current means.

Below, we have outlined our vision for the Hallmark Heritage Society and this important site. We feel this is a time, a moment, that can carry the Society into the future. We hope you will join us in seizing this opportunity and share in this inspiring plan.

The Hallmark Heritage Society believes that its use of the Craigflower Schoolhouse can make a significant contribution to heritage preservation in the Capital Regional District through:

1. The Hallmark Heritage Society would sponsor programs presenting classes on the maintenance of historic building fabric, similar to those classes currently being offered by the Vancouver Heritage Foundation under the title “Old School.” These would be presented by local professionals and tradespersons in each field and would cover such subjects as: Seismic Retrofits for Heritage Homes, Researching the History of Your House, Painting of Historic Homes, Energy Efficiency and Heritage Houses, and other, similar themes.

2. The Hallmark Heritage Society has long had, as a significant part of our mandate, an educational component directed towards the youth of our community. This has led to the Society being a sponsor and coordinator of the South Vancouver Island Student Heritage Fair held annually at the Royal B.C. Museum. The Craigflower Schoolhouse site is an ideal location for the coordination of the activities of the annual Student Heritage Fair and an opportunity for students from all over South Vancouver Island to become familiar with the history of the oldest surviving schoolhouse in Western Canada.

3. The Society would like to expand the educational component of its mandate through a greater interaction with local schools. This would include direct contact with Craigflower Elementary School and Shoreline Middle School offering historical tours and interpretation of Craigflower Schoolhouse.

4. During the summer months, the Craigflower Schoolhouse is adjacent to a popular walking route along the Saanich Gorge Park. During these months the Hallmark Heritage Society has, in its office, a summer student and, as a result, the Craigflower Schoolhouse would be available for public viewing during this time.

5. During the summer months, the Hallmark Heritage Society would organize and hold, in cooperation with such bodies as the Saanich Archives, special “History Fun Sessions”, bringing community youth onto the site to learn, with the help of games and displays, local and First Nations history and heritage.

6. The main floor space of Craigflower Schoolhouse would be available to community groups, such as the Gorge Tillicum Neighbourhood Association, for meetings.

7. There are great opportunities for future community involvement. Plans are currently underway for an independent senior’s residential facility at the nearby corner of Gorge Road and Admirals Road. The completion of this facility would provide opportunities for greater participation by the seniors in community activities through the Hallmark Society.

8. These new opportunities will allow the Society to build upon its historic strengths; those of heritage advocacy, the continued creation of a heritage inventory, and the reaching out to the Grater Victoria community to promote the importance of heritage preservation.

In the Hallmark Heritage Society’s response to the request of the B.C. Heritage Branch, we hope to demonstrate that there is a broad based support for the Craigflower Schoolhouse being used as a community oriented heritage interpretive and education center.

At the meeting of the City of Victoria Heritage Advisory Panel held on Tuesday, July 8, 2014, there were 2 items of significance to be recommended to the city Council for further action. Both of these items related to the relocation of heritage registered properties from the South block of the Legislative Precinct.

The first item dealt with the relocation of the three heritage registered properties from 521, 539 and 545 Superior Street to new locations in the south east quadrant of the South block along Michigan Street. The relocation of these three buildings, the Jamison, the John and the Black residences, respectively, was approved by the Heritage Advisory Panel subject to some minor conditions.

The Heritage Advisory Panel also considered the relocation of the two heritage registered properties located at 524 and 526 Michigan Street to some unknown sites within James Bay. This item was tabled due to a lack of quorum.

Out initial concerns are that the three houses to be moved to Michigan Street will be situated on small properties that will diminish the historical significance of the buildings. They also appear to have a closer relationship to the street than the properties on the south side of Michigan Street.

As for the two houses currently on Michigan Street, numbers 524 and 526, the Heritage Advisory Panel is requested to move them to some currently unknown location within the James Bay community. We would far rather have them moved within the present South Block property but this seems to be a problem for the developers. If they are moved, they must not result in the demolition of any existing building that could prove to be of heritage significance in the future.

To view the Conservation Reports for all of the properties and some conceptual plans relating to the relocation of 521, 539, and 545 Superior Street please follow the following links.

South Block – existing

South Block Proposed

South Block 3- Detail of Michigan St

VIC Capital Park 521 Superior Street – Draft Conservation Plan June, 2014

VIC Capital Park 524 Michigan Street – CONSERVATION PLAN No Maintenance Plan draft June, 2014

VIC Capital Park 526 Michigan Street – CONSERVATION PLAN No Maintenance Plan draft June, 2014

VIC Capital Park 539 Superior Street – Draft Conservation Plan June, 2014

VIC Capital Park 545 Superior Street – Draft Conservation Plan June, 2014

We have updated our site to a Word Press format and introduced fresh new content.

Navigate through our links to discover the Hallmark Heritage Society and its programs.

15-1594 Fairfield Road
PO Box 50013 Fairfield Plaza PO
Victoria, BC  V8S 1G0
250-382-4755

To contact us