Irving House Museum (1865)

Irving House remains as a symbol of New Westminster’s prosperity and optimism during a time of rapid change and uncertainty in the colony

By Rob McCullough, manager, Museums and Heritage Services, City of New Westminster

Style Elements:  Still standing on its original property, Irving House is the oldest intact house in the Lower Mainland. The house demonstrates mixed Gothic features that were popular in the mid-1800s – rare in BC due to the low number of buildings that have survived from this period. The City of New Westminster has owned the house since 1950 and it operates as a local heritage centre.

Architectural significance:  Captain Irving had this fourteen room 4700 square foot house designed and built by T. W. Graham. In 2009-2010 a restorative study was conducted on the interior of Irving House to preserve and authentically restore the house without diminishing its heritage values. As a result, the team has concluded that the most authentic date to accurately restore the house would be ca.1897-1903

What to look for: In 2017/18, following six years of work to stabilize the building’s infrastructure, the team has completed phase one of an interior restoration.  Original 1887 metallic gold wallpapers in its parlours have been painstakingly cleaned and restored; removing over 130 years of soot and coal dust.  Additionally, the stunning hallway papers were meticulously redrawn by heritage consultant Stuart Stark and colour-matched to the original palate used in the house.  The hallway cornice work and entrance ceiling medallion have been painted to match the original colour scheme complementing these wonderful papers.

First homeowners: Sea Captain William Irving and his wife Elizabeth had five children. The family moved into Irving House on August 5, 1865.

The Full Story

Irving House is the oldest intact house in the Lower Mainland. It is still on the original property where Captain William Irving had it built in 1865. Since 1950 the City of New Westminster has owned the house and it has been operated has a local heritage centre.

Captain Irving was born in Scotland in 1816, went to sea and eventually became a captain with his own ship. After coming to the West Coast during the California Gold Rush, he met his wife-to-be, Elizabeth Jane Dixon in Portland, Oregon in 1851. They were married that same year and later had five children. In 1859 the family moved to Victoria during the Fraser River gold rush and began operating sternwheelers on the River. Captain Irving had this fourteen room 4700 square foot house designed and built by T. W. Graham and the family moved in on August 5, 1865.

Today Irving House remains as a symbol of New Westminster’s prosperity and optimism during a time of rapid change and uncertainty in the colony.  The house demonstrates mixed Gothic features that were popular in the mid-1800s. These features are rare in BC due to the low number of buildings that have survived from this period.  Throughout its history three generations of Irvings and their descendants have lived in the house and changed it to suit their own personal tastes and trends of the day.

In 2009-2010 a restorative study was conducted on the interior of Irving House. This included analysis of its structure, environment, wallpapers, ceiling papers, wood finishes, paint colours and carpets. The aim was to develop a plan to preserve and authentically restore the house without diminishing its heritage values.  A total of 59 wall paper and over 500 paint samples were taken from the house; identifying seven distinct character-defining periods. This work discovered original ca.1897-1903 papers in the entrance and upper hallway of the house. These papers were a stunning 3-piece set consisting of a wallpaper, 18” frieze and a ceiling paper.  We also learned that dramatic changes had been made to the structure and layout of some of its rooms. These two factors combined to conclude that the most authentic date to accurately restore the house would be ca.1897-1903 when Captain Irving’s daughter Mary Briggs lived there with her family. Restoring to an earlier period would dramatically undo changes the family made to the house in the late 19th Century.

In 2017/18, following 6 years of work to stabilize the building’s infrastructure, we have now completed phase one of an interior restoration.  Original 1887 metallic gold wallpapers in its parlours have been painstakingly cleaned and restored; removing over 130 years of soot and coal dust.  Additionally, the stunning hallway papers were meticulously redrawn by Stuart Stark Heritage Consultant, and colour-matched to the original palate used in the house.  They were then printed in England and shipped to New Westminster where they were installed in April 2018. Along with the papers, the hallway cornice work and entrance ceiling medallion have been painted to match the original colour scheme complementing these wonderful papers.

Thank you to our sponsor – New Westminster Museum & Archives are managed across three City locations: Anvil Centre, Irving House and the Samson V Museum. We care for thousands of historical objects and photographs and archival records that celebrate our city’s stories and history. Our exhibits focus on the land, people and development of the place now known as New Westminster.