Victoria seems to be expanding on a daily basis and with all the so-so progress comes ‘growing pains’ for me – not the developers. I have a fond place in my heart for a whimsical little home that once stood watch over Victoria`s West Bay and the Esquimalt Naval Base.
Over the years I have romanticized about the kind of person who would inhabit such a macabre structure. Since I never saw any sign of life in, or around, the home I fantasized that it belonged to a swashbuckling pirate and his motley crew?
A few weeks ago as I sat at West Bay Marina`s outdoor café I saw the pirate atop the home helplessly gaze down at his beloved mermaid being carelessly tossed into the back of a rickety old pickup truck. My heart sunk when I realized what would happen next.
Guess what! I went by today and the pirate no longer protects West Bay Marina`s high seas and a perfectly green parcel of land fills the space where the home once stood – an uncanny resemblance to a cemetery plot.
My only misgivings are that I didn’t get to meet the seafarer responsible for building the mysterious hideaway and I will never get to see what was inside the home.
Has anyone else ever noticed this amusing little landmark? How many other of Victoria`s eccentric homes are being replaced by cookie cutter condo schemes. What can we do about this progression – or is it regression?
Photo Credit
Photo by Heather Hess – All Rights Reserved
Is it possible to re-establish the whole house setting in one of the local museums? Or at the very least build something similar in a like image of the original.
There are so many articles to retrieve and your photos must surely entice someone with spare change as it were, to keep this historical, not to mention hysterical, lets call it an emblem of life as it was at one time. Probably still is in other places the world over.
I believe children would love to visit and hear in the safety of a museum, the rambling nautical stories from someone well read and able to entertain the public. I, as a child, loved to hear my grandma and grandpa’s stories.
Dream on and suddenly it will happen due to the kindness of heart of someone with extra silver or gold, remembering their past. Wish it could be me, I really do, but all I can do, like many of you all these days, is daydream. Ah well!
Great – Granny
Thanks Granny – I think it would be fun to create a gingerbread house in the same style – or a children’s play house. Daydreaming is fun – I’ve done it most of my life – Heather
Hi Heather, what a great piece you’ve put together here, I enjoyed it very much! Last September I visited and did an extensive shoot of this place myself, my article is at: http://toadhollowphoto.com/2012/09/19/landlubbers-and-scallywags-beware/. We were working with a local military history expert at Work Point a few weeks back now and as we came around the corner we found this old house was gone, much to my utter surprise and dismay. From my research and the work I did on this place I understand that the condition of the house was so poor it was almost impossible to save. The developer who bought the land actively tried to save it but it seems based on your article here that effort was unsuccessful. Very sad to see another key Victoria landmark go the way of the Dodo bird here.
What a great article you wrote – I am happy I have some of the history of the Swallowed Anchor – I think it would be a good idea to create a cake shaped like the house – Heather
Awe… so sad ;( This was such an interesting little house, I am so sad to hear it has passed…
I wonder if they kept any of the relics and if so – where are they! Heather
We love this little house! We need to keep these precious oddities…
I totally agree – do you know of any other homes in Victoria we need to capture – Heather
Hi Heather and thank you for your article. This mysterious absence of a very often seen fun display of a fun loving, possibly sea faring persons home.
Yes, I too wondered where it had all gone.and would very much like to know where the house and its outside fun atributes now reside…if anywhere.
It was so very much a part of passing by. Often passing by just especially to see it.
Will the owner please make it known to us all. If not, we would like to thank you for your fun loving spirit.
Granny.
Thanks Granny – seems we both have an attraction for eccentric landmarks. Heather