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Hogan's Alley, Vancouver

Black Canadian settlementsHistory of Black people in British ColumbiaNeighbourhoods in Vancouver
Hogan's Alley, Vancouver, British Columbia (April 1958)
Hogan's Alley, Vancouver, British Columbia (April 1958)

Hogan's Alley was the local, unofficial name for Park Lane, an alley that ran through the southwestern corner of Strathcona in Vancouver, British Columbia. The alley was located between Union and Prior (North-South) and ran from approximately Main Street to Jackson Avenue (West-East). The area was ethnically diverse, populated by Black, Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Jewish, and Indigenous residents during the first six decades of the twentieth century. Home to a number of Black families, Black businesses, and the city's only Black church (the African Methodist Episcopal Fountain Chapel), Hogan's Alley has been referred to as the "first and last neighbourhood in Vancouver with a substantial concentrated black population". Hogan's Alley had a vibrant night life, with eateries and nightclubs that hosted local residents, railway porters, and touring musicians alike.Most of Hogan's Alley was destroyed circa 1970 by the Non-Partisan Association civic government's construction of the Georgia Viaduct, the first phase of a planned interurban freeway originally set to run through Hogan's Alley and much of Chinatown and Gastown. The subsequent freeway construction was stopped by the Strathcona Property Owners and Tenants Association, and Strathcona, Chinatown and Gastown were spared from razing, but not before Hogan's Alley was mostly demolished and the viaducts were built. The area where Hogan's Alley once was currently bears little mark of the Black community's historical presence. Since its destruction, Hogan's Alley has been referenced in several community-based cultural works and city projects. Groups such as Hogan's Alley Memorial Project, the Hogan's Alley Working Group, and the Hogan's Alley Society have worked to memorialize the area and advocate for Vancouver's Black community. In 2015, the City of Vancouver announced its plans to remove the viaducts and establish a cultural centre in the Hogan's Alley area.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Hogan's Alley, Vancouver (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Hogan's Alley, Vancouver
Dunsmuir Viaduct, Vancouver

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N 49.2772 ° E -123.0973 °
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Dunsmuir Viaduct

Dunsmuir Viaduct
V6A Vancouver
British Columbia, Canada
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Hogan's Alley, Vancouver, British Columbia (April 1958)
Hogan's Alley, Vancouver, British Columbia (April 1958)
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Fountain Chapel
Fountain Chapel

The Fountain Chapel was a church located at 823 Jackson Avenue in Vancouver, British Columbia from 1918 until 1985. It was the local chapter of the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME) and was co-founded by Nora Hendrix (grandmother of guitarist Jimi Hendrix) to serve Vancouver's black community. Although not officially designated a heritage structure, the building is one of a few markers of the black community that once flourished in this part of Vancouver. Prior to the establishment of the Fountain Chapel, black Christians held services in rented halls around town, and eventually a small group decided they should have a permanent church of their own. They set out to raise funds for the project and arranged for the AME to match the amount raised locally. Once financing was secured, they purchased the building on Jackson Avenue that was built in 1910 and had served as a Lutheran church for German and Scandinavian immigrants.The AME is a well-established Christian denomination that was founded in 1816 by African Americans in response to the racism they encountered in non-segregated churches. As such, the AME was an important institution for black opposition to antebellum slavery and anti-black racism generally. The AME's activist tradition continued in Vancouver. The church was the locus for organizing against racism on more than one occasion. In the 1922-1923 trial of Fred Deal, a railroad porter charged with murdering Vancouver police constable and Victoria Cross recipient Robert McBeath, the congregation of the Fountain Chapel mobilized to ensure that the likelihood Deal was racially targeted by police was accounted for in the verdict. Consequently, the case was re-tried and Deal's original death sentence was reduced to life in prison. In another case in the 1950s, the Fountain Chapel was used to voice the black community's demands for an inquiry into the police beating of Clarence Clemons, a black longshoreman, who died shortly after the incident in question.The black community that had geographically coalesced around the Fountain Chapel in the city's East End was displaced during the city's slum clearance programs of the 1950s and 1960s. In 1985, not long after Nora Hendrix's death, the AME sold the building, which housed the Basel Hakka Lutheran Church from then until 2008, when the building was officially decommissioned as a church and became a private residence. The building is situated at the eastern edge of what was once Hogan's Alley. On January 30, 2014, Canada Post issued a stamp commemorating Hogan's Alley and the Official First Day Cover depicts an illustration of the Fountain Chapel.

Kissa Tanto
Kissa Tanto

Kissa Tanto is an Italian-Japanese fusion restaurant in the Chinatown neighborhood of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The 80-seat restaurant, which opened in June 2016, is on the second floor of 263 E Pender St. Its name comes from the Japanese word kissa, referring to the jazz cafes of 1960s Tokyo, and the Italian word tanto, meaning "a lot" or "so much". Kissa Tanto is co-owned by restaurateur Tannis Ling, executive chef Joël Watanabe, and sous chef Alain Chow, who collectively envisioned it as an escapist, anachronistic concept. The restaurant's visual design was as central to its development as the menu. The unobtrusive exterior was left in a state of slight disrepair, and is marked only by a small awning and neon sign. The restaurant's interior is inspired by the mid-century modern design movement, with curved banquettes, banker's lamps, extensive use of maple and walnut, and polished brass fixtures. It references the jazz cafes which inspired its name with a glossy coved ceiling and stacks of vinyl records behind the bar in place of the traditional bar mirror. Kissa Tanto serves a modern fusion of Italian and Japanese cuisine, a pairing that appears unusual, but has some historical and culinary basis. Both cuisines focus on simplicity, umami flavors, and local ingredients. The fusion style is flexible and intuitive; traditional ingredients from each cuisine are added to dishes from the other as required rather than attempting to follow a strict formula. The whole fried fish has been singled out by reviewers as the restaurant's signature dish. Since its launch, Kissa Tanto has garnered positive reviews for its romantic, retro-style design philosophy and innovative menu. It has been highly ranked on several Canadian "best restaurant" lists, including the Canada's 100 Best list. In its first year, several critics named it "best new restaurant".

Carnegie Community Centre
Carnegie Community Centre

Carnegie Community Centre is located at 401 Main Street at the corner of Hastings Street, in the old Carnegie Public Library building in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver, British Columbia. In 1901 Vancouver requested $50,000 from industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie for the purpose of building a library. Carnegie agreed, provided the City of Vancouver supplied the site and contributed $5000 a year. The original public library was completed in 1903. For decades, the top floor was the home of the Vancouver Museum. The Vancouver Public Library moved into a more spacious building at 750 Burrard Street in 1957 and the Carnegie building eventually fell into disrepair. Neighbourhood poverty activists from the Downtown Eastside Residents' Association convinced city council to turn it into a public space for local residents, and it opened as the Carnegie Community Centre in the 1980s. It now houses recreation facilities, a low-cost cafeteria, a branch of the Vancouver Public Library, and a variety of services and programs for the neighbourhood, which is one of the poorest in Canada. The Carnegie Centre is a drug- and alcohol-free place. The Carnegie Community Centre is owned by the City of Vancouver and funded by the Social Planning Department. It is open 9 a.m. to 11 p.m., every day of the year. The centre is run by Vancouver City Staff in cooperation with the board of directors of the Carnegie Community Centre Association, a non-profit society. Directors are elected annually from the members of the association. Membership costs one dollar per year and is available to neighbourhood residents. All the centre's programs are free to members. Carnegie Community Centre has a gymnasium, a weight room, a theatre (aptly named Carnegie Hall), a cafeteria with very reasonably priced meals, a seniors lounge and a pool room. There is also an Adult Learning Centre on the top floor, which provides informal one-on-one tutoring. There is a computer lab containing multiple computers for educational use located inside the centre as well. The Carnegie Centre publishes a bi-monthly newsletter with articles concerning the Downtown Eastside Community. The Institute for stained glass in Canada has documented the stained glass at Carnegie Community Centre.The Carnegie Centre supports and provides a home for a number of projects, including the political group known as CCAP (Carnegie Community Action Project), which has recently been associated with the anti-gentrification protests in the DTES.

Downtown Eastside
Downtown Eastside

The Downtown Eastside (DTES) is a neighbourhood in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. One of the city's oldest neighbourhoods, the DTES is the site of a complex set of social issues including disproportionately high levels of drug use, homelessness, poverty, crime, mental illness and sex work. It is also known for its strong community resilience, history of social activism, and artistic contributions. Around the beginning of the 20th century, the DTES was the political, cultural and retail centre of Vancouver. Over several decades, the city centre gradually shifted westwards and the DTES became a poor, although relatively stable, neighbourhood. In the 1980s, the area began a rapid decline due to several factors including an influx of hard drugs, policies that pushed sex work and drug-related activity out of nearby areas, and the cessation of federal funding for social housing. By 1997, an epidemic of HIV infection and drug overdoses in the DTES led to the declaration of a public health emergency. As of 2018, critical issues include opioid overdoses, especially those involving the drug fentanyl; decrepit and squalid housing; a shortage of low-cost rental housing; and mental illness, which often co-occurs with addiction. The population of the DTES is estimated to be around 7,000 people. Compared to the city as a whole, the DTES has a higher proportion of males and adults who live alone. It also has significantly more Indigenous Canadians, who are disproportionately affected by the neighbourhood's social problems. The neighbourhood has a history of attracting individuals with mental health and addiction issues, many of whom are drawn to its drug market and low-barrier services. Residents experience Canada's highest rate of death from encounters with police, and many vulnerable members of the community have low trust in the police. Since Vancouver's real-estate boom began in the early 21st century, the area has been increasingly experiencing gentrification. Some see gentrification as a force for revitalization, while others believe it has led to higher displacement and homelessness. Numerous efforts have been made to improve the DTES at an estimated cost of over $1.4 billion as of 2009. Services in the greater DTES area are estimated to cost $360 million per year. Commentators from across the political spectrum have said that little progress has been made in resolving the issues of the neighbourhood as a whole, although there are individual success stories. Proposals for addressing the issues of the area include increasing investment in social housing, increasing capacity for treating people with addictions and mental illness, making services more evenly distributed across the city and region instead of concentrated in the DTES, and improving co-ordination of services. However, little agreement exists between the municipal, provincial and federal governments regarding long-term plans for the area.