I.O.O.F. Hall - Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
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The A-Team
N 48° 25.606 W 123° 21.877
10U E 473026 N 5363799
The Independent Order of Odd Fellows hall - completed in 1879 - is located at 1315 Douglas Street in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.
Waymark Code: WMNW20
Location: British Columbia, Canada
Date Posted: 05/09/2015
Views: 5
The Independent Order of Odd Fellows first came to British Columbia when Victoria Lodge #1 was instituted on March 10, 1864. It's believed this was the first benefit society organized in the province. After the Victoria Lodge was considered too conservative by some members, Brother Drummond instituted Columbia Lodge #2 on February 15, 1870. By the mid-1870s, several other lodges had also been formed.
The lodges originally occupied the upper floor of the building at the corner of Fort Street and Wharf Street (now 500 Fort Street). The lodges continued to grow and quickly outgrew the location. In 1877, a union between Lodges #1, #2, and #4 purchased the property beside the Clarence Hotel on Douglas Street. A contract was awarded to contractors Hayward and Jenkinson on January 6, 1879, with the total cost for construction quoted at $13,540. Interestingly, the contract stipulated that, "No Chinamen are to be employed on the works or any bricks made by Chinese used in the building."
The cornerstone was laid in an elaborate ceremony on April 28, 1879. The Most Worthy Grand Master of The Right Worthy Grand Lodge of British Columbia, Charles Gowen, gave the following speech before laying the cornerstone:
My brethren, we have assembled on this occasion to perform an interesting and important ceremony; one which we trust will have its proper influence upon your hearts and minds. The spot on which we stand has been selected upon which to erect a Temple to be consecrated to the great principles of our Orderl and we are here today to inaugurate the enterprise by laying the first foundation or corner stone in the structure with the solemn ceremonies befitting such an occasion. The work so auspiciously begun can be consummated only by persevering efforts and patient industry; and we should enter upon it with a determination to carry it forward to completion until its cap-stone shall be brought with rejoicings, and the edifice shall present beauty, symmetry and proportion every way adapted to the uses and purposes for which it is designed.
After blessings and the placing of a number of objects inside the cornerstone as a time capsule, the Grand Master sprinkled water three times on the stone and said:
In the name of Friendship as pure as this water, I lay this corner stone, and as it here forms the basis of this edifice, binding together in harmony and consistency the component parts of its superstructure, so may true Friendship ever constitute the foundation of our social fabric and unite the family of man in one fraternal brotherhood.
The new hall was completed on time on October 30, 1879, and was later dedicated on March 11, 1880.
A subsequent fire necessitated the removal of the original front face of the building, so none of the original facade remains. The upper meeting room was painstakingly restored between 1984 and 1987, which included repainting and restoration of geometric designs and frescoes on the ceiling; restoration of the chandeliers; replacement of the wallpaper and ornamental wainscoting; and refinishing of the entrance doors. In 2014, the facade was refinished, which included a colour-change from white to a dark-grey, and the installation of a new logo and sign. The ground floor of the hall has housed numerous businesses over the years, and currently hosts a hair salon and a Chinese restaurant.
Today, the hall hosts the meetings for IOOF Lodges Victoria #1, Columbia #2, Bastion #4 (instituted on February 5, 2015), and Rebekah Lodge Unity #145. The hall is also the home of the Grand Lodge of British Columbia.