The Bon Marché
DESCRIPTION OF HISTORIC PLACE
The Bon Marché Store is a one-storey side-gabled wood-frame commercial building with a false front and a gabled rear extension. The recognition includes a one-storey extension to the side of the store.
HERITAGE VALUE
The Bon Marché Store is valued for its association with the process of settlement and economic development in Nakusp and the west Kootenays illustrated by the succession of businesses in this location that served the population of the area. The original store was built circa 1897 as a butcher shop for Pat Burns, who developed a meat distribution business that served railway and mining camps and established butcher shops in Nelson, Kaslo and Three Forks area. In 1910, English immigrant Charlotte Herridge took over the shop. Her family lived on the premises, with a living room and kitchen in the back and bedrooms upstairs. In 1920 Mrs. Herridge opened a clothing and housewares store, which she called "Bon Marché." Since 1947 the Bon Marché Store has been operated by members of the Hurry family, a tenure that is now in its third generation. Major additions were made to the building in 1952 to enlarge the showroom.
The Bon Marché Store illustrates the simple wood-frame buildings that were built in Nakusp during its first building boom. The original false front is now covered in wide boards. The drop siding on the sides of the building and the shiplap siding on the rear living quarters are original.
CHARACTER-DEFINING ELEMENTS
Key elements that define the heritage character of the Bon Marché Store include its:
- location on the south side of Broadway
- one-storey massing with side-gabled roof and a wooden false front
- one-storey concrete block addition at the side
- wood-frame living quarters at the rear
- display windows
- original drop siding and shiplap siding
From Historic Places Canada![]()