British Columbia House
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British Columbia House is a
Grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
building at 1 and 3,
Regent Street Regent Street is a major shopping street in the West End of London. It is named after George, the Prince Regent (later George IV) and was laid out under the direction of the architect John Nash and James Burton. It runs from Waterloo Place ...
,
Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...
,
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. Designed by architect Alfred Barr, British Columbia House was constructed in 1914 as the premises of the Agent-General of the Province of
British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
, a position then held by
John Herbert Turner John Herbert Turner (May 7, 1834 – December 9, 1923) was a British Columbia politician. Born in Claydon, Suffolk, England, Turner moved to British North America and worked as a merchant in Halifax and Charlottetown. In 1862 he moved to V ...
. At the time of the building's official opening, in 1915, Turner had been replaced by
Richard McBride Sir Richard McBride, (December 15, 1870 – August 6, 1917) was a British Columbia politician and is often considered the founder of the British Columbia Conservative Party. McBride was first elected to the provincial legislature in the 1898 e ...
, but McBride's death, in 1917, saw him return to the Agent-General's role. The building is owned by the
Crown Estate The Crown Estate is a collection of lands and holdings in the United Kingdom belonging to the British monarch as a corporation sole, making it "the sovereign's public estate", which is neither government property nor part of the monarch's priva ...
and is now a commercial building. It underwent a £8.5 million refurbishment in 2013.


References

Grade II listed buildings in the City of Westminster Cultural infrastructure completed in 1915 {{UK-listed-building-stub