David Spencer Ltd. (commonly known as ''Spencer's'') operated a

department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store made a dramatic app ...

chain in 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, ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

during the late 19th century and the first half of the 20th century. Founded in the city of

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

in 1873 by

David W. Spencer David W. Spencer (1837–1920) founded the Spencer's (department store), Spencer's department store chain in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada in 1873. However, before so he travelled many months over sea from Wales to Victoria so participate in ...

, the first store, located on Government Street, consisted of a dry goods shop operating under the name "Spencer and Denny". The store prospered and expanded, and a second store was opened in 1890 in

Nanaimo Nanaimo ( ) is a city on the east coast of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. As of the Canada 2021 Census, 2021 census, it had a population of 99,863, and it is known as "The Harbour City." The city was previously known as the "H ...

. The

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

store, which opened in 1907, was so successful that it soon expanded to occupy almost an entire city block. Other stores later opened in

Chilliwack Chilliwack ( )( hur, Ts'elxwéyeqw) is a city in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Chilliwack is surrounded by mountains and home to recreational areas such as Cultus Lake and Chilliwack Lake Provincial Parks. There are numerous outdoor ...

and

New Westminster New Westminster (colloquially known as New West) is a city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada, and a member municipality of the Metro Vancouver Regional District. It was founded by Major-General Richard Moody as the capita ...

. For a number of years, Spencer's was a rival to the

Woodward's Woodward's Stores Ltd. was a department store chain that operated in Alberta and British Columbia, Canada, for 101 years, before its sale to the Hudson's Bay Company. History Charles Woodward established the first Woodward store at the corner o ...

department store, another British Columbia-based chain. In 1948, however, Spencer's was acquired by the much larger

Eaton's The T. Eaton Company Limited, later known as Eaton's, was a Canadian department store chain that was once the largest in the country. It was founded in 1869 in Toronto by Timothy Eaton, an immigrant from what is now Northern Ireland. Eaton's grew ...

department store chain, which had stores across Canada. The nine Spencer's stores in the

Lower Mainland The Lower Mainland is a geographic and cultural region of the mainland coast of British Columbia that generally comprises the regional districts of Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley. Home to approximately 3.05million people as of the 2021 Canadia ...

and

Vancouver Island Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are o ...

were converted into Eaton's stores. The second Spencer's store in downtown Victoria, at 1150 Douglas Street (which replaced the original Government Street store), operated as an Eaton's store until the late 1980s, when it was demolished to make way for the Victoria Eaton Centre shopping mall (now called the

Bay Centre The Bay Centre (formerly the Victoria Eaton Centre) is a shopping mall in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. It is bounded by Douglas, Government, Fort, and View streets, in the city's historic centre.Ward, Robin (November 17, 1990). "A world ...

). Spencer's downtown Vancouver store, on Hastings Street, operated as an Eaton's store until 1973, when Eaton's opened its new Vancouver flagship store in the newly constructed

Pacific Centre Pacific Centre (officially CF Pacific Centre since 2015) is a shopping mall located in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It is owned by Cadillac Fairview, the Ontario Pension Board, and the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board, and is manage ...

shopping mall. Unlike its Victoria cousin, however, the former Spencer's store was not demolished; it was later occupied by

Simpsons-Sears Sears Canada Inc. was a publicly-traded Canadian company affiliated with the American-based Sears department store chain. In operation from 1952 until January 14, 2018, and headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, the company began as Simpsons-Sears� ...

, and today it serves as the downtown "Harbour Centre" campus of

Simon Fraser University Simon Fraser University (SFU) is a public research university in British Columbia, Canada, with three campuses, all in Greater Vancouver: Burnaby (main campus), Surrey, and Vancouver. The main Burnaby campus on Burnaby Mountain, located from ...

. The building itself is currently called the

Harbour Centre __NOTOC__ Harbour Centre is a skyscraper in the central business district of Downtown Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada which opened in 1977. The "Lookout" tower atop the office building makes it one of the tallest structures in Vancouver an ...

. The last operating vestiges of the former Spencer's chain disappeared with the demise of the Eaton's chain in 1999.

External links

Current view of Spencer Building in Vancouver (in foreground of photo)
* ttp://www.celtic-connection.com/2006/features/feat2006_05_03_hist.html Welsh Immigrant Who Built a Department Store Chainat the Celtic Connection

References

{{Eaton's Defunct retail companies of Canada Department stores of Canada Eaton's Economic history of Canada History of Vancouver Buildings and structures in Vancouver Companies based in Victoria, British Columbia