Victoria City Hall is the

city hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

for

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 ...

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. It is located at the corner of Douglas Street and Pandora Avenue adjacent to the CTV Vancouver Island studios and the

McPherson Playhouse The McPherson Playhouse, known as The Mac, is a theatre and concert hall in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Part of the Centennial Square complex on the north side of downtown Victoria Downtown Victoria is a neighbourhood of Victoria, Brit ...

downtown Victoria Downtown Victoria is a neighbourhood of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada that serves as the city centre and the central business district for the City of Victoria, and the Greater Victoria regions. Characteristics The downtown area is an e ...

. It is home to the

Victoria City Council The Victoria City Council is the governing body of the City of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. The council consists of the mayor plus eight councillors. A deputy mayor is appointed monthly Monthly usually refers to the scheduling of somethin ...

. It was completed in 1890. It was designated a

National Historic Site of Canada National Historic Sites of Canada (french: Lieux historiques nationaux du Canada) are places that have been designated by the federal Minister of the Environment An environment minister (sometimes minister of the environment or secretary of t ...

in 1977 and was also designated as a heritage site by the municipality in 1979.

Construction

Architect

John Teague John Teague (June 3, 1833 – October 25, 1902) was a Canadian architect and politician who served as mayor of Victoria, British Columbia from 1894 until 1895. Born in Redruth, Cornwall, United Kingdom, Teague left the UK in 1856 spending som ...

designed Victoria's City Hall, which is considered "one of the best surviving examples of

Second Empire Second Empire may refer to: * Second British Empire, used by some historians to describe the British Empire after 1783 * Second Bulgarian Empire (1185–1396) * Second French Empire (1852–1870) ** Second Empire architecture, an architectural styl ...

-style public architecture in

Western Canada Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces, Canadian West or the Western provinces of Canada, and commonly known within Canada as the West, is a Canadian region that includes the four western provinces just north of the Canada� ...

." The earliest surviving municipal hall has a foot 105 tall Gillet and Johnson clock tower, three types of façades, tall windows, pedimented dormer windows and a metal mansard roof. The exterior is constructed of concrete, brick and stone. The Second Empire style reflects a change in the design and construction of governmental buildings, intended to symbolize the government's growth and power. It was constructed from 1878 to 1891 at Pandora Avenue and Douglas Street.

Centennial Square

City Hall is a landmark in Victoria's Old Town District that in 1963 was nearly razed to make way for the Centennial Square, but is now an important historical building there.

References

External links

Urban Renewal at the Movies: Vancouver vs. Victoria
Buildings and structures in Victoria, British Columbia National Historic Sites in British Columbia Government buildings completed in 1890 Buildings and structures on the National Historic Sites of Canada register City and town halls in British Columbia Second Empire architecture in Canada {{BritishColumbia-struct-stub

Construction

Centennial Square

See also

References

External links