When I was 19 I worked at a tiny retro rock shop called America Upstairs - you know the type: a surly, listless youth uses a 1970s era iron to press rock band logos onto American Apparel t-shirts. I had an ironic haircut, and was instructed to “smoke often, and don’t be very nice to the customers.” I obliged on both counts.
The shop, located on the corner of Robson and Granville Streets in the heart Vancouver’s historic entertainment district, was just upstairs from Hitz, Granville Optical and True Value Vintage. We were one big happy family in the Farmer Building, a 1922 structure that, until last Summer, housed over a dozen small businesses in its labyrinthine halls.
I had no idea that on the other side of the brick wall from where I pressed t-shirts all day there lay hidden a so called “Ghost Sign.”
Photo: Simon Clarke
"Ghost Signs" are billboards painted on the sides of buildings that are uncovered after decades hidden by a facade or a building erected next door. In this case, the 90 year old advertisement is painted on the side of the Power Block, an 1888 building known to most Vancouverites my age for being the location of Charlie’s Music for almost 20 years.
On July 31st of last year, tenants of both buildings were told that they had to evacuate the premises to make way for a new development, a 5 story structure that will resemble the Future Shop and Winners complex diagonally across the intersection. Despite the pleas of Heritage Vancouver to protect the heritage character of Granville Street, many other buildings are under also severe threat of demolition. The Power Block and the Farmer Building are just two devastating examples of this promise made good.
In a case of what heritage activists (like me!) like to call “Facadomy,” only the stunning art deco facade (added in Vancouver’s deco heyday of 1929) of the Power Block will be preserved, as it was the only piece protected by the city’s heritage register. The rest of the building will be destroyed, including the "Ghost Sign." The wonderful, whimsical sign points across the street to where the Capitol Theatre (later the Capitol 6) once stood, and it encourages folks to go and see the 1922 film “Grandma’s Boy,” starring comedy legend Harold Lloyd. It must have been covered up only a few months after being painted, when the Farmer Building was constructed. This brief exposure to the elements means that it is in shockingly good condition, the near century-old paint still bright and clear - which kind of makes its loss harder to bear.
I have been walking past the demolition site everyday for the last 2 weeks, and have slowly seen the sign emerge brick by brick - at first like a whisper and now like a shout. A ninety year old message from the Granville Street of the past. It’s all I can do to keep from crying to think that, despite public interest in this "Ghost Sign", the developer still plans to carry on with its demolition. The sign will be photographed, but not kept intact. I feel like I'm losing a gift that I just unwrapped.
I, for one, want a piece of this sign! Not just for the memories of my 19 year old self smoking cigarettes and making Devo t-shirts, but for the memories of my grandparents proudly strolling this entertainment promenade in the 40s, and hell - for the all of the memories of one of the most storied streets in Vancouver - and all those folks who rushed out to see Grandma’s Boy.
If they are intent on destroying it anyway, maybe we can all convince the developer to sell the sign piece by piece? If not, well, I suggest heading to Granville and Robson to see this whisper from our city’s past for yourself - before its gone. Because this time it will be gone for good.
