GASSY JACK DEIGHTON
STANDING ON THE WHISKEY KEG THAT FOUNDED A CITY
GASSY JACK DEIGHTON
STANDING ON THE WHISKEY KEG THAT FOUNDED A CITY
Gastown is said to have been named after Gassy Jack Deighton who got the nick name `Gassy' because he, like me, liked to talk a lot.
Mr. Deighton is said to have brought ashore a barrel of alcoholic beverage from one of the ships anchored off shore, punched a hole in the end, and became an entrepreneur.
Around Gassy Jack's `saloon' sprang a small commercial settlement.
In the mid 1800's a fire swept through Gastown, destroying most of the structures and killing some two thousand citizens.
Some fortunate individuals ran North to the waters of the Burrard Inlet.
There was no beach, per say, as the shore dropped away, quickly, making it an excellent place to dock boats, but a poor place for wading. The survivors of the fire were now facing death by drowning, or hypothermia, as the waters of the inlet are never very warm.
In 1870 Gassy Jack, had married Madelaine, a young Indian Princess, at least in Jack’s eyes, from the village of the Squamish people across the waters of the inlet.
Upon seeing the fire raging through Gastown the friends and relatives of Jack’s widow set out from the North shore.
It was this small armada of war canoes that rescued the survivors of the fire.
Wishing to rebuild, but not wanting to repeat history, the remaining citizens decided to build with brick instead of wood. This posed a problems, as there is no brick building material in the nearby area.
That meant that bricks had to be imported and that posed another problem as the railway hadn't been built yet and the only form of transport was by ship.
China had a large supply of brick building material but China was not interested in trading with the rest of the world.
Maybe that is why there is so much crime in Vancouver today. The city is built upon a foundation of crime.
The bricks that were used to rebuild Gastown were smuggled out of China.
The city of Vancouver has spent a lot of money refreshing the 000 hundred block of Alexander and Powell Streets to extend Gastown.
However, it has been money wasted as there is nothing on either street to attract tourists.
Well, there is, kind of, but it has been allowed to be altered and is hard to see.
#27 Alexander St. was the first brick building in Gastown, It was a fire hall. The doorways are all set at an angle to the building so as to make it easier for the horses to enter the street pulling their wagons.
HOTEL WATER ST. WATER ST STREET Gastown is one of Vancouver's many tourist attractions. It is one street, Water St.
Water St. is three blocks long, from Carrall St., to Cordova St.
Here you will find actors' agencies, lawyers' offices, artists' lofts, and residences, above restaurants, saloons, and souvenir shops.
A large variety of cuisine is available, at reasonable prices.
SPAGHETTI LAMPLIGHTER. THAI STEAM Parking is nil, and traffic is horrendous, so don't drive there.
Water street has one bus line that goes through it but has several other bus lines that go past either end and it is only a short walk from a SkyTrain station.
WEATHER IN VANCOUVER'S GASTOWN
EUROPE 
VENDOR
FACTORY 
RESTAURANT 
PLANTER
VANCOUVER, LIKE THE REST OF B. C., OFFERS THE PUREST WATER IN THE WORLD YET MANY VANCOUVERITES ARE FLABBERGASTED TO SEE ME DRINK FROM AN OPEN FOUNTAIN. THEY ARE SO SPOILED THEY BELIEVE THE DISCOLOURATION OF OUR WATER, WHICH ONLY HAPPENS DURING THE EARLY SPRING OR FALL RAINS, IS HARMFUL, AND WILL WASTEFULLY SPEND MONEY ON BOTTLED WATER
FOUND AT VARIOUS LOCATIONS, USUALLY, EVENINGS, IN GASTOWN, THIS MAN HAS BEEN WORKING THE STREETS OF VANCOUVER FOR MANY YEARS, BEHIND HIM IS A MENU BUILT INTO THE WALL.
THE LANE BEHIND LEADS TO A NICE RESTAURANT
ONE OF THE MAIN ATTRACTIONS IN GASTOWN IS THE STEAM CLOCK IT ISN´T AS OLD AS SOME BELIEVE. IT WAS ACTUALLY DESIGNED ONLY A FEW YEARS AGO. WHEN THEY REBUILT GASTOWN AS A TOURIST ATTRACTION THEY WANTED SOMETHING OTHER THAN A CONCRETE PLANTER TO DISGUISE THE STEAM VENT. THE WHISTLE ON THE TOP IS FROM AN OLD VESSEL, THE BEAVER, THAT PLIED THE WATERS OF THE B. C. COAST. ONE COLD WINTER, THE STEAM WHISTLE FROZE OPEN, RESIDENTS OF THE AREA ENDURED THE LOUD SCREAM FOR SEVERAL DAYS UNTIL THE REPAIR MAN RETURNED FROM HOLIDAYS
ON THE BACK OF THE BUILDING IS AN EXTERIOR ELEVATOR THE TOP OF THE TOWER HOSTS AN OBSERVATION DECK AND A REVOLVING RESTAURANT
The WEATHER NETWORK
« Go back To My VANCOUVER Page
« Go back To My B. C. Page
« Go back To My CANADA Page
« Go back To My TRAVEL Page
« Go back To My HOME Page
CONTACT FORM
Thank you for visiting Lee's `Gastown' Page.
Please come back and visit again!
SEARCH LEE'S PAGE
HELP MAKE THIS WEBSITE COMMERCIAL FREE - CLICK HERE