Victoria has many beautiful heritage homes. Neighborhoods like Fernwood and James Bay are known for their character homes. Certain heritage homes are well known enough to be tourist attractions. In this post, I will talk about several of these homes. I will start with Craigdarroch Castle.
Craigdarroch Castle is designated as a National Historic Site in Canada. It was constructed by the coal baron Robert Dunsmuir, who was at the time one of the richest men in Victoria. The castle is built in the Scottish Baronial style, mimicking the grand homes of the nobility in the U.K. The construction finished in 1890, but Robert actually died 17 months before, and it was inhabited in its finished state by this widow and children.
The interior of the castle features lots of hard wood, stained glass, and intricate woodwork. The granite used in the castle was from Vancouver Island, but some of the components were built elsewhere: one of the wooden staircases was prefabricated in Chicago and shipped to Victoria to be installed.
The castle used to stand on many acres of surrounding woodland and gardens, but now it is encroached upon by urban development.
The Craigdarroch family only inhabited the castle for 18 years. Many of the Dunsmuir children suffered with issues such as alcoholism and mental illness, and none of the sons proved to be heirs to their father’s success. After that, the castle was used as a military hospital, Victoria College, Victoria School Board Office, Victoria Conservatory of Music, and finally, in 1979, it became a museum and tourist attraction, the Craigdarroch Castle Museum.
I love the Castle and have enjoyed visiting it many times over the years. It is particularly charming at Christmastime, and I certainly intend on visiting this December. Hopefully, it will continue to be preserved and be open to the public for generations to come.
References
