Vancouver / Names / D / Dickens

A family name in Vancouver's city directories

The Dickenses

In the city directories 1940 · eleven people at eight addresses

The directories print eleven people named Dickens at eight addresses in 1940 in six of the city's neighbourhoods. No first name or initials tie one address to another: we can't tell if they're one family. The most under one roof: four Dickenses at 3175 West 39th in 1940.

Reserve this family's book, freeThe name in every directory we hold from 1901 to 1945, at every address, each line with its page, to read here or save as a PDF. About $29 when orders open.

Where the Dickenses lived

Each pin is on its own block, numbered as the households below. One address isn't on today's map, so it has no pin. Today's land, parks, main roads and local areas: City of Vancouver Open Data (Open Government Licence – Vancouver).
  1. 1

    348 Glen Drive

    Strathcona, 1940

    • Ellen M Dickens, proprietor of Nelly's Dress Shop 1940

    Next door in 1940: H H Dougan at 318. The block, door by door

  2. 2

    641 Granville Street

    Downtown, 1940

    • Fellowship Dickens' 1940

    Next door in 1940: Tip Top Tailors at 637 and Ireland & Allan Ltd at 649. The block, door by door

  3. 3

    2427 Guelph Street

    Mount Pleasant, 1940

    • Mrs E Dickens, widow of J 1940

    Next door in 1940: W Galloway at 2423. The block, door by door

  4. 4

    3582 West 14th Avenue

    Kitsilano, 1940

    • B F Dickens, retired 1940

    Next door in 1940: G Naughton at 3574. The block, door by door

  5. 5

    2786 West 32nd Avenue

    Arbutus Ridge, 1940

    • C M Dickens 1940

    Next door in 1940: Mrs C N Hood at 2778. The block, door by door

  6. 6

    3175 West 39th Avenue

    Dunbar-Southlands, 1940

    • C D Dickens, a salesman at Dale & Co 1940
    • Charles W A Dickens, a salesman at Woodward's 1940
    • Laurence A Dickens, a clerk at Royal Trust 1940
    • Ruth M Dickens, a stenographer for Massey Renwick 1940

    Next door in 1940: A Ingle at 3157 and Miss F Scrope-Shrapnel at 3191. The block, door by door

  7. 7

    3571 West 4th Avenue

    Kitsilano, 1940

    • N Dickens 1940

    Next door in 1940: Mrs M Reynolds at 3569. The block, door by door

  8. 8

    169 West Pender Street

    Downtown, 1940

    • C Dickens 1940

    Next door in 1940: Glidden Co at 167 and Parks Rooms at 177. The block, door by door

What they did

The name section prints a trade for five of the eleven: a salesman (2), a clerk, a proprietor and a stenographer. One is a widow, listed under her own name.

Their neighbourhoods

The addresses are in Downtown (2), Kitsilano (2), Arbutus Ridge, Dunbar-Southlands, Mount Pleasant and Strathcona. Each neighbourhood's page shows its trades, its people and every street in it, the way the directory printed them.

The story, address by address

The 1940 name section, where each person's work is printed, lists Ellen M Dickens at 348 Glen Drive, proprietor of Nelly's Dress Shop. The 1940 name section lists Fellowship Dickens' at 641 Granville Street. In 1940 the directory lists Mrs E Dickens at 2427 Guelph Street. The 1940 name section lists Elizabeth Dickens there as the householder, widow of J.

In 1940 the directory lists B F Dickens at 3582 West 14th Avenue. The 1940 name section lists Benjamin F Dickens there as the householder, retired. In 1940 the directory lists C M Dickens at 2786 West 32nd Avenue; the 1940 line is marked *: some member of the family owns the property, to the best of our knowledge (the directory's own mark). The 1940 name section lists Charles M Dickens there as the householder.

In 1940 the directory lists C D Dickens at 3175 West 39th Avenue; the 1940 line is marked * too. The 1940 name section lists Charles D Dickens there as the householder, a salesman at Dale & Co, with Charles W A Dickens, a salesman at Woodward's, Laurence A Dickens, a clerk at Royal Trust, and Ruth M Dickens, a stenographer for Massey Renwick. In 1940 the directory lists N Dickens at 3571 West 4th Avenue. The 1940 name section lists Normanby Dickens there as the householder.

The 1940 name section lists C Dickens at 169 West Pender Street.

Today

2786 West 32nd still has its building from before 1946, dated 1938 by the City's record; 3582 West 14th (1983) and 3175 West 39th (2004) have newer buildings, by the City's record; the City no longer lists 348 Glen Drive, 641 Granville, 2427 Guelph, 3571 West 4th and 169 West Pender, so those buildings are probably gone (inferred).

Every line as printed

All 16 lines printed under the name through 1945, each with its page at the Vancouver Public Library.
1940

British Columbia and Yukon Directory, name section, where each person's work is printed

The book of the Dickenses

Every directory, as one book

The family book reads the Dickens name in each Vancouver directory we hold from 1901 to 1945: everyone printed under it at every address, their work from the name sections, who lived next door, and the page behind every line, to read here or save as a PDF to print or give.

We're opening orders soon. Join the list to be first in line; we expect about $29 a family.

One email, when it's ready. We use your email for nothing else and never share it. Privacy

Another name, or a house

Sources

Henderson's and successor city directories for Vancouver, read by us line by line: the street sections for 1905, 1915, 1925, 1935, 1940 and 1945, and the name section for 1930 and 1940 where we've read it (Vancouver Public Library, BC City Directories). Names are shown through 1945, as printed. Close spellings are grouped, as on the house pages, since a family's name was often spelled differently from one year to the next; one name can still be several families, and we join lines only where the first names or initials agree. Many Chinese, Japanese and other residents weren't named by the canvassers, so they can't be listed by name: their houses' pages say where. More family names under D. Want a name removed? Tell us.