Vancouver / Names / L / Lew

A family name in Vancouver's city directories

The Lews

In the city directories 1940 · eight people at four addresses

The directories print eight people named Lew at four addresses in 1940 in three 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 Lews at 647 Prior 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 Lews lived

Each pin is on its own block, numbered as the households below. Today's land, parks, main roads and local areas: City of Vancouver Open Data (Open Government Licence – Vancouver).
  1. 1

    141 East 20th Avenue

    Riley Park, 1940

    • H B Lew 1940
    • Chew Lew, proprietor of the Paramount Service 1940

    Next door in 1940: G Lucifero at 127 and J T Fulton at 151. The block, door by door

  2. 2

    1122 Granville Street

    Downtown, 1940

    • Honion Lew, proprietor of La Salle Recreations Lunch Counter 1940

    Next door in 1940: A 1 Coml Photo Serv at 1120 and De Luxe Cafe at 1124. The block, door by door

  3. 3

    553 Hamilton Street

    Downtown, 1940

    • Ernest Lew, a cook at the Georgia Hotel 1940

    Next door in 1940: Mrs E Powers at 531 and Can Compression Joints at 555. The block, door by door

  4. 4

    647 Prior Street

    Strathcona, 1940

    • Gow Lew, proprietor of M Lang & Co 1940
    • Fern Lew 1940
    • Hohn Lew, a clerk 1940
    • Mae B Lew 1940

    Next door in 1940: G Crema at 639 and R Miller at 657. The block, door by door

What they did

The name section prints a trade for five of the eight: a proprietor (3), a clerk and a cook.

Their neighbourhoods

The addresses are in Downtown (2), Riley Park 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

In 1940 the directory lists H B Lew at 141 East 20th Avenue. The 1940 name section, where each person's work is printed, lists Hoo B Lew there as the householder, with Chew Lew, proprietor of the Paramount Service. The 1940 name section lists Honion Lew at 1122 Granville Street, proprietor of La Salle Recreations Lunch Counter. The 1940 name section lists Ernest Lew at 553 Hamilton Street, a cook at the Georgia Hotel.

In 1940 the directory lists Gow Lew at 647 Prior Street; 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 Gow Lew there as the householder, proprietor of M Lang & Co, with Fern Lew, Hohn Lew, a clerk, and Mae B Lew.

Today

141 East 20th, 553 Hamilton and 647 Prior still have their buildings from before 1946; the City no longer lists 1122 Granville, so that building is probably gone (inferred).

Every line as printed

All 10 lines printed under the name through 1945, each with its page at the Vancouver Public Library.
1940

British Columbia and Yukon Directory, street section

The book of the Lews

Every directory, as one book

The family book reads the Lew 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.

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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 L. Want a name removed? Tell us.