Vancouver / Names / S / Sumi

A family name in Vancouver's city directories

The Sumis

In the city directories 1940 · eight people at four addresses

The directories print eight people named Sumi 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: three Sumis at 1606 West 2nd 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 Sumis 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

    1606 West 2nd Avenue

    Fairview, 1940

    • Y Sumi, a gardener 1940
    • Hanako Sumi 1940
    • Shohei Sumi, a gardener 1940

    Next door in 1940: 8 listings at 1616. The block, door by door

  2. 2

    1642 West 2nd Avenue

    Fairview, 1940

    • T Sumi, a grocer 1940

    Next door in 1940: “Orientals” at 1646. The block, door by door

  3. 3

    2301 West 41st Avenue

    Arbutus Ridge, 1940

    • Mrs K Sumi, a dressmaker 1940

    Next door in 1940: C M Carere at 2303. The block, door by door

  4. 4

    1907 West 4th Avenue

    Kitsilano, 1940

    • I Sumi, a gardener 1940
    • Mrs Katsuyo Sumi, a dressmaker 1940
    • Shizue Sumi 1940

    Next door in 1940: Mrs K Saito at 1903 and C B Richards at 1933. The block, door by door

What they did

The name section prints a trade for four of the eight: a gardener (3) and a dressmaker.

Their neighbourhoods

The addresses are in Fairview (2), Arbutus Ridge and Kitsilano. 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 Y Sumi at 1606 West 2nd Avenue. The 1940 name section, where each person's work is printed, lists Yoshimatsu Sumi there as the householder, a gardener, with Hanako Sumi, and Shohei Sumi, a gardener. In 1940 the directory lists T Sumi, a grocer, at 1642 West 2nd Avenue. Mrs K Sumi, a dressmaker, is listed at 2301 West 41st Avenue in 1940.

In 1940 the directory lists I Sumi at 1907 West 4th Avenue. The 1940 name section lists Isematsu Sumi there as the householder, a gardener, with Mrs Katsuyo Sumi, a dressmaker, and Shizue Sumi.

Today

1606 West 2nd (1949) has a newer building, by the City's record; the City no longer lists 1642 West 2nd, 2301 West 41st and 1907 West 4th, so those buildings are 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 Sumis

Every directory, as one book

The family book reads the Sumi 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 S. Want a name removed? Tell us.