Vancouver / Names / W / Williams / Robson Street

A family name on Robson Street, West End and Downtown

The Williamses

In the city directories 1940 · seven people at six addresses

The directories print seven people named Williams at six addresses in 1940, all on Robson Street, with the close spelling Willams. No first name or initials tie one address to another: we can't tell if they're one family. The directories print the name on 186 other streets too, all listed on the Williams name's own page.

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 Williamses 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

    655 Robson Street

    Downtown, 1940

    • John Williams 1940

    Next door in 1940: York Cafe at 619. The block, door by door

  2. 2

    1041 Robson Street

    West End, 1940

    • Mrs Carrie Williams 1940

    Next door in 1940: Corner Hamburger White at 1037 and G W Miller at 1049. The block, door by door

  3. 3

    1345 Robson Street

    West End, 1940

    • John H Williams, an assistant pro at the Point Grey Golf & Country Club 1940

    Next door in 1940: C C F at 1343 and J F Kemp at 1361. The block, door by door

  4. 4

    1348 Robson Street

    West End, 1940

    • George T Williams, a salesman at Riddell, Keenleyside & Co 1940

    Next door in 1940: Mrs B Bethune at 1332 and la belle apts at 1368. The block, door by door

  5. 5

    1641 Robson Street

    West End, 1940

    • J E Williams, proprietor of Alberta Beef Market 1940
    • June M Williams, a bookkeeper at Empire Sheet Metal 1940

    Next door in 1940: F C Atkinson at 1637 and W J Savage at 1649. The block, door by door

  6. 6

    1657 Robson Street

    West End, 1940

    • Frank A Williams, a musician 1940

    Next door in 1940: W J Savage at 1649 and M Smith at 1663. The block, door by door

What they did

The name section prints a trade for five of the seven: an assistant pro, a bookkeeper, a musician, a proprietor and a salesman.

Their neighbourhoods

The addresses are in West End (5) and Downtown. 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 John Williams at 655 Robson Street. The 1940 name section lists Mrs Carrie Williams at 1041 Robson Street. The 1940 name section lists John H Williams at 1345 Robson Street, an assistant pro at the Point Grey Golf & Country Club. The 1940 name section lists George T Williams at 1348 Robson Street, a salesman at Riddell, Keenleyside & Co.

In 1940 the directory lists J E Williams at 1641 Robson 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 John E Williams there as the householder, proprietor of Alberta Beef Market, with June M Williams, a bookkeeper at Empire Sheet Metal. The 1940 name section lists Frank A Williams at 1657 Robson Street, a musician.

Today

1348 Robson still has its building from before 1946, dated 1936 by the City's record; the City no longer lists 655 Robson, 1041 Robson, 1345 Robson, 1641 Robson and 1657 Robson, so those buildings are probably gone (inferred).

Every line as printed

All 8 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 Williamses

Every directory, as one book

The family book reads the Williams 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 W. Want a name removed? Tell us.