Emily Carr on Government Street photo: D. Martens

I became an Emily Carr pilgrim while living in London, where I learned that she had spent eighteen months in the East Anglia Sanatorium in Suffolk. At the time, I had a mysterious illness that took two years to diagnose, and as a result, my sympathies were aroused when I read that she was hospitalized for “Hysteria.” This weird diagnosis sent me on many research visits, culminating in information from the Suffolk Record Office of Bury St Edmonds that confirmed that Emily Carr, of 44 Carr Street, Victoria, British Columbia, was hospitalized for “Hysteria” on January 12, 1903, and released as “Cured” on March 17, 1904. So it was only natural that a family visit to Vancouver Island would set me on the Emily Carr walking tour. While Victoria is not abroad, this outing is worth a post because of Carr’s time living in England and France, where she studied art.

First stop, Carr Street, which is now 207 Government Street, in James Bay, an old and prosperous neighbourhood. Richard Carr’s property was originally four acres of Beckley Farm, comprising Government, Marifield, Douglas and Simcoe streets. In 1911 his estate was subdivided into twenty lots, five of which went to the Carr sisters. The house where Emily Carr was born was by architects Wright & Sanders, and is now a museum. According to the museum, Emily Carr’s mother wept when she learned that she was to move into the wild woods. In the garden of the house you can find Carr’s caravan, which she used on painting excursions. The Carr House is a National Historic Site.

Next stop, 642-646 Simcoe Street, was Carr’s boarding house, which she had built on her share of the family’s property (architect John Wilson). The House of All Sorts is based on this house and its boarders. I have elsewhere lamented Canada’s lack of an equivalent to England’s blue plaques. While the house of her childhood is marked with a large plaque, being a museum, there is nothing on this house to indicate its former occupants. According to the pamphlet by the Victoria Heritage Foundation, Carr painted eagles in the attic.

Here at 218-20 St Andrews is the Edwardian cottage that her sister Alice owned, and where Alice ran a private school. From 1919-1922, Emily Carr had a studio here. In 1940, after a heart attack, Emily Carr moved into the back flat (220) and taught painting. Here she must have written Klee Wyck, which won the Governor General’s Prize in 1941, and The House of All Sorts (1944). Carr remained here until just before her death in 1945.

Also unmarked, at 270 Government Street, is the building in which she died. Now the James Bay Inn Hotel, it was at the time a guesthouse run by nuns: St Mary’s Priory.

Ross Bay Cemetery family grave with corner for Emily Carr.

Posted by Debra Martens

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2 Comments

  1. Darlene April 19, 2024 at 14:36

    A great tour. I also admire Emily Carr and have visited all of these sites. I love her artwork and enjoyed her writing even more. A talented Canadian.

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  2. Jane Christmas April 8, 2024 at 01:59

    A lovely post. Thoroughly enjoyed the “tour” of Emily Carr’s many homes. From it, I gleaned a bit about her life. I’m almost embarrassed to call myself a Canadian, knowing so little about this adventurous artist and writer, but your post has spurred me to rectify that.

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