Fort Vancouver Historic Structures Report

Construction details

a. Dimensions and footings. At the time the Bachelors' Quarters building was constructed, James Douglas gave its dimensions as 153 by 33 feet. The two original versions of the 1845 Vavasour ground plan seem to show the structure as measuring 150 by 32 feet and 153 by 33 feet respectively (Plates VI and VII, vol. I). The 1846-47 inventory of structures at Fort Vancouver listed it as "1 dwelling house" for subordinate officers, 170 by 30 feet. [87] And in 1849, when making an appraisal of the Company property at the fort, Major D. H. Vinton estimated the dimensions to be 150 by 30 feet. [88]

In 1950 National Park Service archeologists partially excavated the site of the Bachelors' Quarters with a view to determining its exact location and dimensions. Four footings, counting those at the corners, were found in both the north wall and the south wall. Measuring from the centers of the corner footings, the north wall was about thirty-two feet long, while the south wall was thirty-three feet. Only part of the footings in the west and east walls were discovered in place, but measuring from the corners, the west wall was about 152 feet long and the east wall about the same. [89] In short, the dimensions of 153 by 33 feet given by Douglas were approximately correct, and because it is not certain that the outsides of the walls were centered over the footings, they may have been exactly correct.

The footings were not described by Mr. Caywood in 1950, but probably they were the same as those on several other structures--slabs of wood about three inches thick. They were laid with their long dimensions at right angles to the length of the walls. Those in the north and south walls were, when excavated, not quite evenly spaced, but they were about eleven feet apart on centers. Those in the west and east walls seem to have been about ten feet apart on centers, but the spacing varied from about eight to twelve feet, perhaps showing post-1860 disturbance. [90] Complete excavation of the site of Building No. 20, scheduled for the near future as this chapter is being written, should produce additional information on the footings.

b. General construction. The known historical drawings and paintings of Fort Vancouver either show no more of the Bachelors' Quarters than the roof or are so small in scale as to be of little value as far as structural details are concerned. Fortunately, however, one of the photographs taken of the post by the Royal Engineers during the spring of 1860 shows the entire front or west face of the building. One particularly good print of this photo graph even shows a small section of the south wall (see Plate XLI).

The availability of this photograph makes unnecessary an elaborate discussion of the general structure of the Bachelors' Quarters. It obviously was built in the usual post-on-sill fashion, was one story high with a garret, and had a hipped, shingled roof.

Actually the "Bachelors' Range" was a row of small cottages joined under a single roof. Joseph L. Meek later described the structure as a series of "separate tenements," while Assistant Surgeon Silas Holmes of the Wilkes Expedition mentioned the "houses of the clerks" in the journal of his visit during 1841. [91] Vavasour's plan of 1845 identifies the Bachelors' Quarters building as "Dwelling Houses" (see Plate VII, vol. I). At Fort Qu'Appelle, east of the Rockies, the "dwelling houses" of the servants, similarly connected under a single roof, were separated by log walls carried up to the ridge of the roof, but whether this same method of construction was employed at Fort Vancouver is unrecorded. [92]

One other point relating to the general construction might well be mentioned here. The ground under the Bachelors' Quarters sloped slightly toward the south. The floors of the separate apartments were not stepped to adjust for the slope. Rather, the floors of all the rooms, as can be seen by the photograph, were kept at the same level. Thus the sills at the north end of the building were at, or very close to, ground level, while those toward the south rested on successively higher footings, or supports. The space between the sills and the ground was not left open but was closed in solidly with either planks or squared timbers.

Walls. Judging from the height of the doors, it appears that the walls of the Bachelors' Quarters were about twelve feet high above the sills. There were sixteen upright grooved posts (counting those at the corners) in the east and west walls and four (again counting the corner posts) in the north and south walls. The ceiling joists of the ground floor were morticed through the lintels, or in some places through the horizontal timbers above the lintels, at a height of about eight feet above the floor.

The horizontal infill timbers in the walls were fairly uniform in size and appear to have been sawed. Those toward the south end of the structure seem to have been somewhat smaller than those at the north end.

The 1860 photograph (Plate XLI) clearly shows that the south wall of the Bachelors' Quarters was covered by narrow, ship-lapped weather boards. Because the prevailing rain direction is from the south, such protection might have been required. The front of the building was left with the timbers exposed, and such probably was the case with the north and east walls.

Roof. Drawings made by members of the Wilkes expedition in 1841 show that the Bachelors' Quarters apparently had a hipped roof as early as that date (see Plates IV and LIII, vol. I). Therefore it probably had one from the time of its construction only three years earlier. On the other hand, the original pencil sketch made by Lieutenant Warre in 1845-46 (Plate XLII) and the painting and lithograph made from it (Plates IX and X, vol. I) perhaps show the building with a gabled roof, although it is difficult to tell which structures are depicted by Warre in the southeast corner of the fort. And, in any case, the painting of 1847-48 (Plate XVI, vol. I) and the 1860 photograph both clearly show a hipped roof. It seems safe to assume that the Bachelors' Quarters had a hipped roof during the 1845-46 period.

Although there appears to be no direct evidence on the point, it is also highly probable that the roof was shingled by that date. The shingles used and sold by the Hudson's Bay Company during 1845-46 were largely made by American settlers and by French-Canadian free men and were obtained by bartering clothing and supplies for them. [93] They were made of cedar, fir, and pine, and were purchased in large quantities, nearly 10,000 having been brought to the Vancouver depot from the Company's station at Willamette Falls during Outfit 1844. [94] Records for the early 1840s demonstrate conclusively that the usual shingle employed by the firm, at least on the cruder buildings such as salmon houses and sheep sheds, was a hand-split shake, thirty-six inches long. [95]

Lawyers for the Company attempted in 1866 to lead William H. Gray to testify that the shingles at Fort Vancouver were laid with four inches exposed to the weather ca. 1846, but he failed to give a direct reply of confirmation. [96] It hardly seems probable that thirty-six-inch shingles would have been laid with less than about twelve inches exposed. Thus, if the lawyers were correct, the shingles employed on major buildings were shorter. If the Coode watercolor sketch was accurate, the older structures seem to have had long shingles with a foot or more exposed, while the newer buildings, like the Big House, may have had shorter shingles with much less surface to the weather (see Plate XII, vol. I). The neatly shingled roofs in the 1860 photographs, on which the shingles do seem to have been laid with four inches to the weather, probably did not still carry the covering of 1845-46.

Incidentally, in case there should be a desire to exhibit bundles of shingles somewhere in the reconstructed fort, it might be noted that in 1846 the Company specified that those purchased should be "neatly packed in bundles of 250, and received by measurement--being, 20 inches in width, 2 shingles in length, and 25 rows of shingles at each end." [97] These bundles evidently were tied with "spunyarn Rope." [98]

The 1860 photograph shows that the Bachelors' Hall then could boast of a gutter, probably of metal, below the eaves across the entire front of the building. Five downspouts in that distance each emptied into a large barrel. There definitely was no gutter over the south end of the building, however, and the situation with regard to gutters over the remaining two walls is unknown.

Chimneys. The ca. 1847-48 painting by an unknown artist appears to show five tall, narrow chimneys rising from the eave line along the rear or east wall of the Bachelors' Quarters (see Plates XV and XVI, vol. I). On the other hand the 1860 photograph definitely reveals that by then there were four brick chimneys that emerged from the structure at the ridge of the roof. Whether the five earlier chimneys were still standing is not revealed.

Clearly a change of some sort was made in the heating arrangements between 1847-48 and May 1860, but no certain record of the time or nature of the alteration has yet been discovered. It is known that during Outfit 1852 the sum of $131.62-1/2 was paid for "building Chimneys in Fort," but whether this construction related to the Bachelors' Quarters or to other structures is not stated. [99]

Perhaps future archeological excavations on the site of Building No. 20 will produce additional information about chimney locations. If remains of brick hearths or chimney bases can be found, the types of bricks should indicate the relative ages.

Unless the archeological evidence is overwhelmingly to the contrary, however, it would seem that the testimony of the 1847-48 painting should be followed in locating and designing the chimneys for the 1845-46 period of reconstruction.

Doors. The Emmons ground plan of 1841 (Plate III, vol. I) pictures the Bachelors' Quarters with four symmetrically placed front entrances in the west wall. They opened onto the central courtyard of the fort. Although not indicated, there presumably were four rear doors giving access to a corresponding number of outhouses placed along the east palisade. By 1860, however, there were five doors spread along the front of the building. As will be seen by a study of the photograph, they were not spaced evenly. Two were adjacent to upright posts while three were well within bays but not centered.

Once more it is evident that changes had been made over the years, but no information as to the date or dates of the alterations has yet been uncovered. But there is certain evidence that might possibly throw light upon the matter. Richard Covington, who reached Fort Vancouver during the summer of 1846, draw a map of the post before the end of the year (Plate XIII, vol. I). On it he care fully placed six outhouses behind the Bachelors' Quarters. Thus, if both he and Emmons were accurate in this respect it is possible that the number of separate dwelling units in the Bachelors' Range had been increased between 1841 and 1846, probably by placing additional partitions in the interior. In this case, the number of front doors might well have been increased to five at the same time. There might be a relationship between the five chimneys shown in the 1847-48 painting and the five doors of 1860.

Although it is impossible to be certain on this point, it would seem to be safer for purposes of the reconstruction to assume that the five front doors as shown in the 1860 photograph were in place by 1845-46. An assumption of five doors for the rear wall would also seem reasonable.

The Provincial Archives of British Columbia contains a particularly clear and sharp print of the 1860 photograph. On two different occasions this writer has ordered copies of this print, but no matter how careful the expert photographers at the archives have been, the copies have lost detail in the reproduction. The following data on the doors, therefore, are based upon details noted during personal observation of the original print but that cannot be seen clearly in the photographs submitted with this report.

The doors are six-panel in design. The two middle panels are the tallest, the bottom two are the next tallest, while the top two are short, being slightly wider than they are high. The round door-knob on each seems to be on the left-hand side about opposite the center of the board between the two lower sets of panels.

The lights, or transoms, over the doors contain ten panes of glass arranged in two tiers of five each. Over the frame that surrounds each door-transom unit is a projecting drip board or flashing of some type.

In front of each door is a step or series of steps that project to form a shallow porch. There is one step in front of the northernmost door, two steps each in front of the next two doors toward the south, and three steps each in front of the two most southerly doors. As nearly as can be determined from the photograph, the steps seem to be formed of squared logs with board treads on top. The steps in front of the two southernmost doors are considerably wider than the doors, and all the steps seem to be the same length. In front of the third and fourth doors from the southern end, the bottom steps seem to be wider (north and south) than the top ones.

Large foot scrapers can be the first and fourth doors from the south may have a scraper at seen on the top steps at each side of the southern end. The third door from each side of the bottom step.

Windows. Lieutenant Charles Wilkes, commander of the United States Exploring Expedition, described the windows of his lodgings at Fort Vancouver in 1841 as "French" in style. [100] It is not certain that this reference to casement windows applied specifically to the clerks" quarters, but such very probably was the case. Yet the photograph of 1860 very clearly shows that the windows on the front of the Bachelors' Range, at least,were double-hung.

Ordinarily one would be inclined to give preference to the photo graphic evidence, but in this instance an interesting bit of testimony has recently come to light that would seem to support Wilkes. In 1879 former clerk George B. Roberts told Frances Fuller Victor that the only relics of Astoria in Washington Territory were "the old French windows in my old house [at] Cowlitz Farm." When windows were required for that residence, he continued, "they made new ones at Vancouver & sent the old ones there." [101] Roberts moved to Cowlitz Farm from Fort Vancouver during December 1846, but the date of the transfer of the windows has not yet been determined.

It seems quite reasonable to suppose that the windows from Astoria (renamed Fort George when taken over by the North West Company) were moved to Fort Vancouver after the former post was temporarily abandoned in 1825. Because window sash and glass panes were not easily procured on the frontier, those that had been acquired undoubtedly were used for a lengthy period of time at the depot. They could quite possibly have been installed in the Bachelors' Quarters building when it was constructed in 1838 and then sent to Cowlitz Farm when replacements became more readily available during the late 1840s or the 1850s. It is suggested, therefore, that the windows in the reconstructed Bachelors' Hall be of the French type.

Fortunately, the 1860 photographs provide clear views of the casement windows on the Big House and the Priests" House (Plates XXVIII and XXIX, vol. I). Several windows of this type survive at Fort Langley, but they cannot serve as models, at least without the exercise of great caution, because the central mullion seems to be a later addition. [102]

The 1860 photograph reveals that there were thirteen windows on the front of the Bachelors' Quarters. The southern three of these were sheltered by double louvered shutters in 1860, but whether or not there were shutters in 1845-46 is not known. It is possible to speculate that there were two or three windows in each of the north and south walls and perhaps as many as fifteen in the east wall.

Exterior finish. The 1860 photograph (Plate XLI) shows that the south wall of the Bachelors' Quarters was weatherboarded; it almost certainly was unpainted. The front wall clearly had no outer covering and was not painted. Probably the same conditions pertained with the north and east walls.

In 1860, at least, the trim around the doors and windows, and the window sash, including that over the doors, were painted white. The color of the doors and shutters is not known; probably they were Spanish brown. The gutters and at least some of the downspouts seem to have been painted a light color, perhaps white.

A careful study of the 1860 photograph seems to reveal no signs of chinking or caulking between the wall timbers at the north end of the Bachelors' Hall. Toward the south end light, narrow lines at joints and between timbers are visible at certain points. They may be evidence of caulking or simply projections hit by light. It is extremely difficult to be certain. At any rate, heavy thinking of the type so commonly employed on the Company's structures across much of Canada definitely is absent.

c. Interior finish and arrangement. The inventory of 1846-47 noted that the Bachelors' Quarters structure was lined and ceiled. [103] This description is confirmed by the few visitors who recorded their observations of the interior finish. W. H. Gray, though speaking of 1836, two years before the 1845-46-period Bachelors' Hall was built, said that the partitions in the houses "were all upright boards planed, and the cracks battened; floors were mostly rough boards." [104]

The French traveler, Duflot de Mofras, in 1841 found the dwellings of the clerks to be "a kind of barracks, where nothing recalls the comforts of the English." [105] This opinion was seconded by Assistant Surgeon Holmes of the U. S. Exploring Expedition, who during the same year described the houses of the clerks as being "of the plainest possible construction, unpainted." [106] The leader of the expedition was a bit more charitable. Though admitting that the interiors of the houses were "unpretending" and "simply finished with pine board panels, without any paint," he maintained that they were, on the whole, though plain, "as comfortable as could be desired." [107]

"I believe that the whole row was ceiled inside," swore Lloyd Brooke in 1866 when testifying as to the condition of Bachelors' Hall as he knew it in 1849. The floors, he added, were "rough." [108]

The import of this evidence seems clear. The rooms in the Bachelors' Quarters were lined, walls and ceilings, with unpainted, planed, fir boards. Probably the boards on the walls were placed vertically, and by 1838 battens may no longer have been used. The most common Company practice was to employ tongued and grooved boards, with beaded edges, for room lining. In all likelihood, the rooms much resembled the one in the York Factory Bachelors' Hall illustrated in Plate LXX in volume I of this report.

It is known that in 1849 the Bachelor's Range contained seventeen rooms. [109] Beyond that fact and the indication that the strangers room was at, or near, its north end, nothing certain is recorded concerning the internal room arrangement.

Lieutenant Warre wrote that when he and Lieutenant Vavasour were at the fort, "We had a private sitting room and a bedroom each." [110] It is not known for sure that these officers were lodged in the Bachelors' Quarters, but probably such was the case. Thus Warre s words might indicate that one of the separate "houses" in the row contained three rooms.

The number of dwellings in the range also is not clear. The five front doors, and the five chimneys shown in the 1847-48 painting, might indicate that there were five such units, each about thirty by thirty-two feet. But the uneven spacing of the doors probably eliminates the possibility of any such symmetrical arrangement, although not necessarily so, because one or more apartments could have been entered through interior doors, and at least one might have had two doors.

The inventories of "articles in use" might throw some light upon this question if one knew how to interpret them. One list under this general category in the 1844 inventory is headed "Bachelors Hall & No 1, 2, 3, 4, 5," The same list for 1845 is titled "Bachelors Hall &c Nos 1, 2, 3, 4, & 5." [111] The difficulty is that one does not know whether the name "Bachelors Hall" was used in its restrictive sense, that is to indicate a single room, or in the broader sense, meaning the entire building. In the former case, the heading might be inter preted to indicate that the entire structure contained the Bachelors' Hall proper and five separate dwelling units. In the latter case, the list would have covered the Bachelors' Quarters building and five other structures containing living quarters.

This writer is inclined to favor the former alternative, based upon the fact that the 1844 inventory mentioned above lists only fourteen beds, while that for 1845 lists only seventeen beds and five stoves. On the other hand, the 1848 inventory, which no longer contained the same "Bachelors Hall & No 1, 2, 3, 4, 5" heading but had a new one titled "Dwelling Houses and Mess Room," listed twenty-four beds and eleven stoves. [112] In other words, all the dwelling houses in the fort seem to have contained significantly more beds and stoves than the units designated "Bachelors Hall & No 1, 2, 3, 4, 5." Therefore, nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 probably were not dwellings outside the Bachelors' Quarters building. But, because many more "articles in use" in all categories are listed for 1848 than for earlier years, there may be no validity whatever to this reasoning.

Given the existing information, one can only surmise that the Bachelors' Quarters may have contained the following rooms or dwelling units: