4693 Drummond Dr

This Tudor Revival cottage was built in 1928 for Charles de Grandcourt and his second wife Bavven. Charles, was a distant descendant of French nobility and went by the title Baron.

Charles moved to Vancouver in 1912, and enlisted in the 29th Vancouver Battalion during the First World War. Charles married Patricia O’Connor in 1916 and after being injured at the front, he was sent to England to recover. After the war, he and Patricia spent time in the United States where he worked as a promoter for Fox Films. His marriage to Patricia ended in 1925.

Charles then returned to Vancouver and commissioned Dutch-born architect John A. Pauw to design a house at 4693 Drummond Drive. The contractor, Breton T. Lea is known for other Vancouver residences such as the James Residence, or “Hobbit House” on West King Edward Avenue. The Grandcourts later moved to Los Angeles where Charles continued to work in the film industry as a producer and writer for, among others, Alfred Hitchcock and David Selznick.

After Charles and Bavven’s departure, the house was occupied by the Baron’s widowed mother Celeste Hamer-Jackson. Born in France, she was a journalist in England before coming to Canada. She started a ranch in Alberta and was also a talented teacher, author and newspaper journalist. In Vancouver, she taught French at her own small private school, apparently operated from her home.

The house exhibits European Arts and Crafts features including handcrafted tilework, light fixtures, and a monumental rough granite fireplace. Tudor Revival cottage features include the cross-gabled roof, half-timbering, and diamond shaped leaded panes of glass. The current owners have updated the interior while retaining its heritage character.

Source

Vancouver Heritage Foundation 2018 Heritage House Tour guidebook