Thompson Rooming House

Gastown is the historic core of Vancouver, and is the city's earliest, most historic area of commercial buildings and warehouses. Built for Dr. Alfred Thompson, the Thompson Rooming House is valued as an early Gastown hotel, representative of the area's seasonal population in the early twentieth century, as Vancouver emerged as western Canada's predominant commercial centre. Hotels such as this provided both short and long-term lodging, serving primarily those who worked in the seasonal resource trades such as fishing and logging. Many of these hotels had combined functions of commercial services on the ground floor and lodging rooms on the upper floors, which contributed to the lively street life in Gastown. This building is clearly articulated by function, with a commercial lower floor, and hotel use on the upper floors.

The Thompson Rooming House is valued for its architecture as a fine example of the Edwardian style from the early twentieth century, illustrating how popular architectural styles were used by the hotel business to market a progressive image. It is significant as an early design in Vancouver by architects Sharp and Thompson, who had established their Vancouver practice in 1908. Both trained in London, England, G.L.T. Sharp (1880-1974) and C.J. Thompson (1878-1961) were among the few in Vancouver at the time with architectural credentials, and they brought a sophistication to this building that is typical of their work. The year this building was designed they won the open competition for the new University of British Columbia. It was designed as an identical block to the adjacent Des Brisay Block, built the previous year.