Geography Building

Location:

1984 West Mall

Date:

1924-25: original construction
1970s: Completely rebuilt interior.
2013: Drainage, envelope, exterior painting, roof, and seismic upgrades

Architect:

Provincial Department of Public Works

Cost:

Total cost for all nine semi-permanent buildings $500,000.

Sources of funds:

B.C. Government loan

Use history:

Originally housed Geology, Civil Engineering, Zoology, Forestry, Botany.
Currently houses Geography, Geographic Information Centre, GEO-Pit Lounge.

Name history:

Originally - Applied Science Building
Renamed Forestry and Geology in 1951.

Architectural features:

Structure: Wood posts, girders and beams throughout.
Floors: Foundation - Concrete slab on grade; Ground and First Floors - wood joists, concrete suspended slab
Exterior Walls: Foundation - cast-in-place walls; Ground and First Floors - wood stud walls with stucco, cedar shiplap, laths on both sides, and plaster
Interior Walls: Foundation - Cast-in-place walls; Ground and First Floors - Lath and plaster on both sides of wood stud walls with plywood sheathing on hallway and lecture room walls.
Windows: All windows fixed with wood frame and no glazing.
Roof: Wood joist roof overlain by 2"x4" stud walls with cedar shiplap, roofing asphalt, and a 6mil polyethylene vapor barrier.

Notes:

On 6 February, 1970, a bomber set off a stick of dynamite in Prof Jim Clause’s office and caused damage to the roof and the ceiling of a laboratory below.The bombing was the third of three bombings across campus in a four week period, the others were in the Mathematics Building and Brock Hall. The reason for the bombs and the bomber were never discovered. Later in the year several sticks of dynamite were found on top of the administration building

Sources:

Thompson, Berwick, Pratt; "Terrorism in Canada 1960-1989" - ISBN: 0-662-18303-7; The Province; Vancouver Sun; "A life cycle analysis of the Geography Building" by Hosseini, Zahra DOI:10.14288/1.0108744.

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