Nationalist League Building

This building was designed in 1920 by Scottish architect, William Edwardes Sproat. Born in Glasgow in 1878, he emigrated to Vancouver in 1912 to pursue work. For this project, Sproat introduced contextual features to the concrete, brick-faced structure, with arches that were originally open with recessed balconies. There was a Chinese pagoda-style turret at the corner, which has since been removed.

It was built as the Western headquarters of the Chinese Nationalist League, or The Kuomintang, which was founded in 1905 by Dr. Sun Yat-Sen. The construction costs were financed by Chinese Canadians inspired by his vision of a democratic China and lives on to symbolize the aspirations of the Chinese community in Vancouver.

Source

VHF's Chinatown Map Guide