Industrial Girls School

Designed by A. Arthur Cox and built between 1912-1914, the building is in the Mission Revival style. Known as the Terra Vita residential complex today, the semi-rural estate was originally the Girls Industrial School. Associated with the 1908 federal Juvenile Delinquency Act, the detention home has a history of social trauma. Opened in 1914 under the superintendency of Thomas Collier of the Salvation Army, the school taught girls homemaker skills like cooking, cleaning, and sewing. The building served in its original capacity until 1959, when the school was transferred to a new site in Burnaby. The building was then converted to office space for provincial departments. The estate was converted into 88 townhomes in 1995 by Unified Properties.
The original architect, A. Arthur Cox, designed buildings throughout Canada, mainly in Montreal, Quebec, L.A., and Vancouver. He also designed the Edgett Building at 440 Cambie Street, and the Carter-Cotton (AKA the Pacific) building.

Source

Vancouver Heritage Inventory Summary Report Phase II 1986, VHF Files, http://historicalstudiesineducation.ca/index.php/edu_hse-rhe/article/view/350/42

More information

https://historicalstudiesineducation.ca/index.php/edu_hse-rhe/article/view/350/427