E.D. Alexander House
Place Description
The historic place is the one-and-one-half storey wood E.D. Alexander House built in 1919 in the California Bungalow style, and located at 768 DeHart Avenue in Kelowna's South Central neighbourhood.
Heritage Value
The heritage value of the E.D. Alexander House resides primarily from its architecture, and as being one of a series of residences along DeHart Avenue built in different periods of community development; and also for its association with residents who had varying levels of prominence in the Kelowna community.
The California Bungalow (or Craftsman Bungalow) took the West by storm in the second decade of the 20th century, promoted as an affordable residence that provided working person with access to home-ownership and which suited the regional lifestyle. The historic place is representative of that style, and helps to demonstrate how it took root in the Kelowna area. The primary characteristics of the Bungalow include its 1.5-storey gable-roof form, the broad front porch with its tapered wood columns, and the generous use of wood detail.
This house was built in 1919 for E.D. Alexander, who served as a school trustee in the late 1920s. In 1948 the house was owned by Leif and Velma Loken; Leif operated the Coffee Counter at 1465 Ellis Street. By 1956 it was owned by Leo and Johanna Degenhardt. Leo was an assistant at McGavin Bakeries and Johanna continued to reside there until at least 1983.
Character Defining Elements
- Large, mature evergreen trees in front yard seclude House
- Residential form, scale, and massing, expressed by 1.5-storey height and rectangular plan
- Medium-pitch gable roof
- Large open porch across the width of house, contained within the gable roof, with solid, shingle balustrade broad wide wood railing
- Clusters of 4-component tapered wood columns across the porch, with wood plinths and simple wood capitals supporting exposed wood beams
- Wood steps to porch
- Shingle-clad walls
- Tall red brick chimney
- 1-over-1 double-hung wood sash windows with plain, narrow, wood trim and 12-over-1 fixed-pane sash windows with wood trim
