Henderson House, Powell River
Big Dreams Come True!
The message from the Powell River heritage community is “don’t give up”. 
After six years of advocating for the protection of the Dr. Andrew Henderson house, the dream of restoring it for future generations is about to be realized with the Powell River Townsite Heritage Society’s purchase of the property. The house has been under threat of demolition for years.
The Society had been working behind the scenes with the owners, the Powell River Division of Catalyst pulp and paper, and finally, after countless discussions, they decided to sell. Rebecca Vincent, President of the Townsite Heritage Society says, “Dr. Henderson’s house is one of Powell River’s most historically important buildings, not only because it was the first house built in the company-owned town in 1911, but because a remarkable pioneer lived in the house.” It will be an enormous labour of love to restore and protect this treasure, and the end result will be a perfect complement to Historic Powell River, designated a National Historic District in 1995.
After sitting empty and boarded up for over seven years, the first order of business has been organizing volunteer work parties to help clear away garbage and overgrown vegetation so that the job of assessing the exterior and interior structures for restoration can begin. While preliminary stages of restoration have begun, for now it is just to stabilize the house, reconnect services and stem the progression of further decay until a conservation architect can assess the house and guide us in the delicate and detailed process of bringing Dr. Henderson’s house back to its former magnificence.
A copy of the blueprint for the 1920 addition to the house, which became the adjoining office for Dr. Henderson, has been provided by the Powell River Museum and will help tremendously in recreating the original state of structural and interior design standards. The blueprint drawing annotations shine a light on the past, revealing the use of decorative molding, wooden panels, location of doorways incorporated into walls, fenestrations, and classic Arts & Crafts design in the small roofs over the exterior doors. The piece of the puzzle that is missing, however, is an accurate layout of the main part of the house.
A key step for securing heritage restoration grants, and keeping the attention of the provincial and/or national heritage community, is having Henderson House added to the City of Powell River’s Heritage Register. Ann Nelson, Society Vice-President, has written the requisite Statement of Significance, and a request for inclusion on the Powell River Community Heritage Register has been made. Contacts are also being renewed with local businesses ready to volunteer their services to this great project. With the green light now on, they have been re-secured as we move into implementation of Phase One.
Besides providing a permanent home for the Townsite Heritage Society, the restored Henderson House will help us to accomplish some other long-term goals: a collaborative demonstration project with the Powell River campus of Vancouver Island University for heritage restoration carpentry training; a Townsite Interpretive Centre; and a medical museum that showcases the historic importance of Dr. 
Henderson and his work in the community. Other opportunities are sure to emerge as the project evolves.
