History of Graymor Cottage
Campbell River, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada
The Story of Graymor Cottage and Graymor Garden Cottage
 Dave & Edie Gillan on Edie's 92nd birthday in 1969 in the living room of Graymor Garden Cottage. |
They were dismayed when they arrived the next July to find that the logger had actually clear-cut the lot and there wasn’t a tree left standing. All the trees were on the ground. Not one to be deterred George set about clearing enough room to build the cabin. George was a forester with the US Forest Service and had built many cabins during his career. He began that summer and by the time they headed back to California in the fall the Morrisons had the shell of the cabin completed.
George knew that if he didn’t paint the cedar board & batten exterior of the building it would darken with age so he mixed up a concoction of gray paint, linseed oil and kerosene and when he and Mabel surveyed the results of their efforts with the painting, a lovely little gray cabin, they decided it needed a name. Many of the quaint cottages in Carmel have names and so it seemed only proper that this Campbell River cabin should also have a name. So, by combining the colour, “Gray”, with the first letters of their name, “Mor”, they christened their new summer home Graymor Cottage.
Over the next three decades the Morrisons completed the interior of the cabin, planted trees, built rockeries and made trails. Fruit trees were planted in 1942 and five of those trees are still bearing fruit 60 years later. A well was dug and eventually water from the Village became available. Many trips were made to Trevett’s Second Hand Store in Courtenay and the cabin was furnished with treasured pieces that are still in daily use. George built some wonderful tables and benches, even a cedar tea trolley complete with wheels. Light fixtures were fashioned from milk glass serving bowls and the cupboards had polished driftwood handles. A wood cookstove and a No. 14 Franklin heater that had been in the lobby of the Willows Hotel provided heat for the cabin. This Franklin heater was in use, with the help of replacement parts from Victoria Foundry, until the late 1970’s and now it sits proudly in a display case in the “Willows Hotel Exhibit” at the Campbell River Museum.
George and Mabel, during their stays at the Willows Hotel, became friends with Dave and Edie Gillan. The Gillans worked for the Isaac family, the owners of the Willows Hotel. Dave was the night desk clerk and Edie looked after the Isaac’s children. The Gillans were living in a small house near the hotel. As the story goes it seems Dave had applied for his pension as a veteran of the Boer War, however, in order to qualify he needed to own property in Canada. Well, George and Mabel had the perfect solution. Why not subdivide a little corner of the property, up by the highway, just big enough to build a small house? The Gillans would then own property and have their own home. In 1942 the Village of Campbell River didn’t have very many rules about subdividing or building so there was no problem in going forward with subdividing the property and building a new home for the Gillans. This new home is now known as Graymor Garden Cottage.
Morrison drew the plans for the cottage and with the help of a local carpenter he and Dave had the house nearly completed by the time the Morrisons headed back to California. Because it was wartime there was a shortage of new bricks and Edie was very disappointed to find that her fireplace was going to have to be made with used brick. In 1942 used brick was not the popular building material it is today and Edie was determined to make the fireplace look as new as possible. So, she painstakingly painted each and every brick in the fireplace and her handiwork remains to this day. She also had to wait for quite a while to get her new bathtub, the wonderful claw foot tub that is still in the bathroom of the cottage. A few years ago when the tub was turned over to be painted on the outside we discovered the date “June 1942” cast on the bottom.
As time went by both the Morrisons and the Gillans, all of whom had been in their 50’s when these building projects were undertaken, had reached their 80’s. The Morrisons were finding it difficult to make the trip from California and in 1966 they made one last journey, by bus, to their treasured summer home to find a buyer for the property. So, in the Fall of that year we (Wes and Joan Stephens) purchased the cabin and have made Graymor Cottage our home for the last 40 years. The Gillans were able to remain in their little house with the help of homemaker services and many friends until Dave had a stroke and was hospitalized and passed away in 1970. After Dave was gone Edie’s health deteriorated and she also needed care so she went into hospital and died in 1971. Both were in their 92nd year at the time of their deaths.
The Gillans estate went to Edie’s niece and nephew in California and as they did not want the house they agreed to sell us the property. And thus, in 1972, we became the owners of Graymor Garden Cottage. For nearly 15 years our very dear friend, Bill Smith, lived in the cottage and helped clear the property, dig the basement for the Garden Cottage and for the addition to Graymor Cottage, remodel the kitchen of the cottage, build a deck and new back porch and stairs, replace the roof with wonderful shakes and generally help out with chores of all kinds. After Bill moved in the mid 1980’s the cottage was home to a number of tenants. Three babies were conceived in the cottage and two of them, Eli (1993) and Anise (1997), spent the first four years of their lives there and brought us much joy and laughter during those times. The last baby, Aydon, was born in 2004 and still comes to visit with his mom.
From the early 1990’s Wes did some more renovations to the cottage. The bathroom was upgraded, a washer/dryer was installed and the dressing room was upgraded. A new back porch and stairs and a new deck were added and some windows were replaced in the living room. Then, in setting up for vacation rentals the attic area was finished with pine paneling and a folding staircase for access and now has very comfy twin beds for guests.
And, during this time, I began my work on the gardens. Bill Smith had done most of the clearing of snowberry, thimble berry and salmonberry bushes, Wes had cut down innumerable trees and dug, and dug, and then dug some more. Lawns had been planted and some areas were carefully left in their natural state so the pink erythronium lilies would survive. My efforts included creating flower beds on all three levels, planting specialty shrubs and perennials and filling planters with spring bulbs followed by bright red geraniums. From the first snowdrops in January, to the daffodils, bluebells and tulips in April and then all the lily of the valley and the perennial flowers of summer the gardens are a joy to work in and a treat for the eyes.
In May of 2004, with the help of Patty and Rick at Oceanfront B&B, we converted from monthly rental of the cottage to a Vacation Rental. This has been a wonderful experience for us. We have had the pleasure of meeting some wonderful people from many different parts of the world and have enjoyed sharing our garden and our cottage with them.
One of the things that delights many of our guests is the “Eagle Feeding” that takes place once or twice a day. We have a mated pair of bald eagles who have used the alder trees on the bank as their hunting tree for the past decade or so.
Wes makes regular forays hunting on their behalf and comes home with chicken backs, or turkey parts and many of our friends and neighbours donate meat that has lived too long in their freezers. In the summer the eagles usually arrive very early in the morning and very loudly announce their presence. If the birds are in the right mood and Wes throws the treat of the day at the right moment then these magnificent birds do a magnificent job of catching their snack in mid-flight. Sometimes they miss and then swoop down to grab it off the beach before the crows and seagulls beat them to it. You might also see our resident raccoons, particularly when the cherries are ripe. And, of course, we mustn’t forget Jett the Catt, who does his daily patrols of the gardens and will sometimes even allow himself to be petted by guests.
We welcome you to share our garden and hope you have a relaxing and enjoyable stay in Graymor Garden Cottage.