The Move to Rosebank

There is some confusion over exactly when the Irvines moved to Rose Bank from Craigflower; we are positing that it may have been a gradual process. The issue arises because Bill Irvine, the family's current pseudo-official historian, notes that the move was planned for 1861, but a harsh winter forced a delay until spring 1862. However, many other sources refer to events at Rose Bank taking place before 1862, particularly in reference to the Anglican congregation using the Irvines' buildings for services. Danda Humphreys, in her popular Times Colonist column "On the street where you live" writes that the first Sunday service was held at Rose Bank in 1860, and on subsequent Sundays had to move to the barn from the kitchen due to overcrowding. On the St. Luke's parish website, Geoffrey Castle writes that the first church was constructed in 1862 after a total of 29 services at the Irvine property. One possible explanation is that as John Irvine was preparing his farm (recall he acquired the land in 1857) for his family to move in, he allowed the empty buildings to be used for services by his soon-to-be neighbours, but that he and Jessie decided that their new home was not quite fit to move their young family in yet.

Sources: W.J. Irvine, Irvines in Victoria BC since 1851, 37; Danda Humphreys, "The house where Long Gun Jack lived" Victoria Times Colonist, 26 April 1998, Islander 3; Geoffrey Castle, St. Luke's Built When Saanich Was For Missionaries (2003).