A Downtown West End Alley (Calgary)

In this then and now comparison we’re hanging around an alley in Calgary’s downtown west end. Admittedly it’s a strange beginning but we’re in search of a location seen in some old photos shared with us by a friend. There’s sure been a lot of change in the fifty some years since the originals were captured and this will be clearly demonstrated once you scroll down.

Everything on this block in the old photo is gone and forgotten. That row of houses is history and now condo towers have taken their place. We stood there open-mouthed in amazement at how in the span of a couple generations, it looks nothing like it did. In spite of all the development, a few of the buildings seen in the old photo still exist in the background and will be used to determine exactly where to stand. It’s sure a different scene today…

Into the 1980s there was a large single family dwelling residential neighbourhood in Calgary’s downtown west end and given the scene before you, that’s hard to fathom. Comprised of houses built as far back as the early 1900s, the area was quite run down and depressed by the the seventies. Even back then you could see the writing was on the wall and those towers in back were a precursor of what’s to come for this block.

There were lots of rental units and shared accommodations in the area. Many folks were transient and lived here short term. They roamed about, settled down for a time, before moving on again. Who as a poor and desperate young adult didn’t do that? Move in, pitch in what you can, and fingers crossed you get that job. There was always a bed, couch or bathtub at your disposal. Or a place to jam.

Everyone had a friend or friend of a friend in that part of town it seemed.

In such environments a communal lifestyle of sorts was often practised. Like it or not. Who ever bought it, shared it, and everyone expected the same of all roommates. This included food, smokes, clothing, vehicles and sometimes even the love of your life. Anything you had that the rest of the tenants lacked, was fair game.

These dwellings were often a place to party and given the comings and goings of all the people, no one really knew for sure who live there and who were visitors. The appearance of the house seen in theses old photos suggests something akin to what we described above. It looks like party central and a crash pad.

All the houses on this block vanished long ago (by 1984). Who knows if the truck is still around or the fellow exiting it. We don’t know who he is, but in chatting with the owner of the photos, it might be a roommate to the person who originally shot the images.

“The photographer is a friend of mine, still active as a Calgary musician. I purchased these slides before I met him (from his ex-girlfriend), it’s a rather long story. I believe he lived here at that time as a young artist.” – James Tworow.

Today there’s residential towers here. Lots of them, one after the other and each is taller than the next. More people live in this part of downtown than in the 1970s, but it’s higher density housing today. There’s a few older apartment buildings in the mix, but at the extreme west end of the core, expensive condos rule.

That’s a second gen 1953-56 era Ford F-Series pickup in the photos. Chris here, and my stepfather had one just like this at one time, only his was more junky and beat up!

“No Parking!” Probably not a problem there. One can’t help wonder of the treasures hidden inside that rickety old garage…a classic ride or some old Victorian era furniture…valuable Antiques Roadshow stuff? Probably just junk.

In the first comparison, a number of apartment and business towers are visible in the distance. They’re still here, but mostly blocked from view now. The thin sliver of one, Calgary Place West, shows in the Now photo. Just barely and we’ve highlighted it so it’s more obvious. When we posted a preview to this comparison on OTBPwC&C’s Facebook page recently, but without drawing attention to that same building in the Now photo, they called us daft.

We tried again, but with the building circled and the it ended better. Who’s crazy now?! Still, we had to explain: “The goal of these is to stand on the same exact place as the original photographer, and shoot from the same angle. No matter the outcome. Sometimes though, like here, connecting the two eras via buildings that appear in both photos is very subtle.”

To find the spot required a bit of planning. The location was confirmed using other old pictures showing the same house and garage from different angles in the alley (shared below), and in relation to other buildings still extant today. Then using aerial photos, we triangulated the position with decent accuracy.

Note the MGB car in the Then picture. At the time these tiny British sports cars (MGs and also the Triumph TR series) seemed quite popular in Cowtown, before giant F350 grocery getters became the norm. Cars made in the UK always seemed to suffer from reliability issues, especially here in cold, cold Canada, and it’s been forever since we saw one like it in the wild.

In some of the old shots, we see the view from the garage looking south. Note the AMC AMX in grey, which was that company’s muscle car of the era.

Keep an eye on the two buildings in back and while both still exist, one is now blocked from view by a C-Train station. For the other, only the top stories are visible. The balcony spacing and the utility room on the roof of that apartment block confirms it’s the same one in both shots. We could not line up a now shot well from this angle, thanks to a dumpster in the way.

There’s a Doors album and a couple from the Beatles in those record covers tacked to the garage wall, but the rest are unknown. Is that an old Singer sewing machine?

It’s incredible how much the west end of downtown has changed over time. The residential blocks at the fringe of the core, like here, are all quite modern. Most date from the 1970s or later and they usually replaced residential dwellings that once existed in this part of town. Interestingly, there’s still a few of these old houses in Calgary’s downtown west end, but only a handful. Most are occupied by businesses now.

The old houses seen in this post, while not in the best of shape, seemed to have a bit more character than the condos seen present day.

The Then photos are undated but elements within the scene tell us they’re likely from the mid to late 1970s. For example we know the HP building seen in the one image (tallest one, background, left) was opened in 1976, but probably topped out the year before. All other towers in view are a bit older. By 1978-ish, the skyline from this angle would have changed further with the addition of more towers in that direction.

That gives us about a three year window here, so from 1975ish to perhaps 1978. Give or take. That’s not really a lot of time, but still it seems like a totally different place.

We’d like to thank James Tworow for use of these old pictures and a bit of backstory. We had a blast making it! So people looked at us suspiciously as wandered about the alley as thought a pirate with a treasure map. What is a person to do? One pace this way, another that. Back up a bit, move to the right and there’s the X.

If you have an old photo showing a street scene like this, especially if something like what James supplied, and would like us to visit that spot to see what things look like today, send it to us. Photos must yours or be in the public domain, and can either be scans or paper originals (which we can return).

Know more about the area (new tab): Calgary Downtown West End History.

They’re saying…

“Chris and Connie have a unique way of documenting the places they visit, not copying the style or technique of others, but making it their own.” Alex Craig, Filmmaker.

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Bird’s Eye View Three Hills Alberta.

Something to say and no one to say it to? Go here: Contact Us!

Date of adventure: 1970s (original) & 2024.
Location: Calgary Downtown West End.
Article references and thanks: James Tworow, City of Calgary records and City of Calgary aerial photos.

The same alley in Calgary’s Downtown West End ~50 years apart.

The circled apartment block appears in the Then photo.

Not that long ago, there were many houses in the west end.

The Doors, the Beatles, a Singer(?) and an AMC AMX.

The person is unidentified.

We believe it’s the circled garage – image is from 1975.