The Historic Coroner's Services and City Analyst Laboratory
The VPMA is housed in the historic Vancouver City Coroner's Services and Analyst Laboratory. Between 1932-1996 many of Vancouver's most famous cases were investigated within the walls of this building. Explore bellow to learn more about each of the different rooms within this historic space!
Coroner's Courtroom
Inquests into sudden deaths were conducted in this very courtroom for the city of Vancouver (1932-1968) and then for all of BC (1969-1980).
Morgue
Before and after autopsies, bodies being investigated by the coroner were kept in the freezers located in this morgue. In cases of mass death, the overflow morgue, located two floors bellow this room, was used (1932-1980).
Autopsy Suite
Autopsies were conducted in this room by pathologists during a death investigation (1932-1980). While there was always two autopsy tables in this room, usually only one autopsy at a time would have been done due to the smell.
The City Analyst Laboratory
This lab is one of the earliest forensic built labs in north America, built in 1932. The City Analysts conducted water and food testing for the city along with all forensic work for the VPD and other policing agencies. The lab closed in 1996 because they could not outfit it for DNA testing.