Granville Street is a major street in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and part of Highway 99. Granville Street is most often associated with the Granville Entertainment District and the Granville Mall. This street also cuts through residential neighbourhoods like Shaughnessy and Marpole via the Granville Street Bridge. Location Granville Street runs generally north–south through the centre of Vancouver, passing through several neighbourhoods and commercial areas, differing appreciably in their land value and the wealth of their residents. Granville runs northeast–southwest: through Downtown Vancouver from the waterfront area (including Waterfront station) at West Cordova Street to Robson Street through a pedestrian-friendly area known as the Granville Mall with part of it formally designated as the Granville Entertainment District (ending at the Granville Street Bridge); here, numerous shops, restaurants, and the city's top dance clubs, bars and entertainment venues are located over the Granville Street Bridge over Granville Island (located under the bridge) Then, Granville Street runs north–south: through South Granville Rise, extending approximately from 4th Avenue to 16th Avenue, crossing West Broadway through Shaughnessy (from 16th Avenue to 41st Avenue) near Kerrisdale and Oakridge (Granville borders both neighbourhoods from 41st Avenue to 57th Avenue; unofficially, Kerrisdale begins at 33rd Avenue) through Marpole (from 57th Avenue to 70th Avenue; 70th Avenue becomes Southwest Marine Drive west of Granville) near the Fraser River, where it merges with another section of South-West Marine Drive Finally, Granville Street ends near the Fraser River at the approximate location of 72nd Ave., then merges with Southwest Marine Drive and continues southeasterly towards the Arthur Laing Bridge that leads to Richmond and the Vancouver International Airport. History 19th century The community was known as "Gastown" (Gassy's Town) after its first citizen - Jack Deighton, known as "Gassy" Jack. "To gas" is period English slang for "to boast and to exaggerate". In 1870, the community was laid out as the "township of Granville" but everybody called it Gastown. The name Granville honours Granville Leveson-Gower, 2nd Earl Granville, who was British Secretary of State for the Colonies at the time of local settlement. In 1886, it was incorporated as the city of Vancouver, named after Captain George Vancouver, who accompanied James Cook on his voyage to the West Coast and subsequently spent two years exploring and charting the West Coast. 20th century Towards the middle of the twentieth century, the downtown portion of Granville Street had become a flourishing centre