• Summer in the Village of Ladner
• Tranquille Sanitarium
• My Nautical Item The Beaver
• Sources of Maps on the Internet
• My Website Re-invented
• Heritage Walking Tour for Delta Museum
• B.C. Gazette
• Found Items
• Notice re Links
• Subscription, Privacy Policy

Ha! Before we know it, summer will be gone. But in the meantime, let us enjoy what we get in the way of sunshine and flowers.

I have decided to continue being a vendor at the Ladner Village Market during August, so, if you haven't yet made it down, I look forward to seeing you on either Sunday, August 12 or Sunday, August 26 (or both). As a new venture this year, I've been selling local postcards (images of Ladner and Delta), and have learned how weather, especially bad weather (make that "rain") affects people's predisposition to shop for such items. However, I have persevered, and have been pleasantly surprised by people's choices.

Reminder: I will be drawing for the copy of "Above the Sandheads" at the end of the Market. Purchasing a book, any book, from me at the Market qualifies one to be entered in the draw.

Tranquille Sanitarium

Anyone who has done any amount of research on individuals in British Columbia has encountered the name "Tranquille" where people were sent after they had been diagnosed with tuberculosis (I don't think it was still being referred to as "consumption" by this time).

I came across this item, in The Delta Times, 30 July 1907, page two, under "Ottawa Letter":

"Tranquille or Fortune ranch, nine miles west of Kamloops, will be the scene of the first sanitarium instituted by the anti-tuberculosis society of the province. The action of the board of directors in locating the institution at this point is due to a report of a committee of which Dr. Fagan was the chairman."

My Nautical Item

I've included the following without comment, being of the belief that someone somewhere will find this useful. Both items come from The Daily Columbian, 1892.

1. 13 June, page one:

"The Beaver Gone ð It is hardly likely now that the str. Beaver, the pioneer steamship of the Pacific Ocean, will be taken to the Chicago fair. The wreck of this interesting old craft has been lying on the rocks at the entrance to the first narrows, Vancouver, for a year or two, and has stood the gales and waves right nobly until yesterday morning. The backwash from the str. Yosemite rolled into the gap in her side, struck the boiler, which turned over and slipped overboard, and the old vessel, being thus lightened, suddenly careened and pitched headforemost into the depths below a fitting grave for the pioneer steamship of the great Pacific."

2. 30 September, page four, under "Local and Provincial":

"The wreck of the old steamer, Beaver, at the entrance to Vancouver harbor, has almost entirely disappeared beneath the axe and saw of the tireless relic-hunter. Only the heavy machinery is left, and that is almost entirely hidden at high water. Even that would be confiscated if it could easily be converted into the fantastic and usually useless designs dear to the relic hunter's heart. With few exceptions, the whole of the wood taken from the wreck has been in a good state of preservation."

Sources of Maps on the Internet

I've had this item scheduled for inclusion for some time. Since I'm only now getting back to using maps, I'll pass it along here.

I started out at the Hargrett Library Rare Map Collection at the University of Georgia, but found one of the links more useful for my interest in B.C., namely Map History / History of Cartography: THE Gateway to the Subject.

There is lots to explore here, but I was practical this one time and clicked on the listing for "Canada" under "IMAGES OF EARLY MAPS ON THE WEB". There I found some excellent resources, including links to U. B. C. Special Collections and to B. C. Archives Cartographic Records. For researchers of Ontario history, there is a link to the Canadian County Atlas Digital Project.

By way of editorial comment, I would have to say that this site appears to be completely justified in calling itself "THE Gateway..."

Website Reinvented

My website underwent a "make-over" last month, and I'm very pleased with the result. Not that there was anything shabby about the first effort, but I had learned considerable about website design over the past 1 1/2 years and realized that we could do better.

Architect of the new product (as well as the old) is Lester Jones, of Jones Maps & Diagrams, the cartographer / graphic artist who looks after the layout and design of my books. I hope to add some new features in the future, such as an archive for past issues of this newsletter, but those will probably not happen until sometime in 2002.

Anyway, if you haven't visited in the last month or so, please have a look. This link will take you there, Delta History, Heritage and Genealogy. I welcome comments.

Walk, Walk, and Talk, Talk Saturday, August 18th

Last year I led a walk along Arthur Drive in Ladner for the Delta Museum and Archives. Except for losing my voice because of the volume of traffic on that street on a Saturday afternoon, I had a good time, and assume (and hope) that the 20 + people who showed up also got something out of it.

The walk was called "Beyond Ladner's Landing", borrowing the title of my second book, which covers that neighbourhood. The aim is to explore a part of Ladner other than the original village of the late 19th century.

In any event, Delta Museum and Archives has asked me to do it again on Saturday, August 18th. This year's tour will start at Memorial Park on 47th Avenue in Ladner and take in a different residential area.

The cost per person is $6, and the Museum requests pre-registration by calling 946-9322. Refreshments will be available in Memorial Park at the end of the walk, which usually takes an hour and a bit.

B. C. Gazette

Having discovered this gold mine of information, which I reported on in the last issue of this newsletter, I will try to pass along some items found therein that might be useful to researchers, starting with an item from the 1886 index:

"COMPANIES INCORPORATED:

• British Columbia Stationery and Printing Company
• Brunette Saw Mill Company
• Douglas Lake Cattle Company
• Foster Gold Mining and Milling Company
• Miller Grove Dairy Company
• Nanaimo Gas Company
• New Westminster Gas Company
• Scotch Creek Mining Company
• Steadman Quartz Mining Company
• Vancouver Gas Company
• Vancouver Wharfage and Storage Company
• Vancouver Co-operative Wood and Coal Company
• Westminster Woollen Manufacturing Company."

From "Missing Links" dated 03 July 2001

I am including this item here with the permission of the original submitter:

• Found in a letter-case sold at auction in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada sometime before 1975: teacher's certificate, employer references, blotter with several letters, and 22 family photographs pertaining to Annie Amelia AVERY (born about 1858) of England (some places mentioned are: Ramsgate, Swindon, Shoreham by Sea, and Southborough). There is also an autograph book (dates 1896-1900) belonging to Elsie Maude WITHERS of Sandown, England, but I cannot be sure if the autograph book is related to the Annie Amelia AVERY materials. If you are related to either (or both) women, please e-mail me providing additional family information to prove your connection. I would like to reunite these materials with family members.

Claire Smith-Burns <claireburns@telus.net>

Notice

If you are a new subscriber, and have received the back issues of this newsletter, you should note that some of the links may or may not be in service. Since these things age on their own time, I take responsibility for ensuring that the links are good at the time that I create the newsletter, but I don't periodically check those links.

Something to Think About

Here's another gem that I found in The [Delta] Optimist, 15 June 1939:

"Always look on the bright side of things; but if you are buying them, it's well to look on both sides."

Looking for suggestions

If you have an issue that you would like to know more about, send me an e-mail, and let me know what it is.

In answer to a question put to me about the newsletter, yes, you can tell where I'm researching at the moment by some of the items that appear here. At UBC I'm reading the Daily Columbian (published in New Westminster) for the early 1890s, and at the Delta Museum and Archives I'm finishing reading the Ladner Optimist for 1939 (and getting a sense of the community at the beginning of World War Two). From none of that would it be obvious that I'm working on my next book, which will be about Tsawwassen.

Privacy

Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone. If you wish to unsubscribe, let me know by e-mail.

Gwen Szychter, M.A.

P.S. Here's a favour you can do for me: If you liked this newsletter and found it helpful or just interesting, please pass it on to a friend or colleague. Thank you.

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