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BCER Burnaby Lake Line
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/landmark760
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Associated Dates
- 1911
- Heritage Value
- The Burnaby Lake Line was constructed due to the advocacy of Burnaby residents and the Municipality of Burnaby to build the line. A petition was circulated by residents in 1907, and eventually substantial land bonuses were given to the company to induce them to build the line. Property owners in the area hoped the construction of the line would increase their land values. Construction of the 15-mile line was announced in 1909, and the line opened in 1911. The line travelled from Vancouver to New Westminister through central Burnaby.The last day of service was October 23, 1953. When the Trans Canada highway was constructed in the 1960s, it followed the right of way of the Burnaby Lake Line through Burnaby.
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Burnaby Lake (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Burnaby Lake Area
Images
Burnaby Lake Neighbourhood
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/landmark700
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Associated Dates
- 1925-1954
- Heritage Value
- After World War I and the Great Depression of the 1930s, more homes were constructed and subdivisions created in the Burnaby Lake district. The area around Deer Lake gained a reputation for being an "artistic development of commodious homes with park-like grounds."
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Burnaby Lake (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Burnaby Lake Area
Images
Burnaby Lake Neighbourhood
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/landmark821
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Associated Dates
- 1955-2008
- Heritage Value
- In 1966 Burnaby Lake was identified as a key potential regional park in the GVRD ’s Regional Park Plan for the Lower Mainland. The lake was to be developed for nature study, strolling, trail riding, canoeing, sightseeing and picnicking. It was formally recognized as a regional nature park in 1979, at which time the GVRD assumed management of the park through a lease agreement with the City of Burnaby. In 1993 Burnaby Lake was selected by the City of Burnaby to be included in Greater Vancouver ’s Green Zone, and was identified as a key component of the GVRD ’s Park and Outdoor Recreation System (PORS) for the Burrard/Peninsula/Richmond sector, which includes Burnaby, Vancouver, New Westminster, and Richmond.
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Burnaby Lake (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Burnaby Lake Area
Images
Mortimer-Lamb House
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/landmark494
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Description
- The Mortimer-Lamb House is a one and one half-storey, Arts and Crafts-style residence with a steeply pitched, side-gabled roof. The original cottage form has been enlarged with a later addition on the west side of the house. Located next to the Burnaby Lake Regional Park Wildlife Rescue Care Centre…
- Associated Dates
- c.1922
- Formal Recognition
- Community Heritage Register
- Other Names
- Harold & Katherine Mortimer-Lamb Residence
- Street View URL
- Google Maps Street View
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Other Names
- Harold & Katherine Mortimer-Lamb Residence
- Geographic Access
- Glencarin Drive
- Associated Dates
- c.1922
- Formal Recognition
- Community Heritage Register
- Enactment Type
- Council Resolution
- Enactment Date
- 26/05/2003
- Description
- The Mortimer-Lamb House is a one and one half-storey, Arts and Crafts-style residence with a steeply pitched, side-gabled roof. The original cottage form has been enlarged with a later addition on the west side of the house. Located next to the Burnaby Lake Regional Park Wildlife Rescue Care Centre, the house has picturesque views of Burnaby Lake.
- Heritage Value
- Built circa 1922, the Mortimer-Lamb House is valued for its association with first owners, Harold Mortimer-Lamb (1872-1970), and his wife, Katherine Mary Mortimer-Lamb (1873-1939). Born in Leatherhead, Surrey, England, Harold Mortimer-Lamb immigrated to Canada in 1889. Seven years later in Vancouver, he married Katherine Mary Lindsay, a native of Winnipeg. Mortimer-Lamb was a key figure in the B.C. mining industry, serving as Secretary of the Mining Association of B.C. between 1900 and 1945, and also as the Secretary of the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. In addition to his professional life, Mortimer-Lamb was a pioneer art photographer and was among Canada's leading art critics, and this house served as a central gathering place for renowned Canadian artists of the day. Mortimer-Lamb’s daughter, Molly Lamb Bobak (born 1922), became a renowned watercolourist, and was the only woman ever hired as an official Canadian war artist. The Mortimer-Lamb House is a significant example of the work of noted architect, Samuel Maclure (1860-1929) and his partner, Ross Lort (1889-1969). Maclure, who was a close friend of the Mortimer-Lamb family, was British Columbia's leading residential architect, and was renowned for his high quality designs for prominent citizens in both Vancouver and Victoria. Maclure was a leading exponent of the Art and Crafts design movement in B.C., and established a sophisticated local variation of residential architecture. The Mortimer-Lamb House was designed at the time when Maclure was in partnership with Ross Lort. In 1907, Lort began working for Maclure's firm as a draftsman, and by 1920 was in charge of Maclure's Vancouver office. Lort's architectural career spanned some sixty-years, and he designed some of the province's most familiar houses, apartments, institutions and places of worship. The Mortimer-Lamb House is also a significant local example of the Arts and Crafts style, and incorporates elements such as board-and-batten siding on the ground floor, shingled gables and leaded casement windows. It is a testament to the domestic architecture built outside of established suburbs during the post-First World War era, typically modest in scale and representative of middle-class residential ideals.
- Defining Elements
- Key elements that define the heritage character of the Mortimer-Lamb House include its: - treed setting with views of Burnaby Lake - residential form, scale and massing as expressed by its one and one-half storey height, rectangular plan and steeply pitched side-gabled roof - wood-frame construction - Arts and Crafts elements such as board-and-batten siding on the ground floor, cedar shingles in the gables and open soffits - original straight-leaded casement windows in single and multiple-assembly - internal red-brick chimney with corbelled cap
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Burnaby Lake (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Burnaby Lake Area
- Organization
- Mining Association of B.C.
- G.F. and J. Galt Limited
- Architect
- Samuel Maclure
- Ross Lort
- Function
- Primary Historic--Single Dwelling
- Primary Current--Single Dwelling
- Community
- Burnaby Lake
- Cadastral Identifier
- P.I.D.002-977-788
- Boundaries
- The Mortimer-Lamb House is comprised of a single residential lot located at 5180 Glencairn Drive, Burnaby.
- Area
- 5652.78
- Contributing Resource
- Building
- Ownership
- Private
- Documentation
- City of Burnaby Planning and Building Department, Heritage Site Files
- Street Address
- 5180 Glencarin Drive
- Street View URL
- Google Maps Street View
Images
Stanley & Isabel Picken House 'Aintree'
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/landmark519
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Description
- Nestled within a stand of deciduous trees, the Stanley and Isabel Picken House 'Aintree' is a two and one-half storey plus basement shingled and half-timbered Arts and Crafts influenced residence, set on its original 0.6 hectare site adjacent to Brunette Creek in the Burnaby Lake Regional Nature Pa…
- Associated Dates
- 1929
- Formal Recognition
- Heritage Designation, Community Heritage Register
- Street View URL
- Google Maps Street View
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Geographic Access
- Cariboo Road
- Associated Dates
- 1929
- Formal Recognition
- Heritage Designation, Community Heritage Register
- Enactment Type
- Bylaw No. 11756
- Enactment Date
- 09/08//2004
- Description
- Nestled within a stand of deciduous trees, the Stanley and Isabel Picken House 'Aintree' is a two and one-half storey plus basement shingled and half-timbered Arts and Crafts influenced residence, set on its original 0.6 hectare site adjacent to Brunette Creek in the Burnaby Lake Regional Nature Park.
- Heritage Value
- 'Aintree' is an example of the type of private country estate residences built in Burnaby outside of the established suburbs during the 1920s, and is representative of middle-class residential life during this time. Stanley Boyd Picken (1890-1950) and Isabel Grace Frederique Picken (1893-1971) purchased this property in 1927 to establish the Aintree Dog Kennels, which was the first in the province to breed Irish Setters. This country residence was completed in 1929. Stanley Picken worked at a variety of other jobs including his position as keeper of the Brunette River Caribou Dam. Considered a fine example of romantic architecture, 'Aintree' stands in harmony with its woodland setting. The north wing was added in a compatible style in 1932 using former bridge support beams from the old Caribou Road Bridge for foundation support. 'Aintree' retains most of its original exterior elements including its picturesque shingled siding and half-timbering, demonstrating the late influence of an Arts and Crafts sensibility considered compatible with a country lifestyle.
- Defining Elements
- Key elements that define the heritage character of 'Aintree' include its: - woodland setting adjacent to Brunette Creek in the Burnaby Lake Regional Nature Park, with a deep setback from Cariboo Road - residential form, scale and massing as exemplified by its asymmetrical two and one-half storey plus basement height and irregular U-shaped plan - romantic Arts and Crafts influence as expressed in elements such as half-timbering on the upper storeys and hand-split cedar shake wall cladding - steeply pitched cross-gabled roofs with dormers connected by a lower central gabled roof, and 'cat slide' extension over side entry - regular fenestration, including wooden-sash casement windows with diamond leaded glass - red brick internal chimney with corbelled cap - associated landscape features, such as a curving driveway leading to the house, an early garage, grassed yard and a backdrop of mature deciduous trees
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Burquitlam (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Burnaby Lake Area
- Function
- Primary Historic--Single Dwelling
- Community
- Burnaby
- Cadastral Identifier
- 010-867-147
- Boundaries
- 'Aintree' is comprised of a single residential lot located at 6825 Cariboo Road, Burnaby.
- Area
- 5436.75
- Contributing Resource
- Building
- Ownership
- Private
- Names
- Picken, Stanley
- Street Address
- 6825 Cariboo Road
- Street View URL
- Google Maps Street View
Images
Interview with Bob Lowe 2005 - Track 6
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription4498
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Date
- 1930-1949 (interview content), interviewed May 2005
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 sound recording (mp3) (0:05:45 min)
- Scope and Content
- Track 6: This portion of the recording pertains to Bob’s feelings about Burnaby as a place to live, and continues the subject of change. Bob talks of his property in Burnaby, which he purchased as acreage. He compares the Burnaby of his childhood to that of pioneers such as Tommy Irvine, describing…
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum fonds
- Series
- Museum Oral Histories series
- Subseries
- Growing Up in Burnaby subseries
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 sound recording (mp3) (0:05:45 min)
- Material Details
- Interviewer: Tom Gooden Interviewee: Bob Lowe Date of interview: May 2005 Total Number of Tracks: 6 Total length of all Tracks: 0:43:36
- Scope and Content
- Track 6: This portion of the recording pertains to Bob’s feelings about Burnaby as a place to live, and continues the subject of change. Bob talks of his property in Burnaby, which he purchased as acreage. He compares the Burnaby of his childhood to that of pioneers such as Tommy Irvine, describing himself as a relative newcomer. He speaks of the preservation of the Deer Lake and Burnaby Lake areas. Bob describes his disorientation in the more newly densified parts of Burnaby, and observes that traffic has increased on Burnaby streets. Bob recalls that he mostly travelled on foot or by bike. He notes that the Neville Transport Company operated the school bus he used as well as the only North-South bus route in Burnaby at that time. He mentions Pacific Stage Lines as a later operator through Burnaby.
- History
- Recording of an interview with Bob Lowe recording by Tom Gooden in 2005. This recording was completed for an exhibit, Growing Up in Burnaby, for the Burnaby Village Museum. Major themes discussed are growing up in Burnaby in the 1930s and 40s.
- Creator
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Geographic Access
- Burnaby Lake
- Deer Lake
- Accession Code
- BV017.45.6
- Access Restriction
- No restrictions
- Reproduction Restriction
- May be restricted by third party rights
- Date
- 1930-1949 (interview content), interviewed May 2005
- Media Type
- Sound Recording
- Notes
- Tiltle based on cotents of item
Audio Tracks
Interview with Bob Lowe 2005 - Track 6, 1930-1949 (interview content), interviewed May 2005
Interview with Bob Lowe 2005 - Track 6, 1930-1949 (interview content), interviewed May 2005
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_BVM_Sound_Recordings/Oral_Histories/2017_0045_0006_006.mp3Interview with Joe Sadowski, 2017
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription5115
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Date
- June 16, 2017
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 sound recording (mp3) (01:46.06 min)
- Scope and Content
- Recording is an interview with Joe Sadowski conducted by Burnaby Village Museum employee Rebeca Salas, June 16, 2017. Major themes discussed: the history of the Burnaby Park Advisory Association and the Group of Ten, and the ongoing conservation of Burnaby Lake. 00:00 – 3:05: Joe discusses his inv…
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum fonds
- Series
- Museum Oral Histories series
- Subseries
- Museum research interviews subseries
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 sound recording (mp3) (01:46.06 min)
- Material Details
- Interviewer: Rebeca Salas Interviewee: Joe Sadowski Date of interview: June 16, 2017 Total Number of Tracks: 1 Total Length of all Tracks: 1:46:06
- Scope and Content
- Recording is an interview with Joe Sadowski conducted by Burnaby Village Museum employee Rebeca Salas, June 16, 2017. Major themes discussed: the history of the Burnaby Park Advisory Association and the Group of Ten, and the ongoing conservation of Burnaby Lake. 00:00 – 3:05: Joe discusses his involvement with the Association from its early days in the late 1960s. He describes the formation of the group, its original intentions, and its changing focus. 3:05 - 5:54: Joe recalls how the group decided to further their purpose by involving the public, and the rationale behind building a trail system. He explains how the Burnaby Outdoor Education Association was formed and describes its activities. 5:54 – 9:20: Joe relates how the Association was able to access federal funding for the trail. He shares his perspective about local businesses having changed their priorities since that time. 9:20 – 13:31: Joe discusses how the group expanded its base, and why it changed its name to the Burnaby Lake Advisory. He explains how the trail system came to be under the jurisdiction of Metro Parks, and why the name was changed to the Burnaby Lake Park Association. He describes the shift in the group’s composition and responsibilities. 13:31 – 17:06: Rebeca notes that the museum is interested in the reasons for the group coming together in the 1960s. Joe describes how the group’s plans regarding the lake informed their subsequent activities there. He talks about the changing attitude to pollution in the 1970s. 17:06 - 22:05: Joe describes what Burnaby Lake was like in the 1960s. He discusses its importance to migrating birds, and talks about the improvement to Still Creek. 22:05 – 29:48: Joe talks about the big Burnaby Lake Clean Up. He notes that the public’s changing attitudes have made further large clean-ups unnecessary. 29:48 – 32:00: Joe talks about the work of the Eagle Creek Streamkeepers, the Sapperton Fish and Game Club, The Semiahmoo Rod and Gun Club, and the Hyde Creek Watershed Society. He observes that game clubs have broader interests now than sport alone. 32:00 – 37:37: Joe discusses the return of salmon to the lake, the improvement in the quality of water, and the increased numbers of birds. He shares his perspective that the relationship of the public to the lake changed as visitors began to take ownership. 37:37 – 39:30: Joe talks about the importance of leadership in conservation efforts, discussing how Bob Gardner and Elmer Rudolph inspired people to become involved. He describes the positive results of volunteering. 39:30 – 41:48: Asked what he feels has made the biggest difference in improving the health of the lake, Joe describes the change in the attitude of the public and contrasts this new environmental awareness with that of people in other parts of the world. 41:48 – 47:46: Joe discusses the importance of the buffer zone, and of giving students the opportunity to be involved in efforts to remove invasive species and plant native ones. 47:46 – 56:10: Joe talks about the nesting box program. He notes that interacting with wildlife may influence people’s future behavior and describes the experience as cross-cultural. 56:10 – 58:17: Joe discusses the design of the trail around the lake. 58:17 – 1:02:32: Joe mentions the advisory role of Dr. Milton McLaren in the Association’s trail building work. He remarks on the importance to the project of people such as Tony Fabian and John Thomson. Joe also discusses the material used for the trail’s construction. 1:02:32 – 1:10:53: Joe describes the Association’s relationship with the Nature House and the Wildlife Rescue Centre. He recalls the acquisition of the Nature House building. 1:10:53 – 1:19:57: Asked about consultation, Joe describes the design and construction of the trail as the only subject in which the group’s expertise was deferred to. He discusses his concerns about dredging, and mentions the installation of squirrel nesting boxes as a successful enhancement project. 1:19:57 – 1:28:05: Joe talks about how the Burnaby Lake area has changed since he moved to Burnaby in 1964, and mentions some of the detrimental effects of development. He recalls the construction of the original observation tower by Aril Dalsvaag’s students at Burnaby Central Secondary School, talks about the current tower and discusses the success of the Association’s turtle nesting pad. 1:28:05 – 1:34:50: Joe discusses the introduced species in Burnaby Lake, and the efforts to eradicate them. He mentions the work of Bob Gunn, from B.C.I.T., a former student of Bob Gardner. 1:34:50 – 1:49:28: Asked about the substances used to control the mosquito population at Burnaby Lake, Joe voices his concerns about the effects of spraying, noting that the butterfly garden has been negatively affected by it in the past. He describes the origin of the garden. 1:40:28 – 1:46:06: Rebeca summarizes the interview and thanks Joe. Joe describes his hopes for the B.L.P.A. and the future of the lake. He reiterates the importance of preservation and accessibility and remarks on the number and diversity of the visitors.
- History
- Interviewee: Joe Sadowski is a founding member of the Burnaby Lake Park Association which was formerly named the Burnaby Outdoor Education Association. He has been recognized for his environmental efforts and was awarded the Community Stewardship Star in 2000 and 2004. Interviewer: Rebeca Salas is a MA student in the Department of Geography at Simon Fraser University. Rebeca is interested in the relationship between property and memory. Rebeca is an experienced researcher and oral history interviewer and has conducted several oral histories for Landscapes of Injustice Archive.
- Creator
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Subjects
- Environmental Issues
- Environmental Issues - Environmental Protection
- Geographic Features - Streams
- Geographic Features - Natural Waterways
- Geographic Features - Parks
- Responsibility
- Salas, Rebeca
- Geographic Access
- Burnaby Lake Regional Nature Park
- Burnaby Lake
- Accession Code
- BV018.18.1
- Access Restriction
- No restrictions
- Date
- June 16, 2017
- Media Type
- Sound Recording
Audio Tracks
Interview with Joe Sadowski, 2017, June 16, 2017
Interview with Joe Sadowski, 2017, June 16, 2017
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_BVM_Sound_Recordings/Oral_Histories/2018_0018_0001_001.mp3![Interview with Ellen and Bill Schwartz, [1969-2023] (interview content), interviewed 15 May 2023 thumbnail](/media/hpo/_Data/_BVM_Sound_Recordings/Oral_Histories/2023_0016_0006_001.jpg?width=280)
Interview with Ellen and Bill Schwartz
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription19602
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Date
- [1969-2023] (interview content), interviewed 15 May 2023
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 2 sound recordings (wav) (68 min., 52 sec.) + 1 sound recording (mp3) (68 min., 53 sec.)
- Scope and Content
- Item consists of a recording of an oral history interview with Ellen and Bill Schwartz conducted by Burnaby Village Museum Registrar and Researcher, Eric Damer. 00:00-16:47 Bill and Ellen share where they were born, grew up and went to school as citizens of the United States and how they met in Pe…
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum fonds
- Series
- Museum Oral Histories series
- Subseries
- Many Voices Project Interviews subseries
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 2 sound recordings (wav) (68 min., 52 sec.) + 1 sound recording (mp3) (68 min., 53 sec.)
- Material Details
- Interviewer: Eric Damer Interviewees: Ellen and Bill Schwartz Location of Interview: Burnaby Village Museum Interview Date: May 15, 2023 Total Number of tracks: 2 Total Length of all Tracks: 01:08:52 Digital master recordings (wav) were recorded onto two separate audio tracks, edited and merged together and converted to mp3 for access on Heritage Burnaby Photograph information: Bill and Ellen Schwartz.
- Scope and Content
- Item consists of a recording of an oral history interview with Ellen and Bill Schwartz conducted by Burnaby Village Museum Registrar and Researcher, Eric Damer. 00:00-16:47 Bill and Ellen share where they were born, grew up and went to school as citizens of the United States and how they met in Pennsylvania the 1970s. Bill and Ellen explain how in the 1970s, they were discouraged about the current politics in the United States under the Nixon administration and how they were inspired by the “back to the land” ideals, rejecting materialism and wanting an alternative lifestyle. With these ideals in mind, they recall how in 1972 they and a few other friends decided to leave the United States, move to British Columbia with the goal of buying land in the Okanagan or Kootenay region and starting a new lifestyle for themselves. Bill and Ellen recollect how they purchased 20 acres of land in Galena Bay in the Kootenays and how they lived in the area off and on until the early 1980s. They describe how they cleared three acres of land, built a cabin, put in a garden, chicken coop and honey bees. With the challenges of the isolated location and no access to electricity they explain how they decided that they had to live elsewhere in order to make a living. Ellen talks about working as a special education teacher in Revelstoke and Slocan and how Bill obtained his teaching certificate while they lived in Nelson. Bill and Ellen describe themselves as environmentalists and of how they both became active Provincial environmentalists during the construction of the Revelstoke Dam. Bill talks about getting work with the “Energy Van” program talking about energy conservation, renewable energy and recycling. They explain how after their first child was born in 1980, they returned to Galena Bay for about a year and a half until Bill was offered a job with the Department of Energy Conservation which lead them to move to Vancouver. 16:48 – 22:46 Bill and Ellen describe their first few years of living in Vancouver and at University of British Columbia while Ellen completed her master’s degree in creative writing. During this time, they had their second child. They recall how in 1988 how they purchased a house in Burnaby, selecting to live in the Deer Lake neighbourhood. They talk about the benefits of the neighbourhood including; a French immersion school for their children, proximity to the trails around Deer Lake and having transit close by. 22:47 – 33:55 Bill and Ellen talk about their consulting business “Polestar Communications”. A Burnaby based communications consulting firm composed of three people, Ellen and Bill and colleague Richard Banner. They describe how their business got started and some of the projects that they’ve worked on including; BC Hydro’s Power Smart Program, financial literacy curriculum that was introduced in B.C. schools and reports for the Province of British Columbia. Ellen and Bill convey how Bill has been a very active member with the City of Burnaby Environment Committee, the Steering Committee to develop a sustainable environmental strategy for Burnaby, how he’s been awarded for his contributions in coaching youth sports and other areas in which they have both volunteered. 33:56 – 43:07 Ellen describes how she got started in writing educational resources about the environment and how since she completed grad school in 1984, she’s published nineteen books. Ellen conveys how her first book was published and sold to the Province of British Columbia as part of the B.C. educational curriculum on the environment. Ellen talks about some of the children’s books that she’s written and published with themes including; social justice, the labour movement and racism in sports. Ellen describes some of her books and the research that she’s done. 43:08 – 51:04 Ellen and Bill Schwartz reflect on what they like about living in Burnaby. They talk about the benefits of their neighbourhood including; performances at the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts, the Burnaby Blues and Roots Festival, the Burnaby Art Gallery and Deer Lake as well as having access to parks and community centres in Burnaby. 51:05-56:36 Bill and Ellen reflect on their involvement in the Jewish community, considering themselves non-secular Jews. Ellen talks about how they were involved with “Burquest” a Jewish Community Association and how they often observe some of the Jewish holidays including Hanukah and traditions including the Jewish coming of age ritual, bar mitzvah (masc.) and bat mistvah (fem.). Ellen mentions her involvement with the “Jone Betty Stuchner Oy Vey! Funniest Children’s book Award” where she acts a judge and her involvement with the Jewish Book festival and that she is a recipient of the Jewish Book award. 56:37 – 1:08:53 Bill and Ellen reflect on their 35 years living in Burnaby and how they’ve seen it change. They talk about the increased development and density in the city, how they are troubled by a lack of low income housing, the benefits and importance of public transportation and preservation of green space including Burnaby parks.
- History
- Interviewees' biographies: Ellen Schwartz was born in Washington, DC, (1950) but grew up in New Jersey. She attended the Universities of Chicago and Wisconsin before moving to a farm in Pennsylvania, where she met her future husband Bill Schwartz. Bill Schwartz grew up in and around Philadelphia (b. 1947), and attended Pennsylvania State University. After travelling, and discouraged with life in eastern America, he and Ellen decided that British Columbia held better prospects. Bill and Ellen quit their jobs in 1972 and moved to the Kootenay region where they adopted a “back to the land” lifestyle, a very new experience for both of them. After eight years of modest success, and occasional work in nearby towns, they opted to return to Vancouver where Bill had work and where they could raise a family more easily. They rented in Vancouver for a few years before moving to family housing at UBC, while Ellen studied creative writing. Bill founded a communications and writing company, and in 1988 they purchased a home in Burnaby. Ellen launched a new career as a writer, mainly for children young adults. Both were active in their careers, raising a family, and participating in local social and political activities. Interviewer biography: Eric Damer is a Burnaby Village Museum Interpreter, Museum Registrar, Researcher and Blacksmith. Eric pounded hot steel for the first time in 1977 in junior high. Fifteen years later, he joined Burnaby Village Museum where he has smithed for three decades. He also provides historical research for museum exhibits and special projects. Outside the museum, Eric is a social historian with a special interest in educational history.
- Creator
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Subjects
- Education
- Environmental Issues
- Environmental Issues - Environmental Protection
- Geographic Features
- Geographic Features - Parks
- Housing
- Occupations
- Occupations - Entrepreneurs
- Occupations - Writers
- Persons - Volunteers
- Persons - Jewish Canadians
- Social Issues
- Social Issues - Racism
- Religions
- Religions - Judaism
- Names
- Schwartz, William "Bill"
- Schwartz, Ellen
- City of Burnaby
- Polestar Communications
- British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority
- Responsibility
- Damer, Eric
- Accession Code
- BV023.16.6
- Access Restriction
- No restrictions
- Reproduction Restriction
- No known restrictions
- Date
- [1969-2023] (interview content), interviewed 15 May 2023
- Media Type
- Sound Recording
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Burnaby Lake (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Burnaby Lake Area
- Notes
- Title based on contents of item
- Transcription available on Heritage Burnaby
Images
![Interview with Ellen and Bill Schwartz, [1969-2023] (interview content), interviewed 15 May 2023 thumbnail](/media/hpo/_Data/_BVM_Sound_Recordings/Oral_Histories/2023_0016_0006_001.jpg)
Documents
Audio Tracks
Interview with Ellen and Bill Schwartz, [1969-2023] (interview content), interviewed 15 May 2023
Interview with Ellen and Bill Schwartz, [1969-2023] (interview content), interviewed 15 May 2023
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_BVM_Sound_Recordings/Oral_Histories/2023_0016_0006_003.mp3