Oakalla Prison collection
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription16696
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Date
- [1974]-1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Oakalla Prison collection
- Description Level
- Fonds
- Physical Description
- 37.5 cm of textual records + 125 photographs + 1 videocassette
- Scope and Content
- Collection consists of a selection of Oakalla correctional facility records including reports, correspondence, photographs and a video tour of the death row incarceration cells inside Oakalla Prison taken by Burnaby Village Museum curator after the facility was closed. Most of the photographs docum…
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection/Fonds
- Oakalla Prison collection
- Description Level
- Fonds
- Physical Description
- 37.5 cm of textual records + 125 photographs + 1 videocassette
- Scope and Content
- Collection consists of a selection of Oakalla correctional facility records including reports, correspondence, photographs and a video tour of the death row incarceration cells inside Oakalla Prison taken by Burnaby Village Museum curator after the facility was closed. Most of the photographs document Oakalla Prison in 1991 and were taken during the Open House event or when Burnaby Village Museum staff were granted access to retreive items prior to demolition. A small selection of facility photographs of site and staff are also included.
- Records are arranged into series:
- 1) Oakalla correctional facility records series
- 2) Oakalla correctional facility photographs series
- 3) Oakalla documentary photographs and video series
- History
- The Oakalla Prison Farm (also known as the Lower Mainland Regional Correctional Centre) was a model prison farm on 185 acres of land next to Deer Lake in Burnaby. The Oakalla Prison Farm opened in 1912 and was initially designed to hold 150 men and 50 women. By the 1950s, the population was well over one thousand. The prison included a working farm which included a dairy, vegetable gardens and livestock. In 1959 the last execution in British Columbia took place at Oakalla. Following a riot and mass escape in the late 1980s, poor conditions, and public outcry, Oakalla closed down in 1991. In the fall of 1991, the prison was opened up to the public whereby tours were conducted of the site. Not long after, buildings were demolished and a residential housing development took it's place. A playground now sits on the former site of the main building. In 1991, staff from Burnaby Village Museum were granted access, documenting the site prior to it's demolition. Many Oakalla artifacts and records were salvaged and accessioned into the Burnaby Village Museum's permanent collection.
- Responsibility
- Oakalla Prison Farm
- Accession Code
- BV991.45
- Date
- [1974]-1991
- Media Type
- Photograph
- Textual Record
- Moving Images
- Related Material
- See also Oakalla artifacts - BV991.45
- Arrangement
- Arrangement of records and series of this collection is based on record creators and subject that. Facility records and photographs were created and collected by Oakalla correctional facility staff and documentary photographs and a video from 1991 were created by Burnaby Village Museum staff.
- Notes
- Title based on content of collection
- Some records within this collection are closed. Contact Burnaby Village Museum for access.
Oakalla Prison Farm
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription64513
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1987-1998
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- File
- Physical Description
- 1 file of textual records
- Scope and Content
- File consists of acetate sheets and handwritten notes used in the oral report "Oakalla Prison Farm \ A Short History" presented by Ed Eckley to the Burnaby Historical Society on January 14, 1998. Included in the file are pamphlets for the presentation.
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1987-1998
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Subseries
- Ed Eckley subseries
- Physical Description
- 1 file of textual records
- Description Level
- File
- Record No.
- MSS120-007
- Access Restriction
- In Archives only
- Reproduction Restriction
- Reproductions subject to FOIPPA
- Accession Number
- BHS2006-01
- Scope and Content
- File consists of acetate sheets and handwritten notes used in the oral report "Oakalla Prison Farm \ A Short History" presented by Ed Eckley to the Burnaby Historical Society on January 14, 1998. Included in the file are pamphlets for the presentation.
- Media Type
- Textual Record
- Notes
- Continuation of title: "...A Short History"
Oakalla Prison Farm papers
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription64506
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1912 (date of original) -1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- File
- Physical Description
- 1 file of textual records
- Scope and Content
- File consists of paper records created or collected by Edmund Eckley on the history of the Oakalla Prison Farm in Burnaby. Included in the file are; newspaper clippings, the "Official Closing Tour / Lower Mainland Regional Correctional Centre / Oakalla Prison Farm" programme as well as photocopies …
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1912 (date of original) -1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Subseries
- Ed Eckley subseries
- Physical Description
- 1 file of textual records
- Description Level
- File
- Record No.
- MSS120-001
- Access Restriction
- In Archives only
- Reproduction Restriction
- Reproductions subject to FOIPPA
- Accession Number
- BHS2006-01
- Scope and Content
- File consists of paper records created or collected by Edmund Eckley on the history of the Oakalla Prison Farm in Burnaby. Included in the file are; newspaper clippings, the "Official Closing Tour / Lower Mainland Regional Correctional Centre / Oakalla Prison Farm" programme as well as photocopies of "British Columbia / Gaol Rules & Regulations / 1912" and photocopied aerial photographs of the site.
- Media Type
- Textual Record
- Notes
- Title based on contents of file
- Included in the file is a resume for former Oakalla prison guard Robert Evans Shelly
Oakalla Prison Farm reference materials
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription64514
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1936 (date of original) -1998
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- File
- Physical Description
- 1 file of textual records
- Scope and Content
- File consists of handwritten notes and reference materials believed to have been used in creating the oral report "Oakalla Prison Farm \ A Short History" presented by Ed Eckley to the Burnaby Historical Society on January 14, 1998. Reference materials include; photocopied plans, correspondence, yea…
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1936 (date of original) -1998
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Subseries
- Ed Eckley subseries
- Physical Description
- 1 file of textual records
- Description Level
- File
- Record No.
- MSS120-008
- Access Restriction
- In Archives only
- Reproduction Restriction
- Reproductions subject to FOIPPA
- Accession Number
- BHS2006-01
- Scope and Content
- File consists of handwritten notes and reference materials believed to have been used in creating the oral report "Oakalla Prison Farm \ A Short History" presented by Ed Eckley to the Burnaby Historical Society on January 14, 1998. Reference materials include; photocopied plans, correspondence, yearly financial statements, an "Oakalla Closes" programme along with various essays and statistics pulled from the Internet (and other sources).
- Media Type
- Textual Record
- Notes
- Title based on contents of file
Ed Eckley subseries
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription64503
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1911 (date of original)-[1998]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Subseries
- Physical Description
- 2 boxes of textual records and 1 photographic album
- Scope and Content
- Subseries consists of records created and collected by Edmund Eckley on the history of the Oakalla Prison Farm in Burnaby. Included in the subseries are notes for an oral presentation, maps, plans, contracts, memorandums and Oakalla policies, rules and regulations, as well asan album containing pho…
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1911 (date of original)-[1998]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Subseries
- Ed Eckley subseries
- Physical Description
- 2 boxes of textual records and 1 photographic album
- Description Level
- Subseries
- Accession Number
- BHS2006-01
- Scope and Content
- Subseries consists of records created and collected by Edmund Eckley on the history of the Oakalla Prison Farm in Burnaby. Included in the subseries are notes for an oral presentation, maps, plans, contracts, memorandums and Oakalla policies, rules and regulations, as well asan album containing photographs of the Oakalla Prison Farm just after it was closed down and some photocopied images and text.
- History
- Edmund R. Eckley is believed to have worked as a logging manager in Tahsis, British Columbia. Later, he and his wife Teresa lived at 7810 Rayside Street in Burnaby. Ed was a volunteer interpreter at Burnaby Village Museum in the 1990s. He wrote the interpreters’ notes for the first temporary exhibit held in Stride Studios [1995] at the Burnaby Village Museum entitled “Captive Heritage Oakalla Revealed” which traced the history of Oakalla Prison from construction to closure. He also designed his own walking tour of the Oakalla site prior to it being torn down. On January 14, 1998 Ed presented "A Short History of the Oakalla Prison Farm" for the Burnaby Historical Society. Ed also served as vice-president and fundraising chair for Friends of Interurban 1223 until the project's completion in 2008. Teresa worked as a school teacher for the Burnaby School District until her retirement in 2004. Following retirement, Teresa and Ed moved to Vancouver, where they currently reside.
- Media Type
- Textual Record
- Photograph
- Creator
- Eckley, Edmund R.
- Notes
- Title based on creator of subseries
- MSS120, PC511
Waplington family fonds
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription4613
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Date
- 1911-2004
- Collection/Fonds
- Waplington family fonds
- Description Level
- Fonds
- Physical Description
- 1 album (88 photographs + textual records) + 2 photographs in frames
- Scope and Content
- Fonds consists of records documenting the lives of both the Waplington and Fleming families who resided at 3813 Deer Lake. Records include a family photograph album; two framed portraits: one of John Waplington and Doris Waplington (nee Caswell) (possibly on their wedding day) and Frances (nee Wapl…
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection/Fonds
- Waplington family fonds
- Description Level
- Fonds
- Physical Description
- 1 album (88 photographs + textual records) + 2 photographs in frames
- Scope and Content
- Fonds consists of records documenting the lives of both the Waplington and Fleming families who resided at 3813 Deer Lake. Records include a family photograph album; two framed portraits: one of John Waplington and Doris Waplington (nee Caswell) (possibly on their wedding day) and Frances (nee Waplington) and Ray Fleming; a copy of a handwritten memoir "The Way it Was / 1913-1925"; as well as a computer printed copy of "In and Out of / A Cedar Shake Shack" / "The life of a little girl from World War I / to Canada's Diamond Jubilee" both written by Frances L. Fleming (nee Waplington). Fonds is arranged into series: 1) Waplington and Fleming families album series 2) Frances Fleming manuscripts series 3) Waplington family documents series 4) Waplington family photographs series
- History
- John (Jack) Waplington emigrated from Nottingham, England in 1904, arriving in Quebec City and continuing on to Ontario before eventually settling in British Columbia. Somewhere on his journey his right hand was crushed in an industrial accident and amputated. Following his recovery, Jack continued to work his way across Canada until he found employment at Stave Falls, B.C. and married Sarah Alice Cogswell (nee Nickerson). Jack and Sarah (nicknamed Cutie) Waplington had three children; Frances Louise Waplington (1913-2004), John Hazen Waplington and Grace Bancroft Waplington. In 1916, the Waplingtons rented the Walker house at Hill Station on the Burnaby Lake Interurban Line and in 1920 Jack built a cedar shack on 5 acres of land at 4925 Douglas Road (northwest corner of Douglas and Laurel). According to a memoir by Frances Waplington, life was rough living in the cedar shack on Douglas Road with no electricity or running water and by 1925 the family was lucky to purchase "Brookfield", the former home of Louis Claude Hill located at 3813 Deer Lake Avenue. The home was not in good shape having been empty for some time but was located on ¾ of an acre and purchased at a fair price of $1000. The house was surrounded by grass and flowers gone wild and very tall fir trees. The house had running water, electricity and was heated by a wood burning stove in the kitchen and hall and a fireplace in the living room. There was no refrigeration other than the ice box. The three Waplington children, Frances, John and Grace continued to attend Douglas Road School. The family renovated and restored the house at Deer Lake as well as the grounds, adding in flower and vegetable gardens. The large area of grass which formerly housed a tennis court was rolled flat and reseeded. Jack Waplington continued to work for the power company which became B.C. Electric Company and eventually B.C. Power and Hydro. The Waplingtons continued to live at 3813 Deer Lake until 1946 when they sold their home to their daughter Frances who married Ray Fleming. Jack and Sarah Waplington retired and moved to Lasquiti island. Frances "Fanny" Waplington married Reyland "Ray" Fleming October 11, 1935. Ray and Frances Fleming had three children; John (Jack) Reyland, Edith (Edie) Louise and Sara Maureen. In 1941 Ray was hired by the B.C. Electric Company to work at Buntzen Lake hydro station. There was no housing at the hydro station so the family lived on a 42’ coastal boat, the Cohoe Bay tied up to the dock at Buntzen Lake. Since it was war time, there was fear that the two hydro plants at Stave Falls and Buntzen Lake could be targeted for bombing so the Fleming family had to learn about air raid sirens, bunkers, helmets and gas masks. The children attended a one room classroom at Buntzen Lake and participated in school drills when the air raid siren sounded. By 1947 the Fleming family moved to the Waplington home at 3813 Deer lake Avenue after purchasing it from Frances’ parents. Ray continued to work for B.C. Electric and eventually B.C. Power and B.C. Hydro. The children walked or rode bicycles to and from Douglas Road School. At the time the family moved into their home there were no buses only the Interurban streetcar to take them to Vancouver. Douglas Road station was the nearest stop to Deer Lake on the Burnaby Lake Line. The closest neighbours were the Oakalla Prison farm (located off of Royal Oak hill overlooking Deer Lake) and the Ceperley mansion. Prison breaks were common and both the Waplington and Fleming families would often hear air raid sirens blare to warn them. The neighbourhood would go on high alert and the children would immediately run home to safety. Mr. Fleming was well prepared with his 22 rifle nearby should it be needed. After Sarah Waplington died, Jack Waplington returned to Deer Lake to live in a house trailer on the property that was owned by the Flemings. In 1959, after the Fleming children had grown and moved on, Ray and Frances Fleming sold the property to the Municipality of Burnaby. The Municipality rented it out for several years prior to its demolition around 1970 to make way for Burnaby’s Heritage Village. Frances Louise Fleming received her teaching degree from the Vancouver Normal School at the end of World War II but found it extremely difficult to secure a permanent teaching position as a woman. Between 1944 and 1954, Frances was hired and fired eight times from teaching positions despite excellent reports. Finally in 1954, she was invited to teach in an adjoining district with a permanent teaching appointment to follow. Over the years, Frances taught in Vancouver, Burnaby, Pender Harbour and served as vice principal at Magee Secondary. In the early 1970s Frances was appointed provincial superintendent of schools at Quesnel and then moved to Victoria to be assistant superintendent of integrated and supportive services and then in 1973, she became assistant superintendent of the department of public intstruction. Frances retired from teaching soon after, moving to the Sunshine Coast with her husband Ray. Frances was awarded the Order of British Columbia in 1997, was an accomplished writer who regularly contributed articles to the Vancouver Sun newspaper and othe publications. Ray Fleming died in 2002 and Frances Fleming died in 2004.
- Accession Code
- BV016.46
- Date
- 1911-2004
- Media Type
- Photograph
- Textual Record
- Arrangement
- Series arrangement is based on physical arrangement of records by donor. Family album was scanned in it's original order and items from within family album were removed and described at item and file level.
- Notes
- Title based on content of fonds