"Selling." found 33 records | Heritage Burnaby

City Council and Office of the City Clerk fonds

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription29

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Date: 1892-2021

Collection/Fonds: City Council and Office of the City Clerk fonds

Description Level: Fonds

Physical Description: 130m of textual records and other material

Scope and Content: Fonds consists of records generated in the course of municipal business by City Council and the Office of the City Clerk.

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Date: 1892-2021

Collection/Fonds: City Council and Office of the City Clerk fonds

Physical Description: 130m of textual records and other material

Description Level: Fonds

Access Restriction: Subject to FOIPPA

Scope and Content: Fonds consists of records generated in the course of municipal business by City Council and the Office of the City Clerk.

History: The City of Burnaby covers an area of approximately 98 square kilometers between the cities of Vancouver to the west, and Coquitlam and New Westminster to the east, Burrard Inlet to the north, and the Fraser River to the south. The municipality derived its name from Robert Burnaby, a prominent businessman and advisor to Sir James Douglas, the first Governor of the Crown Colony of British Columbia. Burnaby’s early development was closely tied to the development of the City of New Westminster. New Westminster became British Columbia’s capital in 1859, the year after the British Government proclaimed the establishment of British Columbia. Shortly thereafter, the Royal Engineers began exploring Burnaby to establish military defenses and secure natural resources. This involved the construction of a road linking New Westminster to Burrard Inlet for military purposes, which is present-day North Road. At this time, individuals and families began settling in Burnaby and were largely involved in agricultural and logging activities. Burnaby developed slowly until 1887, when the Canadian Pacific Railway was extended into Vancouver from the Port Moody terminal, causing a dramatic increase in traffic between New Westminster and Vancouver. To meet the new transportation demands, a tramline was built in 1891 connecting the two urban centers along what is now Kingsway. The creation and location of the tramline induced property owners to begin subdividing and selling their lands as early as October 1891. The property taxes the roughly 200 residents paid at this time went directly to the provincial government in Victoria. No local services were provided in turn, which prompted the formation of a committee to petition the provincial government for a municipal charter. As a result, the Corporation of the District of Burnaby was incorporated by letters patent on September 22, 1892. Burnaby’s first Council was elected by acclamation on October 15, 1892 and consisted of Reeve Charles R. Shaw and councillors William Brenchley, Arthur De Windt Hazard, L. Claude Hill, William McDermott, and John Woolard.* The first formal Council election was conducted three months later. Nicolai Shou became the first elected reeve of Burnaby by ballot. Council met at various locations, including the tramline’s power house, private homes, and offices until the first municipal hall was built at Kingsway and Edmonds in 1899. Council is ultimately responsible for the government of the City of Burnaby. The Mayor (formally called “Reeve” prior to 1968) and Council are elected by the residents of Burnaby to represent them in decisions with respect to the provision of public services and facilities. Additionally, the Mayor represents the citizens of Burnaby at various public functions and events. Burnaby was without Council representation during most of the Great Depression and part of the Second World War. Council was disbanded on December 31, 1932 as a result of financial difficulties. The Provincial Government appointed a Commissioner to take over the duties of Reeve and Council beginning in 1933. This system of government was retained until January 1943, when Burnaby residents could once again elect their local government officials. The following individuals have served as Mayor (or Reeve) of Burnaby: Charles R. Shaw 1892 Nicolai C. Schou 1893-1903 Charles F. Sprott 1904-1905 Peter Byrne 1906-1910 John W. Weart 1911-1912 Duncan C. McGregor 1913 Hugh M. Fraser 1914-1918 Thomas Sanderson 1919-1920 Alexander K. McLean 1921-1926; 1928-1929 Charles C. Bell 1927 William L. Burdick 1929 William A. Pritchard 1930-1932 William Tate Wilson 1943-1944 George A. Morrison 1945-1949 William R. Beamish 1950-1953 Charles W. MacSorley 1954-1957 Alan H. Emmott 1958-1968 Robert W. Prittie 1969-1973 Thomas W. Constable 1973-1979 David M. Mercier 1979-1981 William A. Lewarne 1981-1987 William J. Copeland 1987-1996 Douglas P. Drummond 1996-2002 Derek R. Corrigan 2002-2018 Mike Hurley 2018-present The following individuals have served as provincially appointed Commissioners for the Corporation of the District of Burnaby: John Bennett 1933 John Mahony 1933-1934 Hugh M. Fraser 1934-1940* R.S. Gilchrist 1941-1942* B.C. Bracewell 1942* *Richard Bolton was Acting Commissioner for most of 1940-1942. He refused to be a full-fledged Commissioner. Closely associated with the functions of Council is the City Clerk. The Office of the City Clerk is responsible for the statutory duties of the municipal clerk including the preparation and preservation of all minutes books and records of Council business, custody of City bylaws, administrative support to Council and its Committees, preparation of Council and Committee agendas and the conduct of local government elections. The Clerk’s Office is the communications link between Council and other City Departments and the general public, and provides assistance and advice to citizens with respect to Council and Council Committee processes, reporting procedures and decisions. At the time of Burnaby’s incorporation in 1892, the municipal Clerk had the responsibility to attend all meetings of Council, keep all records of Council, prepare and alter voters’ lists, conduct Council elections, collect revenue, as well as having the responsibility to prepare balance sheets and audits. An advertisement in a local newspaper for the appointment of the Clerk dated February 1, 1905 states the “united offices of clerk, collector and assessor” receive a salary of $65.00 per month. Originally the treasurer, assessor and records manager for the corporation, the Clerk eventually became the municipal Council liaison. The primary functions of the City Clerk over time have been the keeping of minutes for the meetings of City Council and related bodies; keeping the records of the City of Burnaby as required by the Local Government Act (formally Municipal Act); keeping all records related to City Council decision making; carrying out correspondence on behalf of Council; assembling voters’ lists and carrying out elections; providing communication, information, and public relations services, including responsibility for civic ceremonies/events, and the municipal archives. The following individuals have served as City Clerk: Alexander Philip 1892–1894 Alfred Smither 1894–1899 F.J.H. Shirley 1899–1901 Arthur De Windt Haszard 1901–1902 Walter J. Walker 1902–1905 Benjamin George Walker 1905–1908 Charles Thomas Saunders 1908–1911 W.M. Griffiths 1911–1912 Arthur G. Moore 1912–1933 Charles Boyer Brown 1933–1959 John H. Shaw 1959–1973* James Hudson 1974–1984 Charles A. Turpin 1984–1995 Debbie R. Comis 1995–2011 Anne Skipsey (Acting) 2011-2012 Maryann Manuel (Acting) 2012-2014 Dennis Back 2014-2018 Kate O'Connell 2018-2020 Blanka Zeinabova 2020-2022 *Deputy City Clerk T. Ward took over many of the Clerk’s duties from 1972 to 1973 due to Shaw’s ill health during these years.

Formats: Microforms exist for some records. See series descriptions.

Media Type: Textual Record

Creator: City of Burnaby

Notes: Title based on creators of fonds

Digney Family fonds

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription85415

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Date: 1936-19[61]

Collection/Fonds: Digney Family fonds

Description Level: Fonds

Physical Description: 1 photograph : b&w + 1 film reel : col. ; 16mm + 7 optical discs (DVDs) + 1 portable drive

Scope and Content: Fonds consists of a reel of film (digitized into four segments) created by Andy Digney; a panorama photograph of the Digney Pee-Wee Bowling League from 1958 or 1959; and 18 film segments on DVD that were originally created by Andy Digney between 1934 and 1961 and digitized by his grandson Paul Dign…

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Date: 1936-19[61]

Collection/Fonds: Digney Family fonds

Physical Description: 1 photograph : b&w + 1 film reel : col. ; 16mm + 7 optical discs (DVDs) + 1 portable drive

Description Level: Fonds

Access Restriction: No restrictions

Reproduction Restriction: May be restricted by third party rights

Scope and Content: Fonds consists of a reel of film (digitized into four segments) created by Andy Digney; a panorama photograph of the Digney Pee-Wee Bowling League from 1958 or 1959; and 18 film segments on DVD that were originally created by Andy Digney between 1934 and 1961 and digitized by his grandson Paul Digney in 2012. The 16mm film is divided into the following segments: the Oak Theatre in 1936 (construction and opening); the Royal Visit (from the King and Queen) in 1939; Burnaby Sports and May Day events (ca. 1937); and the Labour parade (ca. 1935). The 18 film segments contain footage of the Digney family at their home in Brandon, Manitoba, and Burnaby; views of the Oak Theatre and Digney Speedway in operation; and their travels throughout British Columbia and abroad. The 18 film segments are described at the item level and titled: Andy's first film; Brandon, Manitoba; Burnaby and Digney recreational events; Trip to Kamloops; Burnaby; Burnaby, Vancouver and the north shore; Galiano Island, Oak Theatre and Calgary; Travels to Ontario, Quebec and England; Travels to England #2; Travels to England #3; Parades; Digney family in Burnaby; Paul Digney and family; Digney family and the Oak Theatre gardens; Digney family at Bonsor Avenue and family outings; Building and opening the Digney Speedway; Digney family travel the praries; and San Francisco Trip.

History: Andy Digney was born in London, England, on July 27, 1886. His given names were Andrew Charles. In 1905, he immigrated with his elder brother to Raymore, Saskatchewan, and worked on a farm. In 1914, he met and married Alice Swan and in 1920 they had their one and only child, Ernest ('Dig'). The young family lived in Beatty, Saskatchewan, where they ran a small general store with a pool hall over the top. Andy sold the store and they moved to Carberry, Manitoba, where Andy worked selling lightning rods and hanging wallpaper. At this time, he met and formed a partnership with someone who owned a hand cranked move projector and in the evenings, he and his wife traveled to church halls in neighbouring towns, showing movies. Eventually, Digney purchased his own movie projector and opened a small theatre in Carberry. He worked odd jobs during the daytime and projected movies in his small theatre at night. Eventually he made enough money to move to Brandon, Manitoba, where he purchased a restaurant, which he turned into a theatre with living quarters above. Andy called the theatre 'The Oak' since the mighty oak was strong and stood forever. After starting the first Oak Theatre in Brandon, Manitoba, when talking pictures came along, Andy Digney, his wife Alice and son Ernest ('Dig') moved to Burnaby in 1935 and chose the site of their new theatre and home at the corner of Kingsway and Marlborough. The Oak Theatre - which opened on August 4, 1937 - was hailed as an artistic masterpiece for its ultra modern white stucco exterior, floodlights and pink-and-green neon marquee. The interior featured a mirrored ceiling, fireplace, and aquarium and had a colour scheme of orchid, royal blue, silver and black. Andy was a very involved member of the Burnaby community, becoming the founding president of the Lion's club and the chairman of the committee raising money for war bonds during World War II. In 1944, Andy suffered a severe heart attack, forcing him to retire, so in 1945, he sold the theatre to Odeon Theatres of Canada who continued to operate at this location until 1968 when competition forced its closure and demolition. Andy and his family relocated to a home on Bonsor Avenue on 3/4 acres where he spent much of his time cultivating a lovely garden. In about 1946, Andy was approached by the B.C. Midget Auto Racing Association [original name retained for historical accuracy], who were looking for a good location to race the smaller racing cars popular at the time. Andy was interested and purchased 10 acres of property located near the corner of Irmin Street and MacPherson Avenue and built a race track. The Digney Speedway opened on July 8, 1948, with stands that had capacity of holding 4500 people. In 1949, when the popularity of this kind of racing declined, Digney started racing roadsters. However, he struggled to find local drivers, and it was expensive to bring in drivers from elsewhere. In 1951, Digney found a winner: jalopy racing. Local men would buy 1930s cars and strip them down, remove the glass, and weld the doors shut. By early 1952 over 40 cars were showing up for jalopy races. By the early 1950s, the Speedway was well established, with coverage in the sports pages and on radio. Andy's son Dig worked at the race track but moved away with his wife in 1951 to work in Seattle. Dig and his wife Joyce, along with their two young sons, Paul and Bruce, returned to Burnaby in 1953, moving into a 550-square-foot apartment located above the Digney Speedway restrooms. In 1954, Simpson Sears built a large store on Kingsway and their parking lot came up to the back garden of the family home on Bonsor Avenue. Andy thought of building small stores on his property but in the end decided to build a bowling alley, clearing out his beautiful garden. The Digney Bowl opened on August 19, 1955, and Andy, Alice, Dig, and Joyce all worked at both the Speedway and the bowling alley. In 1956, Andy decided to finally retire and sold the bowling alley and home to his son Dig, which he paid for over time. Dig and his family moved into the house on Bonsor Avenue and ran the bowling alley until their son Bruce took over in 1980. Andy Digney died in 1964 while travelling with his wife in England. Alice died on June 3, 1982, and Dig died on November 27, 2009.

Media Type: Moving Images

Photographer: Digney, Andy

Creator: Digney family

Notes: Title based on contents of fonds; Photo/MI catalogue 562

Digney Family fonds

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription10597

Repository: Burnaby Village Museum

Date: [between 1954 and 1964] (date of originals), copied in 2016 and 2019

Collection/Fonds: Digney Family fonds

Description Level: Fonds

Physical Description: 6 video recordings (mp4) (approx. 3hr., 18 min.) : digital, 23 fps

Scope and Content: Fonds consists of compilation of six films (including film clips) created by Andy Digney and his son Ernest "Dig" Digney. Film content includes footage of members of the Digney family and friends in Burnaby; the Digney homes on Bonsor Avenue and Kaymar Drive; construction of the Digney Bowling Alle…

Repository: Burnaby Village Museum

Collection/Fonds: Digney Family fonds

Description Level: Fonds

Physical Description: 6 video recordings (mp4) (approx. 3hr., 18 min.) : digital, 23 fps

Material Details: Films were digitized in 2019 from original 8 mm format

Scope and Content: Fonds consists of compilation of six films (including film clips) created by Andy Digney and his son Ernest "Dig" Digney. Film content includes footage of members of the Digney family and friends in Burnaby; the Digney homes on Bonsor Avenue and Kaymar Drive; construction of the Digney Bowling Alley and the Simpsons-Sears building; Lawn bowling at Central Park as well as various family events, gatherings, vacations and trips.

History: Andy Digney was born in London, England on July 27, 1886. His given names were Andrew Charles and in 1905, he immigrated with his elder brother to Raymore Saskatchewan and worked on a farm. In 1914, he met and married Alice Swan and in 1920 they had their one and only child, Ernest ('Dig'). The young family lived in Beatty Saskatchewan where they ran a small general store with a pool hall over the top. Andy sold the store and they moved to Carberry Manitoba where Andy worked selling lightening rods and hanging wallpaper. At this time he met and formed a partnership with someone who owned a hand cranked move projector and in the evenings, he and his wife, traveled to church halls in neighbouring towns showing movies. Eventually, he purchased his own movie projector and opened a small theatre in Carberry. He worked odd jobs during the daytime and projected movies in his small theatre at night. Eventually he made enough money to move to Brandon, Manitoba where he purchased a restaurant which he turned into a theatre with living quarters above. Andy called the theatre 'The Oak' since the mighty oak was strong and stood forever. After starting the first Oak Theatre in Brandon, Manitoba when talking pictures came along, Andy Digney, his wife Alice and son Ernest ('Dig') moved to Burnaby in 1936 and chose the site of their new theatre and home at the corner of Kingsway and Marlborough. The Oak Theatre - which opened on August 4, 1937 - was hailed as an artistic masterpiece for its ultra modern white stucco exterior, floodlights and pink-and-green neon marquee. The interior featured a mirrored ceiling, fireplace, and aquarium and had a colour scheme of orchid, royal blue, silver and black. Andy was a very involved member of the Burnaby community becoming the founding president of the Lion's club and the chairman of the committee raising money for war bonds during World War II. In 1944, Andy suffered a severe heart attack, forcing him to retire, so in 1945 he sold the theatre to Odeon Theatres of Canada who continued to operate at this location until 1968 when competition forced its closure and demolition. Andy and his family relocated to a house at 2698 Bonsor Avenue (after 1959-6521 Bonsor Ave.) on 3/4 acres where he spent much of his time cultivating a lovely garden. In about 1946, Andy was approached by the B.C. Midget Auto Racing Association, who were looking for a good location to race the smaller, racing cars, popular at the time. Andy was interested and purchased 10 acres of property located near the corner of Irmin Street and MacPherson Avenue and built a race track. The Digney Speedway opened on July 8, 1948 with stands that had capacity of holding 4500 people. In 1949, when the popularity of midget racing declined, Digney started racing roadsters. However, he struggled to find local drivers, and it was expensive to bring in drivers from elsewhere. In 1951 Digney found a winner: jalopy racing. Local men would buy 1930s cars and strip them down, remove the glass, and weld the doors shut. By early 1952 over forty cars were showing up for jalopy races. By the early 1950s the Speedway was well established, with coverage in the sports pages and on radio. Andy's son Ernest Digney (also known as Dig) worked at the race track but moved away with his wife in 1951 to work in Seattle. Dig and his wife Joyce, along with their two young sons, Paul and Bruce returned to Burnaby in 1953 moving into a 550 square foot apartment located above the Digney Speedway restrooms. In 1954 Simpsons-Sears built a large store on Kingsway and their parking lot came up to the back garden of the family home on Bonsor Avenue. Andy thought of building small stores on his property but in the end decided to build a bowling alley, clearing out his beautiful garden. The Digney Bowl opened on August 19,1955 and Andy Digney, his wife Alice, son 'Dig' and daughter in law Joyce all worked at both the Speedway and the Bowling Alley. In 1956 Andy decided to finally retire and sold the bowling alley and home to his son 'Dig' which he paid for over time. 'Dig' and his family moved into the house on Bonsor Avenue and ran the bowling alley until their son Bruce took over in 1980. Andy Digney died in England in 1964 while on his world tour. His wife Alice died on June 3, 1982 and their son, Ernest ('Dig') died November 27, 2009.

Creator: Digney, Andy; Digney, Ernest Frank "Dig"

Accession Code: BV019.18

Access Restriction: No restrictions

Reproduction Restriction: May be restricted by third party rights

Date: [between 1954 and 1964] (date of originals), copied in 2016 and 2019

Media Type: Moving Images

Related Material: See also City of Burnaby Archives Digney Family fonds Photo/MI catalogue 562

Arrangement: Films are arranged and described at item level along with film clip segments. Master film footage numbered BV019.18.3 through BV019.18.8 were described in original order at item level. Digitized film content within the master film footage was also broken down into shorter film clips according to natural breaks within the original content and described separately as film clips (accession parts) in their original order: BV019.8.3.1 to BV019.8.3.28; BV019.8.4.1 to BV019.8.4.16; BV019.18.5.1 to BV019.8.5.7; BV019.18.6.1 to BV019.18.6.8; BV019.18.7.1 to BV019.18.7.15; BV019.18.8.1 to BV019.18.8.20

Notes: Title based on contents of fonds

Esther Love Stanley fonds

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription18841

Repository: Burnaby Village Museum

Date: 1896-[2015] (dates of originals)

Collection/Fonds: Esther Love Stanley fonds

Description Level: Fonds

Physical Description: 2 photograph albums + 3 photographs + 128 photographs (tiffs & jpgs) + 1 cm textual records

Scope and Content: Fonds consists of original photograph albums created by Esther (Love) Stanley as well as a collection of digital reproductions of photographs, documents and newspaper clippings pertaining to the Love, Stanley and Shankie families.

Repository: Burnaby Village Museum

Collection/Fonds: Esther Love Stanley fonds

Description Level: Fonds

Physical Description: 2 photograph albums + 3 photographs + 128 photographs (tiffs & jpgs) + 1 cm textual records

Scope and Content: Fonds consists of original photograph albums created by Esther (Love) Stanley as well as a collection of digital reproductions of photographs, documents and newspaper clippings pertaining to the Love, Stanley and Shankie families.

History: Esther Love Stanley was born in Burnaby in 1896 to parents Jesse Love (1847-1928) and Martha Leonard (1858-1920). Esther's father, Jesse Love was born in Swindon, England and left England to work on a dairy farm in the Toronto area. While working on the farm in Toronto, Jesse met Martha Leonard and they married in 1879. While living in Toronto, Jesse and Martha had two children, George (1880-1974) and Annie Elizabeth (1881-1957). About one year after Annie was born, the Love family moved to North Dakota to grow wheat. While living there, they had two more children, Henry (1883-1956) and Edith Minnie (1885-1976). The family decided to move further west after hearing about the fairer weather conditions from Martha’s father, George Leonard, who had settled in Vancouver in 1885. On May 23, 1887, Jesse, Martha and their four children arrived in Vancouver after travelling across Canada from Winnipeg on the first transcontinental train. Soon after their fifth child, Thomas Robert (1887-1918) was born, the family moved to Lulu Island in Richmond where they lived growing vegetables and selling them to Vancouver hotels. While living and farming on Lulu island, the couple had two more children Martha (Dot or Dorothy) (1889-1972) and Sarah Marie (1892-1978). In October 1893, Jesse Love purchased land in District Lot 25, Burnaby and built a house between 1893 and 1894. A road was constructed and named Cumberland in 1905 and the address for the Love home was 1390 Cumberland Road (after 1960- 7651 Cumberland). While living in the house, Jesse and Martha had four more children, Phoebe Leonard (1894-1991), Esther (1896-1991), John Leonard (1899-1978) and Hannah Victoria (also known as Girlie) (1902-1976). Frank Charles “Stan” Stanley was born in London, England in 1891. Frank “Stan” Stanley is the youngest son of John Stanley and Mary (Conquest) Stanley. John and Mary had eleven children: Conquest John “Con”, George, Alice, Mary, Nelly, Mabel Annie, Percy William, Henry James, Ada Elizabeth, Arthur Ewart and Frank Charles. In 1912, Frank Charles Stanley immigrated to Canada. Frank Stanley served in the 29th Battalion (nicknamed Tobin's Tigers) during the First World War. He received a Military Medal for bravery while serving as lieutenant. Esther Love and Frank “Stan” Stanley maintained a relationship through letter writing during the First World War and in 1921 after he returned, they were married at St. Alban’s Church in Burnaby. Frank and Esther Stanley (nee Love) had four children, Mary Frances (Pearson) (d. 1986), Ina Esther (Shankie) (1924-2017), Frank Conquest and Joyce (Warner). Frank Charles “Stan” Stanley ran a service station on St. John's Street in Port Moody for many years and also served as mayor of Port Moody in the 1940s. Frank Charles Stanley died in 1975 and Esther Love Stanley died in 1991. In 1947, Ina Esther Stanley married Thomas Ramsay “Ram” Shankie (1920-1996). Ina and Thomas Ramsay Shankie had four children; David Shankie (b. 1951), Linda Shankie (Hanlon), Susan Shankie (Weston) and Kathryn Shankie. The family lived at 5351 Kalyk Avenue in Burnaby (later 3676 Kalyk Avenue). Thomas Ramsay Shankie is the son of Thomas Shankie (1872-1959) and Bertha Janet Shankie (nee Gray) (1891-1965). Thomas Shankie (Sr.) immigrated to Canada from Scotland in 1905. In 1919 Thomas Shankie married Bertha Janet Gray at Henderson Presbyterian Church in West Burnaby. Thomas was the church organist and choir master of the church. Once married, the couple moved to a house located at 3718 Barker Avenue (later became 5515 Barker Avenue). Thomas and Bertha Shankie had two children, Thomas Ramsay Shankie (1920-1996) and Janet Isabella Shankie (Bower) (1923-2014). Around the age of 46 years, Thomas Shankie joined a gym and bought a bicycle to improve his health. By 1955 at the age of 83 years, Thomas Shankie had logged over two hundred thousand miles since buying his first bicycle. His motto was "ride a bicycle if you want to stay young and live long". Thomas also competed in many cycling races. Janet Isabella Shankie Bower (1923-2014) married Charles Franklin "Frank" Bower (1914-2004) in 1947. Janet and Frank Bower had two children; Gordon Franklin Bower (1951-2003) and Janet (Flintroy).

Creator: Stanley, Esther Love

Accession Code: BV015.40; BV016.43; BV022.32

Access Restriction: No restrictions

Reproduction Restriction: No known restrictions

Date: 1896-[2015] (dates of originals)

Media Type: Photograph

Arrangement: Creator as well as descendants maintained original photograph albums along with digital copies of original family records. A selection of digital copies and originals were preserved in the order in which they were maintained and are reflected in the archival descriptions. When original photograph albums were acquired in 2022, some digital surrogates were deaccesioned.

Notes: Title based on contents of fonds; See also Love family fonds; Items of ephemera are described as artifacts in the Burnaby Village Museum artifact collection.

Interview with Bob Lowe 2005 - Track 4

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription4496

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) (0:07:21 min)

Scope and Content: Track 4: This portion of the recording pertains to Bob’s best and worst memories of his childhood, and cultural differences in his community. Bob recalls participation in favourite activities as his best memories, and notes that children of the time were not restricted in their play. He talks of ma…

1 audio

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) (0:07:21 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 4: This portion of the recording pertains to Bob’s best and worst memories of his childhood, and cultural differences in his community. Bob recalls participation in favourite activities as his best memories, and notes that children of the time were not restricted in their play. He talks of making an enterprise of harvesting and selling cascara bark during WWII, when prices rose. Bob describes his worst memories, which are of fires, a flood, and bad fog, and how he was nearly killed as a passenger in a wagon whose horse bolted. He recalls that his family was a minority among the Ukrainian families in the neighborhood.

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

Subjects: Wars - World War, 1939-1945; Natural Phenomena - Fires; Natural Phenomena - Floods

Names: Lowe, Robert "Bob"

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: Title based on contents of item

Audio Tracks

Interview with Bob Lowe 2005 - Track 4, 1930-1949 (interview content), interviewed May 2005

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_BVM_Sound_Recordings/Oral_Histories/2017_0045_0006_004.mp3

Interview with Kalwant Singh "Nadeem" Parmar

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription19346

Repository: Burnaby Village Museum

Date: [1600-2022] (interview content), interviewed 7 Oct. 2022

Collection/Fonds: Burnaby Village Museum fonds

Description Level: Item

Physical Description: 2 sound recordings (wav) (111 min., 51 sec.) + 1 sound recording (mp3) (111 min., 51 sec.)

Scope and Content: Item consists of a recording of an oral history interview with Kalwant Singh "Nadeem" Parmar conducted by interviewers, Anushay Malik and Rajdeep with assistance from Burnaby Village Museum Assistant Curator, Kate Petrusa. During the interview Kalwant Singh "Nadeem" Parmar discusses and provides in…

1 audio

Repository: Burnaby Village Museum

Collection/Fonds: Burnaby Village Museum fonds

Series: Museum Oral Histories series

Subseries: South Asian Canadian Interviews subseries

Description Level: Item

Physical Description: 2 sound recordings (wav) (111 min., 51 sec.) + 1 sound recording (mp3) (111 min., 51 sec.)

Material Details: Interviewers: Anushay Malik, Rajdeep Co Interviewer and technical support: Kate Petrusa Interviewee: Nadeem Parmar Location of Interview: Residence of Nadeem Parmar in Burnaby Interview Date: October 7, 2022 Total Number of tracks: 2 Total Length of all Tracks: 01:51:51 min Digital master recordings (wav) were recorded onto two separate audio tracks, edited and merged together and converted to mp3 for access on Heritage Burnaby

Scope and Content: Item consists of a recording of an oral history interview with Kalwant Singh "Nadeem" Parmar conducted by interviewers, Anushay Malik and Rajdeep with assistance from Burnaby Village Museum Assistant Curator, Kate Petrusa. During the interview Kalwant Singh "Nadeem" Parmar discusses and provides information on; his ancestral background, his education, his employment background, his experiences of racial discrimmination as a South Asian immigrant, saw mills established by South Asian relations in Paldi (Vancouver Island), in North Vancouver and Burnaby, family relations in the South Asian Canadian community and in regions in Punjab, the caste system, his literary works, locations of family homes in Burnaby, the architectural design of his house, personal stories and anecdotal information as a South Asian Canadian living and working in Canada. 00:00 – 01:45 The framework and purpose of the interview is explained to interviewee Nadeem Parmar by interviewers Rajdeep and Anushay Malik. The interviewers explain how the information from this interview can be drawn on for Burnaby Village Museum’s future exhibits and also how researchers will learn more about the history of the South Asian community in Burnaby through residents’ stories. Interview begins with Nadeem providing his full name "Kulwant Singh Parmar". He clarifies that his name was given to him by his grandfather who was a civil engineer and that his father also worked as a civil engineer. Nadeem expresses that he was born with a “silver spoon in his mouth” as a descendent of his maternal grandfather who was a successful landlord. Nadeem explains that when the Partition of India came into effect, (1947) he was 11 years old. He and his family left the partitioned side, his native village was located in Punjab and his forefathers were located in Rajasthan. 3:20 – 4:57 Nadeem explains further about his forefathers who came from Rajasthan. He shares information about his ancestor on his father’s side, named Vijay Singh who was friends with Emperor Jahangir. When fighting began against Jahangir he left the area to head to the middle of central India, then to the Punjab area with small states. As a clan, as a Parmar, he conveys there were about eleven or twelve villages with the same name. Interviewer, Anushay helps Nadeem to clarify the time period of this information. Nadeem refers to the time period being similar to the epic historical film “Moghal-e-Azam” and Anushay confirms the time period being the 1600s when they left Rajasthan. 4:58 – 10:59 Interviewer Anushay asks Nadeem to about his migration to Canada. Nadeem conveys that his first ancestor on his in-laws side of the family migrated around 1889. Further discussion ensues about reading Punjabi and how interviewer Rajdeep can read Punjabi and that she comes from the village of "Lakhpur" in Punjab. Rajdeep notes that “Lakhpur” is near "Phagwara". Nadeem clarifies that his village is "Panchat" and this family used to live in "Phagwara". and Nadeem and Rajdeep compare their familiarity and memories of the area. Nadeem conveys some of his comments in Punjabi and then changes to English. Nadeem recollects when the Japanese bombarded Shillong, he was around seven years old and attended missionary school. The only languages that were taught were English and Persian. Nadeem conveys that his mother had hopes of Nadeem becoming an army officer and moving up the ranks but Nadeem wasn’t interested. Nadeem attended college, graduated with a Bachelor of Science, BSC with Physics and Chemistry, followed by another Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and finally a degree in his favourite subject in the language of Urdu. He completed these degrees in Punjab in Doaba College, Jalandher. Nadeem recollects how he started teaching but wasn’t getting paid very well. When he was at college, with encouragement from his professor, Veer Pankalia [sic] he began writing poetry and short plays. His professor also introduced him to a famous poet of Punjab, Mila Ram Offa [sic] and he gave him the name of Nadeem. Nadeem explains the meaning of the name “Nadeem” “…the one who know about it, inside out…” even though we generally think of the meaning being “friend” it’s not just about friend. 11:00 -24:48 Nadeem provides background information on how he ended up marrying his future wife who was born in India and immigrated to Canada with her family. Nadeem explains how the marriage was arranged through family relations that were already established in Punjab over a century ago. One of his wife’s ancestors, head of the family called “baniye” (traders) immigrated to Canada in [1899]. This relation returned to Punjab where he had nephews, the youngest of the nephews was Nadeem’s father (Lashman Singh Manhas) in law’s father (Sher Singh Manhas). He expresses that his wife’s ancestor couldn’t bring Nadeem’s father in law’s father since he was only 12 or 13 years old but he brought three of the nephews back to Canada with him. The nephews were named, Pola Singh, Ginaya Singh and Doman Singh (also named Dolmans). He describes how the group left India but it took them two to three years before they arrived in Canada. The group travelled to Burma, Indonesia and Hong Kong before landing in San Francisco. From San Francisco they walked and worked on the rail line before entering Canada and arriving in Grand Forks. The men got work on the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) and eventually made their way to the lower mainland. Nadeem conveys that the younger brother of Ginaya Singh, Maya Singh joined the others in Canada taking the same route, arriving in Bridal Falls where they were working at a saw mill and in CP rail construction. He describes Maya Singh as business minded and since he was too young to work in the mill, he began working as a cook and then began growing potatoes on land that he leased from a Dutch land owner. The local mill at Bridal Falls was facing bankruptcy and Maya Singh arranged to lease the mill, eventually buying it. From there the group moved their business to Strawberry Hill in Surrey and when the sale of logs declined, they moved over to Vancouver Island and established a sawmill with Doman Singh in the community of Paldi (originally known as Mayo Lumber) near Duncan. He explains further how the South Asian community helped each other like they did back home. He clarifies that his father in law’s father is the youngest cousin of Ginaya and Doman Singh and when he died, his father in law’s younger brother started Kashmir Lumber. Eventually his father in law (Lashman Singh Manhas) and the rest of the whole family including cousins and nephews were sponsored by their relations and immigrated to Canada. Nadeem explains how in 1959, his brother in law returned home to Punjab to get married, bringing his family with him. He tells of how during this time period, a marriage was arranged by his parents for him to marry his future wife. Nadeem recollects how this came to be. Nadeem and his wife Surjeet married in Punjab in December 1960, Nadeem was 24 years old and his wife was 18 years old. 24:49 – 39:42 Nadeem describes how he obtained his teaching degree from Ramgarhia College in Phagwara (located in the Kapurhtala district of Punjab) and after a disagreement with a teacher at home, he decided to go to England. He explains how he joined his brother who had moved to England and was working as a labourer. Nadeem tells of the difficulties he faced applying for a teaching job in England and how he had to go back to school to help with his English pronunciation. Nadeem explains that after taking this course, he got work teaching Grade two students which he felt was below his qualifications (he mentions that while living in Punjab, he was a Secondary School teacher) and the pay was very low. He discovered that his brother was making more money working as a labourer so Nadeem became discouraged and quit. When Nadeem couldn’t find work as a labourer, his brother advised him to shave off his beard. Nadeem conveys how difficult it was for him to shave off his beard and how once he was clean shaven he got work as a sweeper in a factory. He shares his experience of working in the factory and of how with his former education he got himself promoted to a more technical position. With encouragement from his employer, Nadeem enrolled in technical courses which lead to him obtaining an HNC Engineering Degree. He completed the course work in two years, obtaining skills in microwave communication becoming the senior test engineer at the factory. While working in this position, Nadeem shares how he suffered discrimination when he was passed over for a senior chief engineer position at the factory by a less educated and experienced employee. 39:43 – 53:38 Nadeem recollects how things changed for him in the 1970s. It began with his father in law (Lashman Singh Manhas) passing away in 1970 while he and his family were living on 18th Street in Burnaby. His father in law had been working at the saw mill, Kashmir Lumber Company in North Vancouver that was owned by his father in law’s younger brother (Kashmir Singh Manhas). The mill had burnt down and many of the workers lost everything. Nadeem confides that during this time, his wife was suffering from depression and wanted to be with her mother back in Canada now that her father had passed away. Nadeem emphasizes how his wife’s family (over 300 relatives) in Canada often get together every year on July 1st in Paldi near Duncan. In 1972, Nadeem arrived in Canada on his own to find work but was unsuccessful so he and his wife made plans to move to Uganda where he was offered a job. In 1973, when his visa didn’t come through for Uganda, Nadeem, his wife and two children decided to come to Canada. Nadeem describes that after several unsuccessful experiences to find skilled work in Canada, he eventually found work at Canadian National Telecommunications. During this time, Nadeem and his family lived with his father in law’s family at 5216 Pandora Street in Burnaby and in 1974, Nadeem purchased a house at 131 Fell Avenue in Burnaby. Nadeem provides further details of when the families lived at these different addresses and how in 1983 he had a house built on Woodsworth Street where he is still living now. He conveys some of the history of the lot where his current house resides including details on the lot subdivision, lot ownership and the cost of building his new house. Nadeem tells of how he designed his home with help from his son who was working as an apprentice with architect Arthur Erikson at the time. He describes the architectural interior as an open concept design, in an “L” shape in honour of his father “Lakhmir Singh”. Nadeem shares information on his mother’s name which was Jamna (prior to her marriage) and became Davinder Kaur after she was married. (Note: Jamna was her name before marriage. Traditionally after a woman is married, her husband’s family changes her first name because she is now considered a part of a new family). 53:39 – 58:56 Nadeem provides information on his career working as CNCP technician working with CPIC systems and how he was promoted to a new position. Nadeem inserts a quote from a Punjabi poem which he translates to English as “Somebody asked the blind people. What do you need? He said, do you need two eyes?, he said, what else do I need?”. Nadeem conveys how in 1986 his mother passed away so he went back home to the village of Lakhpur where his father and younger brother were living. His father and younger brother were on their own and in 1986 they decided to demolish the family home. He explains that there’s a college there now and that a library was built at this location in the name of his grandfather. 58:57 – 1:04:38 Nadeem shares how he suffered a heart attack in 1990 during the marriage ceremony of his son in Williams Lake. Nadeem talks about the complicated relations of the South Asian families and the saw mill owners in Paldi and comments on the problems with the caste system that provokes discrimination within the South Asian community. Nadeem refers to disputes that arose amongst mill owners and investors that included Kapoor Singh Siddoo, Mayo Singh, Gurdial Singh Teja and Ginaya Singh which caused problems amongst his family and also lead to Kapoor Singh selling his portion of the mill. Nadeem spells “Ginaya” Singh’s name and explains that this name is the nickname for “Krishna”. Nadeem provides his insight into the joint ownership of the saw mills located in Paldi and how the the joint ownership was dissolved in 1952. Nadeem clarifies that Ginaya Singh also left Paldi and that Ginaya Singh’s wife is his mother in law’s aunt and that he also moved to Burnaby. Nadeem explains the proper name spelling of mill owner “Mayo Singh” and that the correct spelling is actually “Mayan Singh” but he changed it to “Mayo” when it was mis-pronounced. Nadeem also comments on the problems that he encountered in 1970 on the pronunciation of his own name while living in England and at one point his employer referred to him as “Paul”. 1:04:39 – 1:18:50 Nadeem relays that when he emigrated from India and to Canada that he carried his personal possessions in a small suitcase made from cardboard since the weight limit on the airplane was just three pounds. He conveys that many of his relations have all suffered from heart problems including Ginaya Singh and his children. Nadeem shares that Ginaya Singh’s three sons all lived in Burnaby. Nadeem conveys that many South Asians lived in Burnaby and many worked at saw mills in North Vancouver and in the L&K sawmill near Pemberton. Nadeem explains further about the how the disagreements came to be between Mayo Singh and Kapoor Singh. He describes how each had a different business strategy in harvesting lumber and that there were feuds amongst the families. Nadeem provides further details on the root of the family feuds. Nadeem provides definitions for certain Punjabi terms that he’s using including “Mehta”(meaning lowest class of farmers, foreigner as well head as a title given to people of a clan living in the area) and ‘Panchat”, the name of his family village that was built and founded by five brothers and one nephew (Panj- meaning five and the sound “cht” meaning six). Nadeem explains that these terms were given to people from his own clan living in the area because it was small. Nadeem explains further about status that is based on money and the Punjabi terms “Parsu”, “Parsa” and “Pasaram” that are often used to describe a person. When you are poor the term “Parsu” is used and when you become rich the term “Pasaram” is used. Nadeem refers to Mayo Singh as a Pasaram as the second most successful millner in British Columbia, second to Frederick John Hart. Nadeem mentions that Ginaya Singh, elder brother to Mayo Singh helped provide the finances to start the mill and when there was a disagreement, Ginaya Singh left the mill business, moved his family to Burnaby and began working in insurance. Nadeem shares the sad story of Ginaya Singh’s sudden death (in 1953). Nadeem states that many of the people who left the mills at Paldi went to work at the Kapoor Mill in Burnaby and some relocated to the Interior of British Columbia. Nadeem mentions that his father in law (Lashman Singh Manhas) was able to purchase a house on 18th Street in along with other residences that he bought with his hard earned money working in the farms and mills, 16 hours per day, seven days a week. 1:18:51 – 1:32:04 Nadeem explains why he thinks that most South Asian people worked in the mills in the earlier days. Nadeem conveys that since Sikh men wore beards and turbans they encountered discrimination and were unable to get work in the business community. Nadeem shares his own personal experiences of wearing a turban and the discrimination he’s encountered while living in Scotland and Canada. Nadeem mentions that a defense committee was formed to protect the Gurdwaras and people’s homes from being vandalized due to racial discrimination. Nadeem describes some of the troubles that he’s encountered in his own neighbourhood when he had to call the police. Nadeem shares a personal experience just after 9/11 where he was the target of racial discrimination in the parking lot of Burnaby Lake. Nadeem emphasizes that he has experienced many incidents of racial discrimination, especially in the workplace and that this was not unusual for him. 1:32:05 – 1:36:19 Nadeem talks about his interest in writing and his many literary works including 12 novels that he’s written in Punjabi. Nadeem highlights a few books that he’s written including a book titled “Rape” and another one titled “Sponsorship” which conveys the complex nature of people immigrating to Canada. Nadeem mentions a particular book about AIDS, titled “Wide Net” that he’s been trying to get published. Nadeem speaks to the challenges and high costs of trying to get his works published. Nadeem provides a brief synopsis of his book “Wide Net”. Nadeem relays that this is a personal account of a gay couple that he knew where one of the partners died of AIDS and that the couple gave Nadeem permission to tell their tragic story. 1:36:20 – 1:51:51 Nadeem talks about his children and compares their experiences to his own as a South Asian immigrant. Nadeems talks about the accomplishments of his son, his daughter and grandchildren including their education and careers. Nadeem says that his children are well educated and well established in their careers. Nadeem’s children attended Capitol Hill Elementary School and North Burnaby High School in Burnaby. Nadeem shares specifics of his son’s career history. Nadeem expresses that he still considers Canada to be the best country for opportunities and that he prefers to live in Burnaby rather than Surrey and shares some personal anecdotes. Nadeem lists some local places that he’s shopped for South Asian groceries and spices rather than travelling to Surrey. He mentions shopping at Kelly Douglas, stores in Chinatown, small grocers on Capitol Hill, Patel’s on Commercial Drive and Main Street. As an aside Nadeem mentions that he worked as a security guard and the wages that he earned. Nadeem comments that he has been awarded various certificates and certifications from his education and career over the years, including a Bachelor of Science. The interviewers further express their interest in seeing the cardboard case that Nadeem brought with him when immigrating to Canada. In closing Nadeem states that his favourite food from back home was kheer (rice pudding).

History: Interviewee biography: Kalwant Singh "Nadeem" Parmar was born June 9, 1936, Chuck 138 in Lyalpur (India before 1947) to parents Lakhmir Singh Parmar and Davinder Kaur Jamana Parmar. Nadeem grew up in the village of Panchat in the northern region of Punjab, India. Nadeem married his wife Surjeet in Punjab in 1960. After marrying the couple immigrated to England where Nadeem was already working. While living in England, Nadeem and Surjeet had two children. After Surjeet's father died in Canada in 1972, Nadeem, Surjeet and their two children immgrated to Canada, joining Surjeet's family who were living in Burnaby. After Nadeem immigrated to Burnaby in 1973 he worked various jobs before working with CN/CP Telecommunications. Nadeem holds a Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Teaching from Punjab University and a diploma from the London Board of Education (L.B.E.) and a P.Eng. from Lancaster. He has seven books published in Punjabi, three in Urdu and is published in eight anthologies. He is fluent in Punjabi, Urdu, and Hindi. Interviewers' biographies: Anushay Malik is labor historian with a geographical focus on South Asia. Anushay studied at the University of London and was a research fellow at the International Institute of Social History in Amsterdam, Netherlands. In 2014, Anushay moved back to her native Pakistan and joined Lahore University of Management Services as an Assistant Professor. In 2023, Anushay is a visiting scholar at Simon Fraser University and lives in Burnaby with her family. Anushay was a co-curator of the Burnaby Village Museum exhibit “Truths Not Often Told: Being South Asian in Burnaby”. Rajdeep was born and raised in the Lower Mainland and is of Punjabi (South Asian) descent. She has an Associate of Arts degree in Asian Studies from Kwantlen Polytechnic University, a Bachelor of Arts (Hons.) in Anthropology from the University of British Columbia. She is a student in the Restoration of Natural Systems program at the University of Victoria. Rajdeep works at Simon Fraser University as a Program Assistant and as a researcher with the City of Burnaby. At Burnaby Village Museum, Rajdeep contributed to the exhibit “Truths Not Often Told: Being South Asian in Burnaby”.

Creator: Burnaby Village Museum

Subjects: Buildings - Commercial - Grocery Stores; Buildings - Industrial - Saw Mills; Buildings - Industrial - Factories; Education; Employment; Industries - Logging/lumber; Migration; Occupations - Engineers; Occupations - Millworkers; Occupations - Teachers; Occupations - Writers; Persons - South Asian Canadians; Social Issues; Social Issues - Racism

Names: Parmar, Kalwant Singh "Nadeem"; Kapoor Sawmills Limited; Siddoo, Kapoor Singh; Teja, Gurdial Singh; Parmar, Surjeet Kaur; Manhas, Ghania Singh; Singh, Mayo; Manhas, Kashmir Singh; Manhas, Sher Singh; Manhas, Budhan Kaur; Manhas, Lashman Singh

Responsibility: Malik, Anushay; Rajdeep

Geographic Access: Woodsworth Street

Accession Code: BV022.29.1

Access Restriction: No restrictions

Reproduction Restriction: No known restrictions

Date: [1600-2022] (interview content), interviewed 7 Oct. 2022

Media Type: Sound Recording

Historic Neighbourhood: Capitol Hill (Historic Neighbourhood)

Planning Study Area: Douglas-Gilpin Area; Capitol Hill Area

Related Material: See also BV022.29.5 - Interview with Surjeet Kaur Parmar

Notes: Title based on contents of item; Spelling of "Ginaya Singh" found as "Ghania Singh Manhas" in obituary and death certificate; Interview is conducted in English with various segments of discussion in Punjabi; Transcript of interview available upon request

Audio Tracks

Interview with Kalwant Singh

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_BVM_Sound_Recordings/Oral_Histories/2022_0029_0001_003.mp3

Interview with Ken Yip May 9, 2005 - Track 1

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription4531

Repository: Burnaby Village Museum

Date: 1950s & 1960s (interview content), interviewed May 9, 2005

Collection/Fonds: Burnaby Village Museum fonds

Description Level: Item

Physical Description: 1 sound recording (mp3) (0:13:37 min)

Scope and Content: Track 1: This portion of the recording pertains to Ken’s family responsibilities, school activities, and friends. Ken relates how his father received a veteran’s land grant after the Second World War, on Byrne Rd. in the Big Bend area of Burnaby, and how his family operated a market garden on the l…

1 audio

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) (0:13:37 min)

Material Details: Interviewer: Tom Gooden Interviewee: Ken Yip Date of interview: May 9, 2005 Total Number of Tracks: 5 Total length of all Tracks: 0:62:00

Scope and Content: Track 1: This portion of the recording pertains to Ken’s family responsibilities, school activities, and friends. Ken relates how his father received a veteran’s land grant after the Second World War, on Byrne Rd. in the Big Bend area of Burnaby, and how his family operated a market garden on the land, selling their produce to Kelly Douglas, Woodward’s, and MacDonald’s Consolidated. Ken describes how he moved to North Burnaby in the early 1970s, near Sperling Ave. and Lougheed Hwy., and then to the Burnaby General Hospital area when he married a few years later. He speaks of attending Riverside Elementary School, McPherson Junior High School, and Burnaby South High School. Ken recalls having little free time as a child. He speaks of working on the farm after he finished his homework, and playing there with his brother. He describes his household chores, and the additional responsibilities he took on as he grew older and acquired more skills. Ken talks of being in the school band with his friends, their activities and travel and their trip to Montreal for Expo in 1967. He discusses his interests and his family’s expectations of him and his brother.

History: Recording of an interview with Ken Yip recording by Tom Gooden on May 9, 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 1950s and 60s.

Creator: Burnaby Village Museum

Subjects: Persons - Veterans

Names: Yip, Ken; McPherson Park Junior Secondary School; Riverside Elementary School; Burnaby South High School

Accession Code: BV017.45.5

Access Restriction: No restrictions

Reproduction Restriction: May be restricted by third party rights

Date: 1950s & 1960s (interview content), interviewed May 9, 2005

Media Type: Sound Recording

Notes: Title based on contents of item

Audio Tracks

Interview with Ken Yip May 9, 2005 - Track 1, 1950s & 1960s (interview content), interviewed May 9, 2005

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_BVM_Sound_Recordings/Oral_Histories/2017_0045_0005_001.mp3

Interview with Merrill M. Gordon by Rod Fowler March 19, 1990 - Track 4

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/oralhistory475

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Date Range: 1946-1987

Length: 00:06:32

Summary: This portion of the interview is about Merrill Gordon’s career at Canadian Industries Inc (CIL) for a few years and then for Fleck Brothers until 1965, when he started his own business, Blaze Industries, which manufactured fire places and wood burning heaters. He also describes his short retirement…

1 image 1 audio

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Summary: This portion of the interview is about Merrill Gordon’s career at Canadian Industries Inc (CIL) for a few years and then for Fleck Brothers until 1965, when he started his own business, Blaze Industries, which manufactured fire places and wood burning heaters. He also describes his short retirement in 1980 and going back to work for a solar panel manufacturing company, which led to building a plant in India.

Date Range: 1946-1987

Photo Info: Burnaby Alderman Merrill Gordon (second from right) following a candidates' meeting, 1973. Item no. 480-263

Length: 00:06:32

Subjects: Occupations

Interviewer: Fowler, Rod

Interview Date: March 19, 1990

Scope and Content: Recording is of an interview with Merrill Gordon, conducted by Rod Fowler.Gordon Merrill was one of eleven participants interviewed as part of the SFU/Burnaby Centennial Committee's oral history series titled, "Voices of Burnaby". The interview is about Merrill Gordon’s childhood in the Depression, including his story about the family’s difficult trek to Burnaby from Alberta; his education, teachers and first volunteer activities at Grandview High School; his career at Fleck Brothers and the start of his own company Blaze Industries and later work in India; and his many volunteer activities in Burnaby. He describes how he started the Cliff Avenue United Football Club, the soccer club's subsequent growth and development, some of the people involved, and the founding of the youth soccer exchange. He also describes his work on the Parks Board and in the arts community, including the 1987 arts centre referendum, and involvement with the Burnaby Mountain Preservation Society (1988- ), and mentions his work for other groups including the New Vista Society, library board, and Burnaby Mental Health Committee. He also talks about his political career with the Better Burnaby Committee and Burnaby Voters Association, resulting in his 1972 election to Burnaby’s 1973 council. To view “Narrow By” terms for each track expand this description and see “Notes”.

Biographical Notes: Merrill M. Gordon was born in Saskatchewan in 1929 to parents farming north of North Battleford. After a fifth year of crop failure the family of four left the farm in 1934 to join relatives living near the corner of Union and Sperling in Burnaby. With little resources the family adapted as well as possible in the Depression years, moving often in the East Vancouver/North Burnaby area in an attempt to better their situation. Merrill’s father obtained work at sawmills including Kapoor’s Sawmill at Barnet, walking to work over Burnaby Mountain. After attending numerous public schools, Merrill Gordon eventually spent three years at Templeton School and then completed his education at Grandview High School of Commerce, majoring in accounting and commercial law. He worked a few years at Canadian Industries Ltd., then joined Fleck Brothers. In 1965 Merrill Gordon and his wife started their own company Blaze Industries of Canada that manufactured wood burning fireplaces, selling the company to AB Electrolux in 1980. After a short retirement, Merrill Gordon went back to work in 1981 for a company manufacturing solar panels, one project taking him and his wife intermittently to India over a four year period. Merrill Gordon helped found the political group Better Burnaby Committee, later the Burnaby Voters Association, with Alan Emmott and Bill Lewarne, ran for Burnaby Municipal Council and served one year as councillor in 1973. Merrill Gordon is well known for his over 40 years of volunteer work in Burnaby, particularly as founder in 1956 and director of the Cliff Avenue United Football Club, one of the largest soccer clubs in BC. He was also the founder of Burnaby Youth Soccer and the first youth soccer exchange with Washington State. His other volunteer work includes library trustee, Parks Commissioner (1987-1992), Director of New Vista Home for Seniors, Chair of campaign raising funds for building Shadbolt Arts Centre, and Chair of the Burnaby Mental Health Committee. In 1988 Merrill Gordon, Betty Gordon, Dean Lamont and several others formed the Burnaby Mountain Preservation Society, which advocated for the return of unused land to Burnaby from SFU and the subsequent creation of Burnaby Mountain Conservation Area. Merrill Gordon and Elizabeth Balfour (nee Leitch) (1926-2012) married in 1953 and had two children.

Total Tracks: 11

Total Length: 1:31:44

Interviewee Name: Gordon, Merrill

Interview Location: unknown

Interviewer Bio: Rod Fowler returned to university as a mature student in the 1980s after working about twenty years in the field of economics and computerization in business in England, Europe and Western Canada. He graduated with a BA from SFU in both History and Sociology in 1987, his MA degree in Geography in 1989, and his PhD in Cultural Geography at SFU. He taught courses in Geography, Sociology, History and Canadian Studies at several Lower Mainland colleges, before becoming a full time member of the Geography Department at Kwantlen University College.

Collection/Fonds: SFU/Burnaby Centennial Committee fonds

Series: Centennial Oral History project series

Transcript Available: Transcript available

Media Type: Sound Recording

Web Notes: Interviews were digitized in 2015 allowing them to be accessible on Heritage Burnaby. The digitization project was initiated by the Community Heritage Commission with support from City of Burnaby Council.

Images

Burnaby Alderman Merrill Gordon (second from right) following a candidates' meeting, 1973. Item no. 480-263 thumbnail

Audio Tracks

Track four of interview with Merrill Gordon

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_Archives_Oral_Histories/_Unrestricted/MSS187-020/MSS187-020_Track_4.mp3

Interview with Merrill M. Gordon by Rod Fowler March 19, 1990 - Track 5

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/oralhistory476

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Date Range: 1935-1956

Length: 00:04:56

Summary: This portion of the interview is about Merrill Gordon’s marriage and move to Burnaby in 1953, and settling at the house near Cliff Avenue United Church in 1956. He talks about his first encounters with volunteering at Ratepayer meetings attended by his father, and in dance and drama activities at s…

1 image 1 audio

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Summary: This portion of the interview is about Merrill Gordon’s marriage and move to Burnaby in 1953, and settling at the house near Cliff Avenue United Church in 1956. He talks about his first encounters with volunteering at Ratepayer meetings attended by his father, and in dance and drama activities at school.

Date Range: 1935-1956

Photo Info: Burnaby Alderman Merrill Gordon (second from right) following a candidates' meeting, 1973. Item no. 480-263

Length: 00:04:56

Subjects: Persons - Volunteers; Education

Historic Neighbourhood: Lochdale (Historic Neighbourhood)

Planning Study Area: Lochdale Area

Interviewer: Fowler, Rod

Interview Date: March 19, 1990

Scope and Content: Recording is of an interview with Merrill Gordon, conducted by Rod Fowler.Gordon Merrill was one of eleven participants interviewed as part of the SFU/Burnaby Centennial Committee's oral history series titled, "Voices of Burnaby". The interview is about Merrill Gordon’s childhood in the Depression, including his story about the family’s difficult trek to Burnaby from Alberta; his education, teachers and first volunteer activities at Grandview High School; his career at Fleck Brothers and the start of his own company Blaze Industries and later work in India; and his many volunteer activities in Burnaby. He describes how he started the Cliff Avenue United Football Club, the soccer club's subsequent growth and development, some of the people involved, and the founding of the youth soccer exchange. He also describes his work on the Parks Board and in the arts community, including the 1987 arts centre referendum, and involvement with the Burnaby Mountain Preservation Society (1988- ), and mentions his work for other groups including the New Vista Society, library board, and Burnaby Mental Health Committee. He also talks about his political career with the Better Burnaby Committee and Burnaby Voters Association, resulting in his 1972 election to Burnaby’s 1973 council. To view “Narrow By” terms for each track expand this description and see “Notes”.

Biographical Notes: Merrill M. Gordon was born in Saskatchewan in 1929 to parents farming north of North Battleford. After a fifth year of crop failure the family of four left the farm in 1934 to join relatives living near the corner of Union and Sperling in Burnaby. With little resources the family adapted as well as possible in the Depression years, moving often in the East Vancouver/North Burnaby area in an attempt to better their situation. Merrill’s father obtained work at sawmills including Kapoor’s Sawmill at Barnet, walking to work over Burnaby Mountain. After attending numerous public schools, Merrill Gordon eventually spent three years at Templeton School and then completed his education at Grandview High School of Commerce, majoring in accounting and commercial law. He worked a few years at Canadian Industries Ltd., then joined Fleck Brothers. In 1965 Merrill Gordon and his wife started their own company Blaze Industries of Canada that manufactured wood burning fireplaces, selling the company to AB Electrolux in 1980. After a short retirement, Merrill Gordon went back to work in 1981 for a company manufacturing solar panels, one project taking him and his wife intermittently to India over a four year period. Merrill Gordon helped found the political group Better Burnaby Committee, later the Burnaby Voters Association, with Alan Emmott and Bill Lewarne, ran for Burnaby Municipal Council and served one year as councillor in 1973. Merrill Gordon is well known for his over 40 years of volunteer work in Burnaby, particularly as founder in 1956 and director of the Cliff Avenue United Football Club, one of the largest soccer clubs in BC. He was also the founder of Burnaby Youth Soccer and the first youth soccer exchange with Washington State. His other volunteer work includes library trustee, Parks Commissioner (1987-1992), Director of New Vista Home for Seniors, Chair of campaign raising funds for building Shadbolt Arts Centre, and Chair of the Burnaby Mental Health Committee. In 1988 Merrill Gordon, Betty Gordon, Dean Lamont and several others formed the Burnaby Mountain Preservation Society, which advocated for the return of unused land to Burnaby from SFU and the subsequent creation of Burnaby Mountain Conservation Area. Merrill Gordon and Elizabeth Balfour (nee Leitch) (1926-2012) married in 1953 and had two children.

Total Tracks: 11

Total Length: 1:31:44

Interviewee Name: Gordon, Merrill

Interview Location: unknown

Interviewer Bio: Rod Fowler returned to university as a mature student in the 1980s after working about twenty years in the field of economics and computerization in business in England, Europe and Western Canada. He graduated with a BA from SFU in both History and Sociology in 1987, his MA degree in Geography in 1989, and his PhD in Cultural Geography at SFU. He taught courses in Geography, Sociology, History and Canadian Studies at several Lower Mainland colleges, before becoming a full time member of the Geography Department at Kwantlen University College.

Collection/Fonds: SFU/Burnaby Centennial Committee fonds

Series: Centennial Oral History project series

Transcript Available: Transcript available

Media Type: Sound Recording

Web Notes: Interviews were digitized in 2015 allowing them to be accessible on Heritage Burnaby. The digitization project was initiated by the Community Heritage Commission with support from City of Burnaby Council.

Images

Audio Tracks

Track five of interview with Merrill Gordon

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_Archives_Oral_Histories/_Unrestricted/MSS187-020/MSS187-020_Track_5.mp3

Interview with Merrill M. Gordon by Rod Fowler March 19, 1990 - Track 6

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/oralhistory477

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Date Range: 1956-1990

Length: 00:13:27

Summary: This portion of the interview is about the circumstances behind Merrill Gordon’s founding of the Cliff Avenue United Football Club in 1956, his subsequent involvement and role as President of the club for 15 years, and the growth and history of soccer clubs in Burnaby. He also talks about his frien…

1 image 1 audio

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Summary: This portion of the interview is about the circumstances behind Merrill Gordon’s founding of the Cliff Avenue United Football Club in 1956, his subsequent involvement and role as President of the club for 15 years, and the growth and history of soccer clubs in Burnaby. He also talks about his friend Mark Stockdale who was second president of the club for 16 years and creator of the rose garden on Burnaby Mountain.

Date Range: 1956-1990

Photo Info: Burnaby Alderman Merrill Gordon (second from right) following a candidates' meeting, 1973. Item no. 480-263

Length: 00:13:27

Names: Stockdale, Mark; Cliff Avenue United Football Club; Burnaby Mountain Centennial Rose Garden

Subjects: Persons - Volunteers; Sports - Soccer

Interviewer: Fowler, Rod

Interview Date: March 19, 1990

Scope and Content: Recording is of an interview with Merrill Gordon, conducted by Rod Fowler.Gordon Merrill was one of eleven participants interviewed as part of the SFU/Burnaby Centennial Committee's oral history series titled, "Voices of Burnaby". The interview is about Merrill Gordon’s childhood in the Depression, including his story about the family’s difficult trek to Burnaby from Alberta; his education, teachers and first volunteer activities at Grandview High School; his career at Fleck Brothers and the start of his own company Blaze Industries and later work in India; and his many volunteer activities in Burnaby. He describes how he started the Cliff Avenue United Football Club, the soccer club's subsequent growth and development, some of the people involved, and the founding of the youth soccer exchange. He also describes his work on the Parks Board and in the arts community, including the 1987 arts centre referendum, and involvement with the Burnaby Mountain Preservation Society (1988- ), and mentions his work for other groups including the New Vista Society, library board, and Burnaby Mental Health Committee. He also talks about his political career with the Better Burnaby Committee and Burnaby Voters Association, resulting in his 1972 election to Burnaby’s 1973 council. To view “Narrow By” terms for each track expand this description and see “Notes”.

Biographical Notes: Merrill M. Gordon was born in Saskatchewan in 1929 to parents farming north of North Battleford. After a fifth year of crop failure the family of four left the farm in 1934 to join relatives living near the corner of Union and Sperling in Burnaby. With little resources the family adapted as well as possible in the Depression years, moving often in the East Vancouver/North Burnaby area in an attempt to better their situation. Merrill’s father obtained work at sawmills including Kapoor’s Sawmill at Barnet, walking to work over Burnaby Mountain. After attending numerous public schools, Merrill Gordon eventually spent three years at Templeton School and then completed his education at Grandview High School of Commerce, majoring in accounting and commercial law. He worked a few years at Canadian Industries Ltd., then joined Fleck Brothers. In 1965 Merrill Gordon and his wife started their own company Blaze Industries of Canada that manufactured wood burning fireplaces, selling the company to AB Electrolux in 1980. After a short retirement, Merrill Gordon went back to work in 1981 for a company manufacturing solar panels, one project taking him and his wife intermittently to India over a four year period. Merrill Gordon helped found the political group Better Burnaby Committee, later the Burnaby Voters Association, with Alan Emmott and Bill Lewarne, ran for Burnaby Municipal Council and served one year as councillor in 1973. Merrill Gordon is well known for his over 40 years of volunteer work in Burnaby, particularly as founder in 1956 and director of the Cliff Avenue United Football Club, one of the largest soccer clubs in BC. He was also the founder of Burnaby Youth Soccer and the first youth soccer exchange with Washington State. His other volunteer work includes library trustee, Parks Commissioner (1987-1992), Director of New Vista Home for Seniors, Chair of campaign raising funds for building Shadbolt Arts Centre, and Chair of the Burnaby Mental Health Committee. In 1988 Merrill Gordon, Betty Gordon, Dean Lamont and several others formed the Burnaby Mountain Preservation Society, which advocated for the return of unused land to Burnaby from SFU and the subsequent creation of Burnaby Mountain Conservation Area. Merrill Gordon and Elizabeth Balfour (nee Leitch) (1926-2012) married in 1953 and had two children.

Total Tracks: 11

Total Length: 1:31:44

Interviewee Name: Gordon, Merrill

Interview Location: unknown

Interviewer Bio: Rod Fowler returned to university as a mature student in the 1980s after working about twenty years in the field of economics and computerization in business in England, Europe and Western Canada. He graduated with a BA from SFU in both History and Sociology in 1987, his MA degree in Geography in 1989, and his PhD in Cultural Geography at SFU. He taught courses in Geography, Sociology, History and Canadian Studies at several Lower Mainland colleges, before becoming a full time member of the Geography Department at Kwantlen University College.

Collection/Fonds: SFU/Burnaby Centennial Committee fonds

Series: Centennial Oral History project series

Transcript Available: Transcript available

Media Type: Sound Recording

Web Notes: Interviews were digitized in 2015 allowing them to be accessible on Heritage Burnaby. The digitization project was initiated by the Community Heritage Commission with support from City of Burnaby Council.

Images

Audio Tracks

Track six of interview with Merrill Gordon

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_Archives_Oral_Histories/_Unrestricted/MSS187-020/MSS187-020_Track_6.mp3

Interview with Merrill M. Gordon by Rod Fowler March 19, 1990 - Track 7

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/oralhistory478

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Date Range: 1956-1990

Length: 00:07:05

Summary: This portion of the interview is about Merrill Gordon’s political career and his volunteer work with Cliff Avenue soccer, the Burnaby Mental Health Association, the library board, and the New Vista Society. He talks about his association with Alan Emmott and the founding of the Better Burnaby Commi…

1 image 1 audio

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Summary: This portion of the interview is about Merrill Gordon’s political career and his volunteer work with Cliff Avenue soccer, the Burnaby Mental Health Association, the library board, and the New Vista Society. He talks about his association with Alan Emmott and the founding of the Better Burnaby Committee (BBC), his election to Burnaby Council in 1972 with BVA, and his membership in and work for the federal NDP

Date Range: 1956-1990

Photo Info: Burnaby Alderman Merrill Gordon (second from right) following a candidates' meeting, 1973. Item no. 480-263

Length: 00:07:05

Names: Emmott, Alan H

Subjects: Persons - Volunteers; Officials - Aldermen and Councillors

Interviewer: Fowler, Rod

Interview Date: March 19, 1990

Scope and Content: Recording is of an interview with Merrill Gordon, conducted by Rod Fowler.Gordon Merrill was one of eleven participants interviewed as part of the SFU/Burnaby Centennial Committee's oral history series titled, "Voices of Burnaby". The interview is about Merrill Gordon’s childhood in the Depression, including his story about the family’s difficult trek to Burnaby from Alberta; his education, teachers and first volunteer activities at Grandview High School; his career at Fleck Brothers and the start of his own company Blaze Industries and later work in India; and his many volunteer activities in Burnaby. He describes how he started the Cliff Avenue United Football Club, the soccer club's subsequent growth and development, some of the people involved, and the founding of the youth soccer exchange. He also describes his work on the Parks Board and in the arts community, including the 1987 arts centre referendum, and involvement with the Burnaby Mountain Preservation Society (1988- ), and mentions his work for other groups including the New Vista Society, library board, and Burnaby Mental Health Committee. He also talks about his political career with the Better Burnaby Committee and Burnaby Voters Association, resulting in his 1972 election to Burnaby’s 1973 council. To view “Narrow By” terms for each track expand this description and see “Notes”.

Biographical Notes: Merrill M. Gordon was born in Saskatchewan in 1929 to parents farming north of North Battleford. After a fifth year of crop failure the family of four left the farm in 1934 to join relatives living near the corner of Union and Sperling in Burnaby. With little resources the family adapted as well as possible in the Depression years, moving often in the East Vancouver/North Burnaby area in an attempt to better their situation. Merrill’s father obtained work at sawmills including Kapoor’s Sawmill at Barnet, walking to work over Burnaby Mountain. After attending numerous public schools, Merrill Gordon eventually spent three years at Templeton School and then completed his education at Grandview High School of Commerce, majoring in accounting and commercial law. He worked a few years at Canadian Industries Ltd., then joined Fleck Brothers. In 1965 Merrill Gordon and his wife started their own company Blaze Industries of Canada that manufactured wood burning fireplaces, selling the company to AB Electrolux in 1980. After a short retirement, Merrill Gordon went back to work in 1981 for a company manufacturing solar panels, one project taking him and his wife intermittently to India over a four year period. Merrill Gordon helped found the political group Better Burnaby Committee, later the Burnaby Voters Association, with Alan Emmott and Bill Lewarne, ran for Burnaby Municipal Council and served one year as councillor in 1973. Merrill Gordon is well known for his over 40 years of volunteer work in Burnaby, particularly as founder in 1956 and director of the Cliff Avenue United Football Club, one of the largest soccer clubs in BC. He was also the founder of Burnaby Youth Soccer and the first youth soccer exchange with Washington State. His other volunteer work includes library trustee, Parks Commissioner (1987-1992), Director of New Vista Home for Seniors, Chair of campaign raising funds for building Shadbolt Arts Centre, and Chair of the Burnaby Mental Health Committee. In 1988 Merrill Gordon, Betty Gordon, Dean Lamont and several others formed the Burnaby Mountain Preservation Society, which advocated for the return of unused land to Burnaby from SFU and the subsequent creation of Burnaby Mountain Conservation Area. Merrill Gordon and Elizabeth Balfour (nee Leitch) (1926-2012) married in 1953 and had two children.

Total Tracks: 11

Total Length: 1:31:44

Interviewee Name: Gordon, Merrill

Interview Location: unknown

Interviewer Bio: Rod Fowler returned to university as a mature student in the 1980s after working about twenty years in the field of economics and computerization in business in England, Europe and Western Canada. He graduated with a BA from SFU in both History and Sociology in 1987, his MA degree in Geography in 1989, and his PhD in Cultural Geography at SFU. He taught courses in Geography, Sociology, History and Canadian Studies at several Lower Mainland colleges, before becoming a full time member of the Geography Department at Kwantlen University College.

Collection/Fonds: SFU/Burnaby Centennial Committee fonds

Series: Centennial Oral History project series

Transcript Available: Transcript available

Media Type: Sound Recording

Web Notes: Interviews were digitized in 2015 allowing them to be accessible on Heritage Burnaby. The digitization project was initiated by the Community Heritage Commission with support from City of Burnaby Council.

Images

Audio Tracks

Track seven of interview with Merrill Gordon

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_Archives_Oral_Histories/_Unrestricted/MSS187-020/MSS187-020_Track_7.mp3

Interview with Merrill M. Gordon by Rod Fowler March 19, 1990 - Track 8

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/oralhistory479

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Date Range: 1956-1990

Length: 00:10:17

Summary: This portion of the interview is about Merrill Gordon’s founding and operation of the youth soccer exchange with Washington State, and the importance of soccer to the community. He discusses the problem of isolation between north and south Burnaby, planned development in Burnaby, and the contributi…

1 image 1 audio

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Summary: This portion of the interview is about Merrill Gordon’s founding and operation of the youth soccer exchange with Washington State, and the importance of soccer to the community. He discusses the problem of isolation between north and south Burnaby, planned development in Burnaby, and the contributions of Ratepayer groups and volunteers

Date Range: 1956-1990

Photo Info: Burnaby Alderman Merrill Gordon (second from right) following a candidates' meeting, 1973. Item no. 480-263

Length: 00:10:17

Subjects: Persons - Volunteers; Sports - Soccer; Public Services - Municipal Services; Planning

Interviewer: Fowler, Rod

Interview Date: March 19, 1990

Scope and Content: Recording is of an interview with Merrill Gordon, conducted by Rod Fowler.Gordon Merrill was one of eleven participants interviewed as part of the SFU/Burnaby Centennial Committee's oral history series titled, "Voices of Burnaby". The interview is about Merrill Gordon’s childhood in the Depression, including his story about the family’s difficult trek to Burnaby from Alberta; his education, teachers and first volunteer activities at Grandview High School; his career at Fleck Brothers and the start of his own company Blaze Industries and later work in India; and his many volunteer activities in Burnaby. He describes how he started the Cliff Avenue United Football Club, the soccer club's subsequent growth and development, some of the people involved, and the founding of the youth soccer exchange. He also describes his work on the Parks Board and in the arts community, including the 1987 arts centre referendum, and involvement with the Burnaby Mountain Preservation Society (1988- ), and mentions his work for other groups including the New Vista Society, library board, and Burnaby Mental Health Committee. He also talks about his political career with the Better Burnaby Committee and Burnaby Voters Association, resulting in his 1972 election to Burnaby’s 1973 council. To view “Narrow By” terms for each track expand this description and see “Notes”.

Biographical Notes: Merrill M. Gordon was born in Saskatchewan in 1929 to parents farming north of North Battleford. After a fifth year of crop failure the family of four left the farm in 1934 to join relatives living near the corner of Union and Sperling in Burnaby. With little resources the family adapted as well as possible in the Depression years, moving often in the East Vancouver/North Burnaby area in an attempt to better their situation. Merrill’s father obtained work at sawmills including Kapoor’s Sawmill at Barnet, walking to work over Burnaby Mountain. After attending numerous public schools, Merrill Gordon eventually spent three years at Templeton School and then completed his education at Grandview High School of Commerce, majoring in accounting and commercial law. He worked a few years at Canadian Industries Ltd., then joined Fleck Brothers. In 1965 Merrill Gordon and his wife started their own company Blaze Industries of Canada that manufactured wood burning fireplaces, selling the company to AB Electrolux in 1980. After a short retirement, Merrill Gordon went back to work in 1981 for a company manufacturing solar panels, one project taking him and his wife intermittently to India over a four year period. Merrill Gordon helped found the political group Better Burnaby Committee, later the Burnaby Voters Association, with Alan Emmott and Bill Lewarne, ran for Burnaby Municipal Council and served one year as councillor in 1973. Merrill Gordon is well known for his over 40 years of volunteer work in Burnaby, particularly as founder in 1956 and director of the Cliff Avenue United Football Club, one of the largest soccer clubs in BC. He was also the founder of Burnaby Youth Soccer and the first youth soccer exchange with Washington State. His other volunteer work includes library trustee, Parks Commissioner (1987-1992), Director of New Vista Home for Seniors, Chair of campaign raising funds for building Shadbolt Arts Centre, and Chair of the Burnaby Mental Health Committee. In 1988 Merrill Gordon, Betty Gordon, Dean Lamont and several others formed the Burnaby Mountain Preservation Society, which advocated for the return of unused land to Burnaby from SFU and the subsequent creation of Burnaby Mountain Conservation Area. Merrill Gordon and Elizabeth Balfour (nee Leitch) (1926-2012) married in 1953 and had two children.

Total Tracks: 11

Total Length: 1:31:44

Interviewee Name: Gordon, Merrill

Interview Location: unknown

Interviewer Bio: Rod Fowler returned to university as a mature student in the 1980s after working about twenty years in the field of economics and computerization in business in England, Europe and Western Canada. He graduated with a BA from SFU in both History and Sociology in 1987, his MA degree in Geography in 1989, and his PhD in Cultural Geography at SFU. He taught courses in Geography, Sociology, History and Canadian Studies at several Lower Mainland colleges, before becoming a full time member of the Geography Department at Kwantlen University College.

Collection/Fonds: SFU/Burnaby Centennial Committee fonds

Series: Centennial Oral History project series

Transcript Available: Transcript available

Media Type: Sound Recording

Web Notes: Interviews were digitized in 2015 allowing them to be accessible on Heritage Burnaby. The digitization project was initiated by the Community Heritage Commission with support from City of Burnaby Council.

Images

Audio Tracks

Track eight of interview with Merrill Gordon

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_Archives_Oral_Histories/_Unrestricted/MSS187-020/MSS187-020_Track_8.mp3

Jesse Love farmhouse series

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription9782

Repository: Burnaby Village Museum

Date: [1893-1970] (date of originals), copied 1988-1998, predominant 1988-2000

Collection/Fonds: Burnaby Village Museum fonds

Description Level: Series

Physical Description: approx. 84 cm of textual records + approx. 1,910 photographs + approx. 100 architectural drawings + 3 audio cassettes + 1 videocassette

Scope and Content: Series consists of records involved in the purchase, moving, restoration, research, conservation and exhibiting of the Love family farmhouse by Burnaby Village Museum. Records have been arranged into the following subseries: 1) Love farmhouse conservation work files subseries 2) Love farmhouse re…

Repository: Burnaby Village Museum

Collection/Fonds: Burnaby Village Museum fonds

Series: Jesse Love farmhouse series

Description Level: Series

Physical Description: approx. 84 cm of textual records + approx. 1,910 photographs + approx. 100 architectural drawings + 3 audio cassettes + 1 videocassette

Scope and Content: Series consists of records involved in the purchase, moving, restoration, research, conservation and exhibiting of the Love family farmhouse by Burnaby Village Museum. Records have been arranged into the following subseries: 1) Love farmhouse conservation work files subseries 2) Love farmhouse restoration photographs subseries 3) Love farmhouse curatorial files subseries 4) Love farmouse research files subseries 5) Love family photographs 6) Love farmhouse Oral History subseries 7) Love farmhouse architectural drawings subseries

History: Jesse Love was born in Swindon, England in 1847 and left England to work on a dairy farm in the Toronto area. While working on the farm in Toronto, he met Martha Leonard who he married in 1879. Martha was born on February 3, 1858 in Bedfordshire, England and had come to Canada with her parents George and Ann Leonard. While living in Toronto, Jesse and Martha had two children, George born March 22, 1880 and Annie Elizabeth on August 24, 1881. About one year after Annie was born, the Love family moved to North Dakota to grow wheat. While living there, they had two more children, Henry who was born August 24, 1883 and Edith Minnie born October 9, 1885. The family decided to move further west after hearing about the fairer weather conditions from Martha’s father, George Leonard, who had settled in Vancouver in 1885. On May 23, 1887, Jesse, Martha and their four children arrived in Vancouver after travelling across Canada from Winnipeg on the first transcontinental train. The Loves made their home in Vancouver while Jesse helped clear land on Granville Street. Their fifth child, Thomas Robert was born on September 17, 1887 and soon after, the family moved to Lulu Island in Richmond where they lived growing vegetables and selling them to Vancouver hotels. While living and farming on Lulu island, the couple had two more girls, Martha (Dot or Dorothy) born on December 17, 1889 and Sarah Marie, born February 8, 1892. On October 6, 1893 an agreement was signed by Jesse Love to purchase 14.52 acres of land from Joseph C. Armstrong. The acreage covered the north east section of District Lot 25 within the newly incorporated District of the Municipality of Burnaby. It was here where the original Love house was built (between October 1893 and April 15, 1894) by Jesse Love with the help of local builder George Salt and father in law, George Leonard. The house consisted of an entrance hall, dining room, lean to kitchen, master bedroom and three bedrooms upstairs. A road was constructed and named Cumberland in 1905 and ran from District Lot 25 through to District Lot 11. The address for the Love home was 1390 Cumberland Road and in the early 1960’s the address was renumbered 7651 Cumberland Street. On the land surrounding the house, Jesse Love planted an orchard along with strawberries and raspberries which he sold at the Fraser Valley Market, T.S. Anandale’s Grocery Store in New Westminster and to hotels around Vancouver. Jesse Love served on the Burnaby School Board and also as a District Councillor in 1901 and from 1904-1907. While living in the house, Jesse and Martha had four more children, Phoebe Leonard, born April 15, 1894, Esther, born August 28, 1896, John Leonard, born June 7, 1899 and Hannah Victoria (also known as Girlie) who was born May 12, 1902. As the family grew to eleven children, additions along with some substantial remodelling in the craftsman style took place. In about 1898, a north wing addition was added to include a parlour with two windows, the construction of two more bedrooms and the relocation of the stair case to the North West wall. In 1903 the front door moved to the north elevation, a front porch was extended along the east wall and a summer lean to kitchen was added to the west elevation. Between 1905 and 1910, a tin embossed ceiling was installed along with an addition of the main kitchen which included a pantry, bathtub and a back porch. In about 1912, five craftsman style windows replaced the original pioneer tent style, the front verandah was enlarged to wrap around the south and east elevations, a back door was installed in the kitchen to access the verandah and wood shingle siding and brackets were added to the exterior. In 1918, at the age of 31 years, Robert Love fell ill due to an influenza epidemic and died on November 23, 1918. Following their son’s death, Martha Love became weak and on August 24, 1920, she passed away. By this time, Jesse had sold off a large percentage of his land and his youngest daughter, Girlie decided to stay on to live and care for him. Since the house was too large for just the two of them, Jesse invited any other children to return and share the residence. For a while his son, George and his wife joined them until 1925, followed by his daughter Sarah Parker (nee Love), her husband William and their three children, Albert, Bill and Elsie. The house remained pretty unchanged until 1928 after Jesse Love died of pneumonia (March 10, 1928) and the house was purchased by Sarah and her husband William Parker who continued to live there with their children. The master bedroom wall on the main floor opened up to the dining room, the kitchen pantry and bathtub converted to an alcove with a marble counter and enlarged window and sink while the bathroom was moved to the upstairs and the furnace and coolers were installed in the crawl space under the kitchen. A hot water tank was installed in the house in 1966. Sarah continued to live in the house until a little while after her husband William died in 1961. She sold the house to her daughter Elsie and husband John Hughes in 1966, who lived in the house along with their son Brent, until August 23, 1971. Mahbir Molchan Papan and his wife Geraldine Papan bought the house August 23, 1971 and by 1982, the house was sold to Nirmal Singh Singha and Narinder Singha. The Papans continued to rent the house from Nirmal Singh Singha and Narinder Singha until the late 1980s. In 1988, the house was scheduled for demolition with the remaining property to be subdivided. Fortunately, a neighbour, Mr. Harvey Elder recognized the farmhouse's historical significance and contacted the Burnaby Historical Society. Following this event, the owners agreed to donate the building to the Burnaby Village Museum (under the Century Park Museum Association) who financed the move of the house from Cumberland Street to the museum site. Heritage planner and architect, Robert Lemon provided guidance for the project. Prior to the move, the two porches were removed and demolished while the kitchen and roof were both separated from the main house. The kitchen and roof of the house were transported to Burnaby Village Museum on May 20, 1988 by Nickel Bros. House Moving company, while the main frame of the house completed its transportation to the museum near the end of May 1988 (due to low overhead wires). The house was moved down Cumberland Street to 10th Avenue, up Canada Way to Sperling and set on temporary footings near Hart House. Robert Lemon oversaw structural improvements such as, upgrading floor joists and creating new foundations to replace the original timber foundation of the farmhouse. The restoration went through several phases of work between 1988 until it opened in November 1998. Restoration began on both the interior and exterior features to be interpreted from the period of 1925. On November 23, 1992, the building was designated a heritage building under Heritage Designation Bylaw 1992, Bylaw Number 9807. In 1993, the architecture firm of Brian G. Hart Associates was appointed for the design and construction supervision of the restoration project. Plans were created for a foundation on the museum site in 1989 and the farmhouse was eventually settled on a permanent foundation behind the Burnaby Village Museum administration building in 1993 along with the reattachment of the roof. The kitchen section was reattached to the main house in 1994 along with skirting around the foundation and the reshingling of the exterior. In 1996, the tin ceiling was removed to make way for the installation of the internal electrical system along with sprinklers, ceiling heating and fire break gyprock. The dining room ceiling joists were consolidated, a pantry and bathroom were added to the kitchen, the downstairs bedroom wall was opened and filled, the dining and kitchen doorways were widened. In 1997, a wheelchair ramp was installed along with a concrete sidewalk, stair rails, cement pads at the base of the stairs and a gravel sink for any excess water. Interior work included painting of the kitchen, restoration and furnishing of the kitchen pantry, insulation of the house floor to protect from rodents along with the reconstruction of the kitchen and house chimneys. The registrar worked together with the curator and conservator and was tasked with a large research project on the house including the family contacts and family history, property information, plans, photographs, artifacts, furnishings, stories etc. all organized in files for easy retrieval. A great deal of research and conservation was undertaken in order to make the interior of the house authentic to the time period as possible. One of the biggest projects was selecting and obtaining wall coverings since much of the original wallpaper was incomplete and poor condition. The conservator and registrar were lucky enough to locate a few samples of the original paper and engage the Bradbury and Bradbury Art Wallpaper Company of Benica, California to reproduce replica designs for free. The City of Burnaby now has its own series “Burnaby Village Papers” produced by this company which are titled “Burnaby Wall”; “Burnaby Border” and “Burnaby Ceiling”. All three of these wallpaper designs have been used in the Love farm house and are also commercially available through the Bradbury and Bradbury Art Wallpaper Company. In 1997, restoration of the kitchen was completed and opened to the public. After the completion of the dining room, main floor bedroom and parlour, the Love farmhouse exhibit opened on November 29, 1998 with an open invitation to the public and extended members of the Love family. Officials including the Mayor, Doug Drummond and Love family members were all present to cut the ribbon for the special event.

Accession Code: BV018.41; BV020.5

Access Restriction: Restricted access

Date: [1893-1970] (date of originals), copied 1988-1998, predominant 1988-2000

Media Type: Textual Record; Architectural Drawing; Sound Recording; Moving Images; Photograph

Arrangement: The majority of the records within series and subseries were arranged by a staff members of Burnaby Village Museum who worked on the historical research and restoration of the house. Other photographs documenting the move and further restoration work were added later and included in the arrangment by format and subject.

Notes: Title based on content of series; Jesse Love farmhouse is described as an Artifact under BV988.33.1; Some records within this collection have restricted access and are subject to FIPPA; Accessions BV018.41 and BV020.5 form this fonds

Love family fonds

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription10098

Repository: Burnaby Village Museum

Date: 1881-1971

Collection/Fonds: Love family fonds

Description Level: Fonds

Physical Description: 11 cm of textual records + 44 photographs + 5 plans

Scope and Content: Fonds consists of family records including photographs, land sale records, agreements and plans as well as estate records, vital event documentation and correspondence. Records pertain to members of the Love family including the Parkers, Hughes and Leonards. Fonds has been arranged in the followin…

Repository: Burnaby Village Museum

Collection/Fonds: Love family fonds

Description Level: Fonds

Physical Description: 11 cm of textual records + 44 photographs + 5 plans

Scope and Content: Fonds consists of family records including photographs, land sale records, agreements and plans as well as estate records, vital event documentation and correspondence. Records pertain to members of the Love family including the Parkers, Hughes and Leonards. Fonds has been arranged in the following series: 1) Love and Leonard land records 2) Love family vital events and correspondence 3) Love family photographs

History: Jesse Love was born in Swindon, England in 1847 and left England to work on a dairy farm in the Toronto area. While working on the farm in Toronto, he met Martha Leonard who he married in 1879. Martha was born on February 3, 1858 in Bedfordshire, England and had come to Canada with her parents George and Ann Leonard. While living in Toronto, Jesse and Martha had two children, George born March 22, 1880 and Annie Elizabeth on August 24, 1881. About one year after Annie was born, the Love family moved to North Dakota to grow wheat. While living there, they had two more children, Henry who was born August 24, 1883 and Edith Minnie born October 9, 1885. The family decided to move further west after hearing about the fairer weather conditions from Martha’s father, George Leonard, who had settled in Vancouver in 1885. On May 23, 1887, Jesse, Martha and their four children arrived in Vancouver after travelling across Canada from Winnipeg on the first transcontinental train. The Loves made their home in Vancouver while Jesse helped clear land on Granville Street. Their fifth child, Thomas Robert was born on September 17, 1887 and soon after, the family moved to Lulu Island in Richmond where they lived growing vegetables and selling them to Vancouver hotels. While living and farming on Lulu island, the couple had two more girls, Martha (Dot or Dorothy) born on December 17, 1889 and Sarah Marie, born February 8, 1892. On October 6, 1893 an agreement was signed by Jesse Love to purchase 14.52 acres of land from Joseph C. Armstrong. The acreage covered the north east section of District Lot 25 within the newly incorporated District of the Municipality of Burnaby. It was here where the original Love house was built (between October 1893 and April 15, 1894) by Jesse Love with the help of local builder George Salt and father in law, George Leonard. The house consisted of an entrance hall, dining room, lean to kitchen, master bedroom and three bedrooms upstairs. A road was constructed and named Cumberland in 1905 and ran from District Lot 25 through to District Lot 11. The address for the Love home was 1390 Cumberland Road and in the early 1960’s the address was renumbered 7651 Cumberland Street. On the land surrounding the house, Jesse Love planted an orchard along with strawberries and raspberries which he sold at the Fraser Valley Market, T.S. Anandale’s Grocery Store in New Westminster and to hotels around Vancouver. Jesse Love served on the Burnaby School Board and also as a District Councillor in 1901 and from 1904-1907. While living in the house, Jesse and Martha had four more children, Phoebe Leonard, born April 15, 1894, Esther, born August 28, 1896, John Leonard, born June 7, 1899 and Hannah Victoria (also known as Girlie) who was born May 12, 1902. In 1918, at the age of 31 years, Thomas Robert Love fell ill due to an influenza epidemic and died on November 23, 1918. Following their son’s death, Martha Love became weak and on August 24, 1920, she passed away. By this time, Jesse had sold off a large percentage of his land and his youngest daughter, Girlie decided to stay on to live and care for him. Since the house was too large for just the two of them, Jesse invited any other children to return and share the residence. For a while his son, George and his wife joined them. In 1925 Jesse’s daughter Sarah Parker (nee Love), her husband William Michael Norton Parker and their three children, Albert “Bert” (1915-2011), William Charles “Bill” and Elsie Roberta moved from their home at 1319 Newcombe Street to join Jesse and Girlie in the Love family home on Cumberland. Jesse Love died in 1928 after which Sarah and William Parker purchased the Love family farmhouse and property. William Michael Parker, died in 1961 and Sarah Parker continued to live in the Love family farmhouse until 1966 when she sold it to her daughter Elsie and husband John Hughes. Elsie and John Hughes had four children, John Jr., Ann, Brent and Merle. The Hughes lived in the Love family house until August 1971. In 1988 the Love family farmhouse house was donated to the Burnaby Village Museum and moved to the site of Burnaby Village Museum. The interior of the main floor and exterior of the house went through an extensive restoration process. In 1997, restoration of the kitchen was completed and opened to the public. After the completion of the hallway, dining room, main floor bedroom and parlour, the Love farmhouse exhibit opened on November 29, 1998 with an open invitation to the public and extended members of the Love family.

Responsibility: Love Family

Accession Code: HV979.40; BV985.3136; BV988.45; BV989.3; BV992.15; BV992.26; BV992.34; BV000.45; BV008.20; BV012.31; BV019.3; BV019.8

Date: 1881-1971

Media Type: Textual Record; Photograph; Cartographic Material

Arrangement: Fonds has been arranged by record type and original order provided by members of the Love family.

Notes: Title based on contents of fonds; See also Burnaby Village Museum fonds - Jesse Love farmhouse series

Small family fonds

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription91819

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Date: 1922-2016

Collection/Fonds: Small family fonds

Description Level: Fonds

Physical Description: 75 photographs : b&w & col. + 1 plan

Scope and Content: Fonds consists of photographs documenting the transformation of the Burnaby Lake area of Burnaby, B.C. from semi-rural in the 1920s to urbanized in 2016. Photographs depict the land and houses located on the corner of Douglas Road and Dominion Street as the property was rezoned and its density quad…

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Date: 1922-2016

Collection/Fonds: Small family fonds

Physical Description: 75 photographs : b&w & col. + 1 plan

Description Level: Fonds

Access Restriction: Open access

Reproduction Restriction: May be restricted by third party rights

Accession Number: 2017-01

Scope and Content: Fonds consists of photographs documenting the transformation of the Burnaby Lake area of Burnaby, B.C. from semi-rural in the 1920s to urbanized in 2016. Photographs depict the land and houses located on the corner of Douglas Road and Dominion Street as the property was rezoned and its density quadrupled. Fonds also includes photographs of the Small family house being moved to 5496 Dominion Street and the original landscape plan for 5118 Douglas Road.

History: In 1915, John W. Roberts and his wife Mary Allen Roberts moved from the United States to Canada along with their daughter, Lauretta. On first moving to Canada, the family lived in a rented house in Vancouver and John worked as a movie projectionist in the city. The couple had three more children, all sons: John A., Edward, and Roland. Circa 1921, John purchased a large parcel of land at the corner of Douglas Road and Dominion Street in Burnaby. This parcel encompassed the equivalent of at least six 66-foot lots along the south side of Dominion Street and the same along the north side of Norfolk Street. On their property, a barn and small living quarters were built. The family moved in, raising goats and growing potatoes to supplement their income. They also planted cherry, apple, and pear trees; hazelnut and walnut trees; raspberries; and a large vegetable garden, the fruits of which Mary preserved for year-round use. At this time, agricultural activities were common for families in the area: the Roberts' neighbours kept chickens for personal use and for selling eggs; grew mushrooms for commercial sale; and sold manure from an old buckboard drawn by Clydesdale horses. John built a new house in the middle of the Roberts’ lots on the southwest corner of Douglas Road and Dominion Street. The house faced Douglas Road and overlooked a large, well-landscaped front yard to the east and a full-sized, clay tennis court to the north. The family moved into this new house in 1925. When the Roberts ceased raising goats, the barn and original living quarters were reduced to a double-car garage with storage space plus a sawdust-insulated “root cellar”. John also built a house on the northwest corner of the lot at Douglas Road and Dominion Street (3093 Douglas Road), which was purchased by the Hardy family. In 1957, part of this property (3071 Douglas Road) was sold to the Brocklebanks who built a house and lived there. In addition, John built a house at the northwest corner of Douglas Road and Norfolk Street (5106 Douglas Road). The original purchaser of this house is unknown, but in 1949, it was bought by the Meyers family. In 1952 or 1953, the Meyers sold part of this property and the Manahans built a house on it, facing Douglas Road. Several other lots that John owned were also sold off over the years. By the 1950s, John owned only five 66-foot lots from Douglas Road west, along the south side Dominion Street. In 1954, John sold the lot furthest from Douglas Road (5486 Dominion Street) to a builder who built a “ranch-style” house and put it up for sale. John retired from his career as a movie projectionist in the 1950s. He, Mary, and Lauretta retained their US citizenship all their lives, although they never returned to the USA except for brief visits. John A., Edward, and Roland who, as children of US citizens, also had US citizenship, eventually moved to the US, where they remained for the rest of their lives. In 1945, Lauretta married Frederick Small. The couple lived in a rented house in Vancouver for a few years before moving in with John and Mary in Burnaby. The couple had four children: Elizabeth, Kathryn, Charles, and Martin. In 1955, Frederick purchased the rancher at 5486 Dominion Street and the family moved in. The Small children grew up enjoying the freedom of having their grandparent’s large property in addition to their parent’s yard to play in. The back lane that ran between Dominion Street and Norfolk Street was filled with trees and bushes, creating a narrow bit of “forest” to explore. In 1957, John died. Mary died in 1969, as did Frederick. Lauretta was executor for her mother’s and husband’s estates. After much consideration, she decided to sell the house at 5486 Dominion Street and move back into her childhood home. By doing so, she was able to settle her mother’s estate to the satisfaction of her brothers. Elizabeth married and moved away. Over the next few years, the “Roberts” house was home to Lauretta, Kathryn, Charles, and Martin, with the three grown children moving in and out several times during the 1970s. In 1981, Lauretta died. Her children discussed at length how to divide up the property, which consisted of four 66-foot lots, according to her will. None of her children wanted to see the old family house destroyed but the house straddled two lots. They finally decided that if one of them wanted to pay to move the house to sit on one of the lots, the “value” of the house would not enter into the settlement of the estate. Kathryn chose to do this. In 1982, the old house was moved to 5496 Dominion Street and Kathryn continued to live in it. Martin died in 1982. Elizabeth and Charles each inherited one lot and the last lot, which would have gone to Martin, was sold, the funds divided equally between Elizabeth, Kathryn, and Charles. The three lots between 5496 Dominion Street and Douglas Road were subdivided into 33-foot lots and six new houses were built. In 1993, the Meyers property and the Manahan property were subdivided into 33-foot lots facing Norfolk Street and the old houses were torn down and four new houses were built.

Media Type: Photograph; Technical Drawing

Creator: Small family

Agreement to Sell Lands in DL 95 and 53 to Canada Safeway Limited

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/councilreport44297

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Report ID: 44813

Meeting Date: 19-Dec-1955

Format: Council - Mayor/Councillor/Staff Report

Collection/Fonds: City Council and Office of the City Clerk fonds

2 documents

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Report ID: 44813

Meeting Date: 19-Dec-1955

Format: Council - Mayor/Councillor/Staff Report

Collection/Fonds: City Council and Office of the City Clerk fonds

Documents

Report 44813

19-Dec-1955 Meeting Minutes

Application to Sell the North 100' of Lot 12, DL 149

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/councilreport46145

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Report ID: 45894

Meeting Date: 12-Aug-1953

Format: Council - Mayor/Councillor/Staff Report

Collection/Fonds: City Council and Office of the City Clerk fonds

2 documents

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Report ID: 45894

Meeting Date: 12-Aug-1953

Format: Council - Mayor/Councillor/Staff Report

Collection/Fonds: City Council and Office of the City Clerk fonds

Documents

Report 45894

12-Aug-1953 Meeting Minutes

Elmer Wilson Martin fonds

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription10611

Repository: Burnaby Village Museum

Date: 1934-1973

Collection/Fonds: Elmer Wilson Martin fonds

Description Level: Fonds

Physical Description: 42 photographs + 9 architectural drawings + approx. 4 cm of textual records

Scope and Content: Fonds consists of photographs of E.W. Martin during his military service with the RCAF; development in Burnaby along Winch Street; Martin's Auto Villa on Hastings and Paneloc buildings together with E.W. Martin's military service records and other records relating to E.W. Martin's involvement with …

Repository: Burnaby Village Museum

Collection/Fonds: Elmer Wilson Martin fonds

Description Level: Fonds

Physical Description: 42 photographs + 9 architectural drawings + approx. 4 cm of textual records

Scope and Content: Fonds consists of photographs of E.W. Martin during his military service with the RCAF; development in Burnaby along Winch Street; Martin's Auto Villa on Hastings and Paneloc buildings together with E.W. Martin's military service records and other records relating to E.W. Martin's involvement with Paneloc Marketing Ltd. and other businesses. Fonds is arranged in the following series 1) E.W. Martin photographs series 2) E.W. Martin military records and photographs series 3) E.W. Martin business records series

History: Elmer Wilson Martin (1909-1973) was a professional engineer who lived most of his life in Burnaby. He was born in Treesbank Manitoba to William Henry Martin and Bethia “Bertie” Snell. Elmer married Ellen "Reta" Renetta Boyd (1908-1984) in approx. 1930. The couple moved to Burnaby in 1931 and Elmer graduated from UBC. Following his graduation from UBC, he spent two years at the University of Saskatchewan doing research. From 1936-1937 he worked at the Port Alice mill of the B.C. Pulp and paper Co and later worked for the Boeing aircraft plant at Vancouver. He joined the RCAF in September 1939, serving as chief engineering officer at various Canadian and overseas stations during WWII, until being discharged as a pilot and wing commander in November 1945. He served as NHA assistant regional engineer for a year after his discharge before becoming the owner and operator of Martin Auto Villa at 6574 East Hastings Street in North Burnaby. He was a director of the Burnaby Board of Trade from 1951 and chairman of the Burnaby Industrial Development Board and a member of the Professional Engineers' Association. He ran for Reeve under the Non-Partisan Association in Burnaby's municipal election in 1959 and donated land on Burnaby Mountain for Simon Fraser University. He had many businesses throughout his life including Paneloc Marketing Ltd. and his last one was as Director with the construction company Webb & Knapp Canada Ltd. The couple lived at various locations in Burnaby including, 6574 East Hastings Street eventually settling at 7231 Sutliff Street in North Burnaby in 1957. Elmer's brother, Wilbert Maurice Martin (1907-1980) was also born in Treesbank, Manitoba. Wilbert "Bert" was married to Eva (nee Erhart) Martin (1911-1993). Wilbert and Eva Martin lived on Winch Street in Burnaby. They first lived at 6776 Winch Street before relocating their house to 6656 Winch Street, Burnaby. Wilbert worked in construction as a building contractor and Eva worked as a hostess in the hotel industry. Paneloc buildings were developed by Elmer W. Martin, president of Paneloc Manufacturing Ltd. beginning in 1957 and were based on a design by A.B. Wenaus and Sons Ltd. In 1964, Martin held patents for his design of paneloc buildings in thirty six countries. Since Martin trained as a mechanical engineer, he developed a plan for his home model over a six year period in series of experiments with materials, styles, methods and sizes. Paneloc homes were prefabricated, using specially built bevelled wall panels cut-pie segments to form both the roof and the floor. The wall panels were designed to squeeze together by two metal straps on a turn-buckle basis. The roof and floor were held in place with factory-installed tap block bolts and a long wooden spine which fit in a keyway between the sections. The prefabricated parts were insulated and built with door and window allowances at Harrigan Industries Ltd. in Vancouver where Martin was part owner. Epoxy resin allowed the panels to be assembled without nails using weather-proofed five ply plywood. Sizes of homes varied using four by eight foot wall panels and increasing the span of the floor and roof sections. Harrigan Industries Ltd. continued to sell the prefabricated paneloc buildings until it went into receivership in late 1974.

Creator: Martin, Elmer Wilson

Accession Code: BV015.39; BV019.37; BV019.40

Date: 1934-1973

Media Type: Textual Record; Photograph; Architectural Drawing

Arrangement: The records are organized into three series based on the individual's business work as well as military and personal life. The photograhs series includes both professional and personal content.

Notes: Title based on contents of fonds

Interview with Julie Lee by Denise Fong February 6, 2020

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription12338

Repository: Burnaby Village Museum

Date: [1920-1992] (interview content), interviewed Feb. 6, 2020

Collection/Fonds: Burnaby Village Museum fonds

Description Level: Item

Physical Description: 1 sound recording (mp3) (00:53:46 min.)

Scope and Content: Recording consists of an interview with Julie Lee conducted by Burnaby Village Museum researcher Denise Fong. Julie Lee shares information about her mother, Suey Ying Jung's (Laura's) experiences growing up as a Chinese Canadian on a farm in Burnaby during the 1920s and 1930s. She also shares some …

1 image 1 audio

Repository: Burnaby Village Museum

Collection/Fonds: Burnaby Village Museum fonds

Series: Museum Oral Histories series

Subseries: Chinese Canadians in Burnaby subseries

Description Level: Item

Physical Description: 1 sound recording (mp3) (00:53:46 min.)

Material Details: Interviewer: Denise Fong Interviewee: Julie Lee Location of Interview: Home of Julie and Cecil Lee Interview Date: February 6, 2020 Total Number of Tracks: 1 Total Length of all Tracks: 00:53:46

Scope and Content: Recording consists of an interview with Julie Lee conducted by Burnaby Village Museum researcher Denise Fong. Julie Lee shares information about her mother, Suey Ying Jung's (Laura's) experiences growing up as a Chinese Canadian on a farm in Burnaby during the 1920s and 1930s. She also shares some information about her father Puy Yuen Chan. 0:00- 01:47 Julie Lee provides background information on her families’ connection to Burnaby and conveys how her maternal grandparents farmed a five acre lot at Still Creek and Douglas Road. Her grandparents grew vegetable produce and operated a piggery at this location. Her mother, Suey Ying Jung (Laura) was the middle child between two older sisters, Maida and Annie and her two younger brothers Gordon and Harry. They were all born at home and educated at Edmonds Elementary School. 01:48- 11:47 Julie provides some background information about her mother, the friendships she made growing up, when she got married and places that she lived. She tells of her mother marrying in 1942 at age 30 years, moving to Fraser Mills and then onto Maillardville in 1958. There was easy access to the Interurban tram so her mother was able to have a social life with others in Vancouver’s Chinatown. She says that many of the only existing photographs of the family living on the farm at Still Creek and Douglas Road can be attributed to her mother’s friend Lil Mau [sic] who owned a camera. The farm was sold around 1949 when her grandparents moved to East Vancouver. While operating the farm, her grandparents only hired Chinese workers who spoke the same language and ate the same foods as them. Despite this, her grandparents made friends with the Collin’s family who assisted them in adjusting to the Canadian way of life. Julie tells that her mother’s sister Maida and brother in law lived with them at Fraser Mills. Her mother’s sister Maida had nine children so Julie’s mother helped her in raising them. 11:48 – 16:53 - Julie talks about racial prejudice towards the Chinese in Burnaby during the 1920s and 1930s. She says that for the most part, her mother’s family had a very insular life on the farm and mainly socialized only within the Chinese community. Julie tells of how she recently became aware of a memoir “The Way it Was”, written by Burnaby resident, Fannie Waplington. The memoir is held as part of the Burnaby Village Museum collection. In the memoir, Fannie Waplington tells of how she was forbidden from visiting Julie’s mother on their farm due to her ethnic background. Julie conveys that it seems like it was a missed friendship for both her mother and Fannie. 16:54 – 22:30 Julie describes what school life was like for her mother and what she may have done outside of school. Her mother attended Edmonds School in the 1920s up to Grade 7 or Grade 8. Julie explains that Asian girls were never offered the opportunity to pursue higher education while her mother’s brothers continued with their education attending Vancouver Technical School. Her mother continued to work on the farm until she was married cooking for workers and helping her mother. Outside of school, she may have helped with looking after nieces and nephews, played cards and mahjong. She says that her mother continued to play cards with her own children and was a skilled knitter into her 80s. 22:31 – 30: 53 Julie tells of what she knows about the Chinese workers on the farm and Fraser Mills and what they did on the weekends. She figures that many may have played card games to pass the time and at Fraser Mills gambling occurred. Fishing was a highlight for her father and she recalls him fishing sturgeon. Single workers may have gone into Vancouver on the weekends. Julie says that her parents had a hobby farm while living at Fraser Mills and that they grew enough garlic to sell in Chinatown. She thinks that before living at Fraser Mills, her mother must have went to Chinatown quite a bit, assisting with banking and enjoying a social life. Julie shares that her father, Puy Yuen Chan came to Canada from China at twelve years of age but working as a shingle packer, he never learned to speak English. She figures that her parents must have met at Fraser Mills while her mother was visiting her sister Maida. 30:54 – 37:33 Julie describes her mother as the cook, caregiver and the “one man show”. She says that her mother enjoyed cooking traditional Chinese recipes. Julie talks of her own cooking and gardening skills which she may have inherited from her parents including her large patch of garlic. 37:34- 40:23- Julie is asked as to whether her mother attended Chinese school and says that she had some Chinese schooling. She could read and write a little but didn’t attend a formal school as far as she knows. Julie shares some background information on her own husband Cecil, who grew up in East Vancouver. She shares that Cecil’s family went back to China from 1931 until 1939 when they returned to Queensborough. Cecil attended Chinese school in New Westminster. 40:24 – 42:19 Julie speaks briefly about what type of medical care her mother and her family had. She relates that all births took place at home and they accessed a Chinese herbalist in Chinatown. Hospitals were accessed in 1950s—1960s. The family did use Western doctors that were insured under the medical system. She recalls growing up and having to drink a particular herbal brew at least once a month to stay well. 42:20- 46:47 Julie describes how her parents stayed connected with their families in China. She says that her mother’s family didn’t stay in touch with relatives in China and that her uncles rejected anything to do with the past. On her father’s side they maintained a connection with cousins. She recalls that her father, Puy Yuen Chan supported some of his relatives back home in China and stayed in touch with some. Her mother, Laura travelled to China in 1991 and 1992 and connected with some relations on Julie’s father’s side. 46:48- 53:46 In this segment, Julie speaks of her mother’s character being very self-assured, independent and goal oriented. She feels that her mother valued being surrounded by her family and friends and felt very comfortable growing up in Burnaby and with the relationships that she had. She feels that her mother adapted to her roles being the last of four children on the farm and that she was very self-sufficient and determined.

History: Interviewee biography: Julie Lee (nee Chan) is the daughter of Suey Ying Jung (Laura) and Puy Yuen Chan. Her mother's family owned and operated a vegetable and piggery farm on Douglas Road near Still Creek in the early 1900s. Their farm was located in front of the Douglas Road interurban tram station. Her mother had two older sisters named Maida and Annie and two younger brothers Harry and Gordon. Her mother was born in 1912 and left the farm for Fraser Mills when she was married in 1942. Julie grew up with her parents and siblings on the Fraser Mills site during the 1940s and 1950s. Interviewer biography: Denise Fong is a historical researcher at Burnaby Village Museum. She has degrees in Anthropology (BA) and Archaeology (MA), and is completing her doctoral degree at UBC in Interdisciplinary Studies. Her primary research interests are in Chinese Canadian history and critical heritage studies. She is the co-curator of BVM’s “Across the Pacific” exhibition, and the Museum of Vancouver’s “A Seat at the Table – Chinese Immigration and British Columbia”.

Creator: Burnaby Village Museum

Subjects: Persons - Chinese Canadians; Agriculture - Farms; Education; Buildings - Schools

Names: Lee, Julie Cho Chan; Chan, Puy Yuen; Jung, Suey Ying "Laura"; Wong, Suey Fong "Maida" Jung; Jung, Suey Cheung "Harry"; Jung, Suey Yook "Gordon"; Jung, Gee Shee; Jung, Chung Chong; Jong, Suey Kin "Annie" Jung

Responsibility: Fong, Denise

Geographic Access: Douglas Road

Accession Code: BV020.6.2

Access Restriction: No restrictions

Reproduction Restriction: No known restrictions

Date: [1920-1992] (interview content), interviewed Feb. 6, 2020

Media Type: Sound Recording

Historic Neighbourhood: Burnaby Lake (Historic Neighbourhood)

Planning Study Area: Douglas-Gilpin Area

Related Material: See also BV018.16.1

Scan Resolution: 1000

Scan Date: 01-Oct-2017

Scale: 96

Notes: Title based on contents of interview; Photograph info: Suey Ying (Laura) with produce baskets [between 1940 and 1942]. BV017.24.27

Images

Audio Tracks

Interview with Julie Lee by Denise Fong February 6, 2020, [1920-1992] (interview content), interviewed Feb. 6, 2020

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_BVM_Sound_Recordings/Oral_Histories/2020_0006_0002_001.mp3

Jubilee Labor Hall subseries

https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription57982

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Date: 1914-1978

Collection/Fonds: Burnaby Historical Society fonds

Description Level: Subseries

Physical Description: Textual records

Scope and Content: Subseries consists of ledgers, correspondence, minutes and other records created by the Jubilee Labour Hall group.

Repository: City of Burnaby Archives

Date: 1914-1978

Collection/Fonds: Burnaby Historical Society fonds

Series: Community Archives Collection series

Subseries: Jubilee Labor Hall subseries

Physical Description: Textual records

Description Level: Subseries

Accession Number: BHS1989-01

Scope and Content: Subseries consists of ledgers, correspondence, minutes and other records created by the Jubilee Labour Hall group.

History: Jubilee Labor Hall was built with the original purpose of furthering the cause of socialism. The original shareholders, at a share of $5.00 each, built the first hall in 1927. When it burnt down in 1935, the shareholders set out to rebuild. In 1936, the shareholders began renting the hall out to CCF-NDP for a nominal amount, continuing this practice for 35 years. They rented to various other groups in Burnaby and in 1970, when the shareholders decided that it was time to sell the hall, it was purchased by one of these groups: the South Burnaby Elks. After the hall was sold, the remaining balance was used to establish lasting tributes to the original stakeholders and assure the continuous assistance to the cause of socialism for all time.

Media Type: Textual Record

Creator: Jubilee Labor Hall

Notes: MSS041; Title based on contents of subseries

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City Council and Office of the City Clerk fonds

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Interview with Bob Lowe 2005 - Track 4

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Interview with Kalwant Singh "Nadeem" Parmar

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Interview with Ken Yip May 9, 2005 - Track 1

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Interview with Merrill M. Gordon by Rod Fowler March 19, 1990 - Track 4

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Interview with Merrill M. Gordon by Rod Fowler March 19, 1990 - Track 5

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Interview with Merrill M. Gordon by Rod Fowler March 19, 1990 - Track 7

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Interview with Merrill M. Gordon by Rod Fowler March 19, 1990 - Track 8

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Jesse Love farmhouse series

Love family fonds

Small family fonds

Agreement to Sell Lands in DL 95 and 53 to Canada Safeway Limited

Documents

Application to Sell the North 100' of Lot 12, DL 149

Documents

Elmer Wilson Martin fonds

Interview with Julie Lee by Denise Fong February 6, 2020

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Jubilee Labor Hall subseries