Narrow Results By
Knight family subseries
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription64497
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1938-1982
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Subseries
- Physical Description
- Textual records and photgraphs
- Scope and Content
- Subseries consists of newspaper clippings, manuals on health and training of talking birds, correspondence and photographs pertaining to "Bird Doctor" Virginia Knight and her husband Milton, the owners of Lakeview Aviaries in Burnaby.
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1938-1982
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Subseries
- Knight family subseries
- Physical Description
- Textual records and photgraphs
- Description Level
- Subseries
- Accession Number
- BHS1992-53
- Scope and Content
- Subseries consists of newspaper clippings, manuals on health and training of talking birds, correspondence and photographs pertaining to "Bird Doctor" Virginia Knight and her husband Milton, the owners of Lakeview Aviaries in Burnaby.
- History
- Milton "Milt" Waller Knight was born in Canada circa 1904. His wife Virginia Harrington was born in Duluth, Minnesota circa 1905 and lived most of her life in Canada. Virginia was the first person in British Columbia to breed budgies when she began in 1932 and by 1939 she and her husband created the first crested budgie in the world. By 1942, Virginia was also housing two-hundred and fifty birds at the home of her mother, Mrs. N.M. Herington, which was located at 1775 West 13th Avenue in Burnaby. Milton and Virginia Knight moved into their own home during the war years but, as they could not get their large aviary moved, they were forced to sell their crested birds. When they started up in their birds again, they obtained some of their crested back. By 1948 they had created two types of crested: those with a miniature cockatiel crest and those with a crest like a crested canary. By 1950 they had created the crested in over twelve colours of budgie, including cobalt and yellow-wing greens. The Knights lived together at 3718 Sperling Avenue (later renumbered 5255 Sperling Avenue) and opened Lakeview Aviaries on their one acre property at Deer Lake where Virginia specialized in budgies (Budgerigars) and bred the first albino in Canada and the first crested variety in the world. She kept Java rice birds, button quail, red factor canaries, cockatiels, finches, love birds and twelve varieties of budgerigar. She was a member of the British Columbia Budgerigar and Foreign Bird Society. The facilities at Lakeview Aviaries included two heated aviary cages and three outdoor flight cages constructed by Milton. Lakeview housed the only "hospital" facilities in the city for cage birds, which featured an electrically heated, thermostatically controlled hospital cage. Virginia, known in the community as “the Bird Doctor” nursed many sick birds back to health free of charge for the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals or SPCA. The Knights often donated their trained birds to sick and injured children, for Virginia believed, “Budgies do wonders for the kiddies. They make them forget their troubles and of course a happy mental outlook is a definite aid to better physical health.” The couple’s personal pets included eight different types of parrot, three talking budgies, a dancing bare-eyes cockatoo, three talking cockatiel, and “Hoppy” her pet owl. By 1952, they had a toucan and a macaw as pets. In later years, they added two small dogs. By 1965, Milton had over 25 years of service as a truck driver at the Vancouver Service Department. He was also an avid collector of antique watches and clocks. He reconditioned the timepieces, systematically restoring them to their original condition. He was a member of the National Association of Clock and Watch Collectors. Milt also treasured old music boxes and restored their large metal discs and rolls to “as new” condition. Milton Knight died March 7, 1966 at 62 years of age. Virginia Knight lived alone at 5755 Sperling Avenue after her husband’s death and continued her work at the Lakeview Aviary where she “doctored 700-800 [birds] a year free of charge (except medicine) and gave SPCA donations up to $1000 a year.” Virginia Knight passed away November 10, 1987 at 82 years of age.
- Media Type
- Textual Record
- Photograph
- Creator
- Knight, Milton
- Knight, Virginia
- Notes
- MSS117, PC510
- Title based on contents and creator of subseries
Robert Prittie subseries
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription113
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1950-2002
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Subseries
- Physical Description
- Textual records and photographs
- Scope and Content
- Subseries consist of records created and collected by Robert Prittie during his teaching and political careers and following his retirement from public office. Records include Burnaby Teachers Association and other school organization records, election papers, and copies of various City reports an…
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1950-2002
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Subseries
- Robert Prittie subseries
- Physical Description
- Textual records and photographs
- Description Level
- Subseries
- Accession Number
- BHS1999-01
- Scope and Content
- Subseries consist of records created and collected by Robert Prittie during his teaching and political careers and following his retirement from public office. Records include Burnaby Teachers Association and other school organization records, election papers, and copies of various City reports and meeting minutes. Also included are photographic postcards of Burnaby, photographs of Robert Prittie attending official City functions, and aerial photographs of industrial and business sites in Burnaby.
- History
- Born in North Vancouver on December 5, 1919, Robert “Bob” William Prittie was the first of four sons born to Wilmot Prittie and Mary Adair. As a child, his health was weaker than younger brothers Bill, Eric and Halford, as he suffered from Polio and asthma. Bob was an industrious youth who left school early to work in a department store warehouse. At the outbreak of the Second World War, Bob enlisted with the Royal Canadian Air Force and spent the duration of the war serving on the ground in Canada at the Patricia Bay Air Force Base and the No. 3 Bombing and Gunnery School in Manitoba, completing his high school education through correspondence courses. While at the Patricia Bay Air Force Base, he met pre-school teacher Grace King of Sidney, Vancouver Island. By 1940 they were married and soon after, had their first son, Robert King. In 1945, Bob was discharged from the air force with the rank of sergeant and entered the University of British Columbia, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree with honours in history. After the war, Bob spent a few years working in Ottawa as a foreign-service officer, but he returned to UBC in 1949, receiving a diploma in education. He later undertook post-graduate studies at Laval University and Western Washington State College. Bob returned to Burnaby in 1950 following the tragic death of their son. He immediately began teaching. Over the next thirteen years, he taught at Sperling Avenue School, McPherson Park Junior High School, Burnaby South High School and Burnaby North High School. He and Grace went on to have three more children: Heather in 1951, Bruce in 1953, and Ian in 1955. In 1959 he was elected to serve as a member of the municipal Council, re-elected and serving until the end of his term in 1962 when he left to serve as Member of Parliament for the Burnaby-Richmond riding. He held that office until 1968. In January 1969, Bob first took office as Mayor of Burnaby and in that capacity served on the GVRD as a Director for a number of years. In May of 1973, he decided to resign as Mayor of Burnaby in order to take up a position as Assistant Deputy Minister of Municipal Affairs and in 1975 he was appointed as the Minister of Municipal Affairs, a post he held for a short time. After his tenure as Minister, Bob retired from public life and he and his second wife Isobel Pothecary moved to Victoria. Isobel had three children from a previous marriage: Alan, Deirdre and Fiona. Bob left an enduring legacy for the citizens of Burnaby as a champion of schools, libraries and parks and recreation programs. In 1978 he was awarded the title of "Freeman of the Municipality" and in 1991 a new branch of the Burnaby Public Library was opened and named after him. His status as Freeman and the naming of the library in his honour are testament to his record of service and dedication to the community and its citizens. Robert Prittie died on January 14, 2002.
- Media Type
- Textual Record
- Photograph
- Creator
- Prittie, Robert W. "Bob"
- Notes
- PC368, PC369, PC498, MSS086, MSS127
- Title based on contents and creator of subseries
Wysong family subseries
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription134
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1920]-[1960]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Subseries
- Physical Description
- Photographs
- Scope and Content
- Subseries consists of photographs of the Wysong House located at Stanley Street and Sperling Avenue in Burnaby. Wysong House was built by local constractor Jacob Wysong in 1912.
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1920]-[1960]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Subseries
- Wysong family subseries
- Physical Description
- Photographs
- Description Level
- Subseries
- Accession Number
- BHS1992-32
- Scope and Content
- Subseries consists of photographs of the Wysong House located at Stanley Street and Sperling Avenue in Burnaby. Wysong House was built by local constractor Jacob Wysong in 1912.
- Media Type
- Textual Record
- Photograph
- Creator
- Wysong family
- Notes
- PC294
- Title based on contents of subseries