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- Burnaby Village Museum 18
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- Denton, V. L. (Vernon Llewllyn), 1881-1944 3
- Field family 1
- Fong, Denise 3
Heritage and travel papers
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription58190
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1958-1990
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- File
- Physical Description
- 1 file of textual records
- Scope and Content
- File consists of papers pertaining to Heritage and travel including Pioneer Tours flyers, newspaper clippings, membership list for what is believed to be the Heritage British Columbia Association and Heritage Canada brochures. Also included in the file are souvenir badges.
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1958-1990
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Subseries
- Evelyn Salisbury subseries
- Physical Description
- 1 file of textual records
- Description Level
- File
- Record No.
- MSS061-030
- Access Restriction
- In Archives only
- Reproduction Restriction
- Reproductions subject to FOIPPA
- Accession Number
- BHS1991-24
- Scope and Content
- File consists of papers pertaining to Heritage and travel including Pioneer Tours flyers, newspaper clippings, membership list for what is believed to be the Heritage British Columbia Association and Heritage Canada brochures. Also included in the file are souvenir badges.
- Media Type
- Textual Record
- Notes
- Title based on contents of file
Burnaby North High School
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/landmark745
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Associated Dates
- 1923-1982
- Street View URL
- Google Maps Street View
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Geographic Access
- Willingdon Avenue
- Associated Dates
- 1923-1982
- Heritage Value
- Burnaby North and Burnaby South were the first high schools built in the City. Before the high school opened, Burnaby students had to travel to Vancouver if they wished to pursue education beyond an elementary level. In 1921, arrangements were made to use the basement of the Presbyterian Church for instruction of local students. By 1922 the Burnaby North High School opened at its first permanent location (4375 Pandora Street - which is now Rosser Elementary). In 1945, the Willingdon Avenue site was built and was used until a new building was constructed in 1961 on Hammarskjold Drive. From 1962, the school was used as Burnaby Heights Junior High school, but it closed in 1982 and the junior high students went to the new Burnaby North on Hammarskjold.
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Capitol Hill (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Capitol Hill Area
- Street Address
- 250 Willingdon Avenue
- Street View URL
- Google Maps Street View
Images
Parkcrest Neighbourhood
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/landmark671
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Associated Dates
- 1925-1954
- Heritage Value
- On May 10, 1951, the Burnaby News-Courier reported on the new Parkcrest subdivision, saying: "Central Burnaby is the scenic locale of a successful attempt to produce modern houses economically and yet avoid the mass production effect common to other housing developments. That is one of the many highlights peculiar to the new Parkcrest development of 275 homes...By giving home purchasers a wide choice of finishes, extras and colours, hundreds of variations are possible on the six basic floor plans...Travelling time by car to Hastings and Granville from Parkcrest has been clocked at 15 minutes...Both primary and junior high schools are within walking distance. A modern shopping centre is planned for the future...Several streets are laid out in a straight but irregular manner, thus eliminating the prosaic side by side appearance block by block, as in other housing developments."
- Planning Study Area
- Parkcrest-Aubrey Area
Images
Family photograph album
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription93398
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1960-2000]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 album (50 photographs ; b&w and col.)
- Scope and Content
- Photograph album containing photographs of Hazel Peterson and her family in the later decades of her life. The album also includes photos and cards from and of relatives and friends; pictures of the boat the "Hazel-E"; vacations, including to Hawaii and Reno; and Hazel's 97th birthday in 1993.
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1960-2000]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Subseries
- Hazel Peterson subseries
- Physical Description
- 1 album (50 photographs ; b&w and col.)
- Description Level
- Item
- Record No.
- 504-046
- Access Restriction
- No restrictions
- Reproduction Restriction
- Reproduce for fair dealing purposes only
- Accession Number
- BHS2000-08
- Scope and Content
- Photograph album containing photographs of Hazel Peterson and her family in the later decades of her life. The album also includes photos and cards from and of relatives and friends; pictures of the boat the "Hazel-E"; vacations, including to Hawaii and Reno; and Hazel's 97th birthday in 1993.
- Subjects
- Travel
- Media Type
- Photograph
- Notes
- Title based on content of item
- Note on verso of 504-046-4 is handwritten and illegible
- Date on recto of 504-046-9 (Polaroid) reads: "Jun 64"
- Note on verso of 504-046-13 reads: "Jan 75 / Gut[tenger?]"
- Date on recto of 504-046-15 (Polaroid) reads: "Aug 74"
- Note on verso of 504-046-15 reads: "Taken at our mens and ladies Lodge meeting June 1974. Pot luck dinner and my seventy ninth birthday treat of [?] strawberries [?] some every year. / Cousin Harry Erickson."
- Note on verso of 504-046-17 reads: "Sealife Park 75"
- Note on verso of 504-046-20 reads: "October [?] 75"
- Note on verso of 504-046-21 reads: "Sealife Park 75"
- Note on verso of 504-046-22 reads: "Sealife Park 75"
- Note on verso of 504-046-23 reads: "Reno / March 75"
- 504-046-38 was originally in a paper frame and tucked between the pages that held 504-046-32:504-046-37 and 504-046-39:504-046-43
- Note on verso of 504-046-44 reads: "Nicole Constance Stariha / 12-03-91 / 6 1/2 mo. old"
- Note on verso of 504-046-45 reads: "Mark & Laurie Stariha / Matthew (4) and David (2 mos.) / 1992"
- Note on verso of 504-046-46 reads: "David Sherman Stariha at about 3 1/2 months"
Hazel Peterson photographs
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription62794
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1880-2000]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- File
- Physical Description
- ca. 60 photographs : b&w and col. -- 2 prints : col. illustrations
- Scope and Content
- File consists of loose photographs of Hazel Peterson (nee Erickson), as well as photographs of her family and parents, Charles and Amanda Erickson, and her husband, Edwin Peterson. Photographs are from all stages of Hazel Peterson's life, including infancy and childhood and later years of her life,…
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1880-2000]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Subseries
- Hazel Peterson subseries
- Physical Description
- ca. 60 photographs : b&w and col. -- 2 prints : col. illustrations
- Material Details
- Some photographs remain in frames or paper covers.
- Description Level
- File
- Record No.
- 504-001
- Access Restriction
- No restrictions
- Reproduction Restriction
- May be restricted by third party rights
- Accession Number
- BHS2000-08
- Scope and Content
- File consists of loose photographs of Hazel Peterson (nee Erickson), as well as photographs of her family and parents, Charles and Amanda Erickson, and her husband, Edwin Peterson. Photographs are from all stages of Hazel Peterson's life, including infancy and childhood and later years of her life, including a trip to Hawaii in 1982. File includes studio portraits, cartes de visites, postcards, and some illustrations.
- Subjects
- Travel
- Persons - Children
- Media Type
- Photograph
- Notes
- Title based on content of file
- Note on verso of 504-022 reads: "This was taken several years ago / Your niece / Hazel Petersen (at left)"
- Note on verso of 504-027 reads: "Hazel Erickson Peterson"
- Note on verso of 504-028 reads: "all of us except Ethel" and identifies the siblings in the photo
- Note on verso of 504-029 reads: "not such a bad picture considering" and identifies the people in the photo.
- Note on verso of 504-030 reads: "Agnus McDonald" and "Touch up outline of deer"
- Note on envelope for 504-039:504-041 reads: "Hazel Petersen resided at Dania Home, Burnaby, for 20 years before her death shortly before her 100th birthday."
Interview with Merrill M. Gordon by Rod Fowler March 19, 1990 - Track 11
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/oralhistory482
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date Range
- 1984-1990
- Length
- 00:10:07
- Summary
- This portion of the interview is about Merrill Gordon and his wife living and traveling in India intermittently for four years starting in 1984, and their impressions of the country and its people
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Summary
- This portion of the interview is about Merrill Gordon and his wife living and traveling in India intermittently for four years starting in 1984, and their impressions of the country and its people
- Date Range
- 1984-1990
- Photo Info
- Burnaby Alderman Merrill Gordon (second from right) following a candidates' meeting, 1973. Item no. 480-263
- Length
- 00:10:07
- Subjects
- Travel
- 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
- 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 eleven of interview with Merrill Gordon
Track eleven of interview with Merrill Gordon
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_Archives_Oral_Histories/_Unrestricted/MSS187-020/MSS187-020_Track_11.mp3Interview with Richard Liu
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription20283
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Date
- [1936-2023] (interview content), interviewed 11 Sep. 2023
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 3 sound recordings (wav) (153 min., 33 sec.) + 1 sound recording (mp3) (152 min., 59 sec.)
- Scope and Content
- Item consists of a recording of an oral history interview with Richard Liu conducted by Burnaby Village Museum researcher Denise Fong on September 11, 2023. 00:00:00 – 00:26:39 Richard Liu shares biographical information about himself and his family in China. He talks about his family being forced…
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum fonds
- Series
- Museum Oral Histories series
- Subseries
- Many Voices Project Interviews subseries
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 3 sound recordings (wav) (153 min., 33 sec.) + 1 sound recording (mp3) (152 min., 59 sec.)
- Material Details
- Interviewer: Denise Fong Interviewee: Richard Liu Location of Interview: Love farmhouse at Burnaby Village Museum Interview Date: September 11, 2023 Total Number of tracks: 3 Total Length of all Tracks: 02:33:33 Digital master recordings (wav) were recorded onto three separate audio tracks, edited and merged together into one track and converted to mp3 for access on Heritage Burnaby
- Scope and Content
- Item consists of a recording of an oral history interview with Richard Liu conducted by Burnaby Village Museum researcher Denise Fong on September 11, 2023. 00:00:00 – 00:26:39 Richard Liu shares biographical information about himself and his family in China. He talks about his family being forced out by the communist regime in the early ‘50s and their experiences immigrating to Hong Kong, Europe and Canada. 00:26:40 - 00:32:59 Richard talks about his parents’ experiences living in Toronto, Victoria and Burnaby and shares some of his father’s business accomplishments including establishing the first direct flight to Beijing in 1987 and the first sister city between China and Canada. 00:33:00 – 01:13:59 Richard talks about living in Burnaby and his educational experiences at Thomas More Collegiate. He recalls his experience of travelling to North Korea in 1988 and being a student at Peking University in Beijing during the student-led demonstrations in Tiananmen Square and the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989. 01:14:00 – 01:26:16 Richard talks about his education and reflects on how his experiences in Beijing influenced his education and career choices including working in the Prime Minister’s office on trade missions to China and talks about the importance of leaning French. 01:26:17 – 01:48:35 Richard shares his memories and experiences of; being on the Canadian Paralympic Committee during the 2008 Olympic and Paralympic Games in China, supporting Rick Hansen during his visit to China for the 25th anniversary of the Man in Motion World Tour and working with Team Canada in China for the 2022 Olympic Games. 01:48:36 – 01:52:22 Richard talks about his life in Burnaby after moving back from China in 2014 and the changes he’s noticed since being away. Richard talks about his involvement with St. John Ambulance, his role as the Honorary Brigade Division President and his role as Heritage Commissioner for the City of Burnaby. 02:14:32 – 02:29:27 Richard talks about his investiture to the Order of Saint John in 2023 and reflects on the accomplishments of his great uncle Dr. Shin-Shu Liu (China’s first Ambassador to Canada). 02:29:28 – 02:32:59 In closing Richard imparts some words of wisdom for future generations.
- History
- Interviewee biography: Richard N. Liu was born in 1970 in Toronto and raised in British Columbia. Richard's family has distinguished Canada-China ties for three generations. His Great-Uncle, Dr. Liu Shih-shun, was China's first Ambassador to Canada in 1942 and his father, Dr. Liu Dun-ren, built relations in education, culture and tourism for three decades including establishing the first Twin Sister City between Canada and China with Victoria and Suzhou in 1980. Richard's maternal great-grandfather, Dr. Wu Han-chi (1872-1913) played an active role in uprisings that shaped the future of modern China, was an elected member of the lower house of the first formal parliament in 1913 and was assassinated on political grounds. Dr. Wu's daughter, Dr. Wu Chi-mei served Dr. Sun Yat-sen, was elected as a Guangzhou City Councillor and visited Vancouver in 1929 and 1932. After graduating from St. Thomas More Collegiate in Vancouver, Richard Liu moved to China to begin his studies at Peking University but in 1989, following the Tiananmen Square protest and massacre, he was evacuated from China and returned to Canada. While back in Canada, Liu completed a BA in East Asian Studies from the University of British Columbia and in 1993, he returned to China to continue his Chinese studies at Peking University and continued to live in China for twenty years. In 2008, Richard worked as Team Canada’s Attaché for the Paralympic Summer Games that took place in Beijing. In 2014, Liu returned to Canada and made his home in Burnaby with his wife and two children. In 2022, Liu returned to Beijing to serve as Mission Staff member for Team Canada at the Winter Olympics. Richard has also played a leading role with the Terry Fox Run, Special Olympics and Rick Hansen's visit to Beijing in 2011. Liu’s areas of expertize include; public relations, diplomacy, major events organization and education. Liu works as an advisor in East Asian Studies at the University of British Columbia and is a MA Candidate at Peking University. Richard founded the Canadian Alumni Network that connects over 16,000 alumni in China who’ve attended Canada's post-secondary institutions. Liu has been a commissioner with the City of Burnaby’s Heritage Commission (2018-2023) and sits on various boards advising companies and organizations on a variety of sectors pertaining to Asia. In 2019, Liu was appointed the Honorary Brigade Division President for St. John Ambulance and was among 13 UBC Alumni to be recognized and awarded the 2018-2019 UBC Alumni Builder Award “For his service, dedication, and contribution to UBC and its alumni community. For his long record of service fostering connections with alumni and students in Beijing and Asia as well as dedication to mentoring students in the Faculty of Arts.” On June 24 2023, Richard was formally invested into the Order of St. John, one of five national orders in the Canadian Honours System. 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
- Migration
- Officials
- Education
- Protests and Demonstrations
- Social Issues
- Social Issues - Racism
- Sports
- Travel
- Religions - Christianity
- Names
- Canadian Paralympic Committee
- Chak, Dr. Po Tin
- Chinese Canadian Historical Society of BC
- Liu, Richard N.
- Liu, Dr. Dun-ren
- Liu, Dr. Shih-Shun
- Gigli, Beniamino
- Hansen, Richard Marvin "Rick"
- Olympic Games
- Paralympic Games
- Peking University
- St. John Ambulance
- St. Thomas More Collegiate
- Tiananmen Square
- University of British Columbia
- Responsibility
- Fong, Denise
- Accession Code
- BV023.16.17
- Access Restriction
- No restrictions
- Reproduction Restriction
- No known restrictions
- Date
- [1936-2023] (interview content), interviewed 11 Sep. 2023
- Media Type
- Sound Recording
- Notes
- Title based on contents of item
- transcription available
Documents
Audio Tracks
Interview with Richard Liu, [1936-2023] (interview content), interviewed 11 Sep. 2023
Interview with Richard Liu, [1936-2023] (interview content), interviewed 11 Sep. 2023
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_BVM_Sound_Recordings/Oral_Histories/2023_0016_0017_004.mp3
Interview with "The Bollywood Boyz", Harvinder Sihra and Gurvinder Sihra
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription19608
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Date
- [1970-2023] (interview content), interviewed 8 Jul. 2023
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 2 sound recordings (wav) (84 min., 14 sec.) + 1 sound recording (mp3) (62 min., 3 sec.)
- Scope and Content
- Item consists of a recording of an oral history interview with "The Bollywood Boyz", Harvinder Sihra and Gurvinder Sihra conducted by Burnaby Village Museum Registrar, Rajdeep. 00:00:00 – 00:05:26 Gurvinder “Gurv” Sihra and brother Harvinder “Harv’ Sihra introduce themselves, providing details on …
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum fonds
- Series
- Museum Oral Histories series
- Subseries
- Many Voices Project Interviews subseries
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 2 sound recordings (wav) (84 min., 14 sec.) + 1 sound recording (mp3) (62 min., 3 sec.)
- Material Details
- Interviewer: Rajdeep Interviewees: "The Bollywood Boyz", Harvinder Sihra and Gurvinder Sihra Location of Interview: Burnaby Village Museum Interview Date: July 8, 2023 Total Number of tracks: 2 Total Length of all Tracks: 01:02:03 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 Photograph credit: World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE)
- Scope and Content
- Item consists of a recording of an oral history interview with "The Bollywood Boyz", Harvinder Sihra and Gurvinder Sihra conducted by Burnaby Village Museum Registrar, Rajdeep. 00:00:00 – 00:05:26 Gurvinder “Gurv” Sihra and brother Harvinder “Harv’ Sihra introduce themselves, providing details on where they were born and grew up (in Burnaby), names of their parents and provide details on their family history. They describe how their grandparents and other relatives continued to live in Punjab after their father and mother immigrated to Canada in the 1970’s, recall the reasons their parents decided to immigrate and details of their lives before and after arriving in Canada. 00:05:27 – 00:06:46 Gurvinder and Harvinder describe some of their experiences travelling through Vancouver airport and compare their experiences with their mother’s own experiences. Gurvinder and Harvinder describe the layout of the airport and how customs and immigration has changed over time. 00:06:47 – 00:09:21 Gurvinder and Harvinder provide details about their mother, Parveen Sihra. They share information regarding her education in India and how she was unable to get work related to her degree in biology after immigrating to Canada. They convey how she worked in the Burnaby City Hall cafeteria in the 1990’s and how she worked part time in order to take care of her children. They share how their parents were proud Canadians participating in events inside and outside the South Asian community and were both fluent in English but often spoke Punjabi at home. 00:09:22 – 00:16:06 Gurvinder and Harvinder recall their childhood experiences growing up in Burnaby. They talk about the sports that they were involved with including hockey and Taekwondo, family vacations spent travelling to India and their experiences attending Marlborough Elementary School and Moscrop Secondary School.They describe how they first became interested in watching wrestling and trying it out on their own in their family home. Gurvinder and Harvinder recall their own experiences of discrimination while growing up and playing sports. 00:16:07 – 00:27:37 Gurvinder and Harvinder reflect and recall events that lead them to their dream of becoming professional wrestlers. They talk about pivotal events including attending their first live wresting event at GM Place with their father in 1996, beginning their training in Calgary in 2004, travelling across the country to participate in minor wrestling events, wrestling in Rogers Arena in 2017 and 2020 and getting their first call to join WWE. They talk about the support that they’ve had along the way to getting them where they are today and comment on why they want to be wrestlers in the WWE. 00:27:38 – 00:29:25 Gurvinder and Harvinder provide background information on their various wrestling personas and names in the world of professional wrestling including the Singh Brothers and the Bollywood Boyz. 00:29:26 – 00:38:43 Gurvinder and Harvinder talk about their experiences wrestling in India and the support and expectations of family members in becoming successful. Gurvinder and Harvinder recall and reflect on the experience of being fired from the WWE when cutbacks were made during the COVID pandemic. 00:38:44 – 00:42:53 Gurvinder and Harvinder describe what a day in their lives looks like now. They talk about how they’re still very passionate and focused on their wrestling careers and describe their experiences of having support and enthusiasm from fans and their parents. They talk about travelling across the country to particpate in different wrestling events. 00:42:54 – 00:47:18 Gurvinder and Harvinder talk about their training regimen including exercise and diet and describe areas in Burnaby where they like to train in gyms and the outdoors. 00:47:19 – 00:49:49 Gurvinder and Harvinder talk about neighbourhoods in Burnaby including Metrotown and Deer Lake and how they’ve seen them change over the years. 00:49:50 – 00:54:27 Gurvinder and Harvinder talk about their highest and lowest points in their wrestling careers, highlighting specific events. They talk about the physical stamina it takes for wrestling and compare their sport with the sport of Kabaddi (a contact team sport between two teams originating in India). 00:54:28 – 00:59:01 Gurvinder and Harvinder reflect on what toughness means to them, and what keeps them motivated to do what they do. 00:59:02 – 01:01:31 Gurvinder and Harvinder impart their words of wisdom to younger kids in chasing their passions and dreams and talk about their favourite Bollywood films and actors.
- History
- Interviewees' biographies: The Bollywood Boyz are a Canadian professional wrestling tag team composed of brothers Gurvinder "Gurv" Sihra (born in 1984) and Harvinder "Harv" Sihra (born in 1987). The pair are best known for their time in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) where Gurvinder and Harvinder performed under the ring names Sunil Singh and Samir Singh. They were both born and raised in Burnaby by their parents Harjeet and Parveen Sihra and attended Moscrop Secondary School. Gurvinder graduated from Douglas College where he studied criminology and has worked in loss prevention and has a third degree black belt in Taekwondo. Harvinder attended Douglas College with studies in history and has worked as a model and an actor. Both Gurvinder and Harvinder Sihra are Sikhs. Interviewer biography: 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
- Education
- Migration
- Pandemics - COVID-19
- Persons - South Asian Canadians
- Religions - Sikhism
- Social Issues
- Social Issues - Discrimination
- Social Issues - Racism
- Sports
- Sports - Martial Arts
- Sports - Wrestling
- Sports - Ice Hockey
- Travel
- Names
- The Bollywood Boyz
- Sihra, Guvinder "Gurv"
- Sihra, Harvinder "Harv"
- Sihra, Harjeet
- Sihra, Parveen
- World Wrestling Entertainment "WWE"
- Moscrop Secondary School
- Marlborough Elementary School
- Metrotown
- Responsibility
- Rajdeep
- Geographic Access
- Deer Lake Park
- Accession Code
- BV023.16.12
- Access Restriction
- No restrictions
- Reproduction Restriction
- No known restrictions
- Date
- [1970-2023] (interview content), interviewed 8 Jul. 2023
- Media Type
- Sound Recording
- Photographer
- World Wrestling Entertainment "WWE"
- Notes
- Title based on contents of item
- Transcription available upon request - contact Burnaby Village Museum
Images
Audio Tracks
Interview with
Interview with Toki Miyashita by Rod Fowler February 27, 1990 - Track 6
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/oralhistory521
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date Range
- 1976-1990
- Length
- 00:07:36
- Summary
- This portion of the interview is about Toki Miyashita’s trips to Japan in 1976 and 1980, visiting family in Myagi Prefecture, their response to her and her daughter, and her impression of Japan
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Summary
- This portion of the interview is about Toki Miyashita’s trips to Japan in 1976 and 1980, visiting family in Myagi Prefecture, their response to her and her daughter, and her impression of Japan
- Date Range
- 1976-1990
- Length
- 00:07:36
- Subjects
- Travel
- Interviewer
- Fowler, Rod
- Interview Date
- February 27, 1990
- Scope and Content
- Recording is of an interview with Toki Miyashita, conducted by Rod Fowler. Toki Miyashita 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 Toki Miyashita’s family’s internment during WWII, her awakening interest in Japanese culture after the war, her subsequent interest in teaching others about Japanese crafts and arts, and becoming a helpful intermediary between Burnaby and visitors from Japan. The interview explores her interest in the Ainu of Japan and their possible link to the aboriginals of BC, her impressions of the Ainu carver Nuburi Toko, and her involvement in the events surrounding the creation of the sculpture “Playground of the Gods” for Burnaby Mountain. The interview also contains interesting details about the art of Japanese flower-arranging. To view “Narrow By” terms for each track expand this description and see “Notes”.
- Biographical Notes
- Toki Miyashita was born in Richmond B.C., ca. 1935, at the Nelson Brothers “fishery”, a second generation Canadian descended from the Oikawa family who settled on Don and Lion Islands (Oikawa-shima). In 1942 the Japanese Canadians in BC were forcibly moved from the coast and their belongings confiscated. Toki Miyashita, her parents, two brothers, and grandparents were first taken to Hastings Park where her father was separated from the family to work in road camps, and the rest of the family were interned in New Denver. Her resourceful grandmother moved the family to land outside the internment camp, growing a large garden from seeds brought with her. In 1946 the family moved to Kamloops and in 1958, after finishing high school, Toki Miyashita moved to Montreal to be with relatives and a small Japanese community. At this time she became interested in Japanese culture and took a Japanese language course at age 22. She learned about Japanese flower-arranging (Ikebana), paper folding (Origami), silk doll making (from a Russian Jew), and how to wear a kimono. She began demonstrating these arts in schools and to other groups, which she continued doing when she, her husband and two young children moved to Burnaby in 1969. Toki Miyashita has been called an unpaid “ambassador” of Japanese culture to the Lower Mainland. She has acted as liaison between Burnaby and her sister city Kushiro in Japan, which involved her in the creation of the Ainu sculpture “Playground of the Gods” on Burnaby Mountain for Burnaby’s Centennial. Toki Miyashita is a recognized Master in Ikebana Sogetsu, a school of flower-arranging, and has served on the board of the Vancouver Ikebana Association. She also served on Burnaby’s Family Court in the 1980s.
- Total Tracks
- 11
- Total Length
- 01:34:10
- Interviewee Name
- Miyashita, Toki
- 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
- 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.
Audio Tracks
Track six of interview with Toki Miyashita
Track six of interview with Toki Miyashita
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_Archives_Oral_Histories/_Unrestricted/MSS187-017/MSS187-017_Track_6.mp3A Canadian school geography
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumlibrary8
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection
- Special Collection
- Material Type
- Book
- Accession Code
- HV971.5.7
- Call Number
- 917.1 COR 1929
- Contributor
- Denton, V. L. (Vernon Llewllyn), 1881-1944
- Place of Publication
- Toronto
- Publisher
- J. M. Dent & Son Ltd.
- Publication Date
- 1929
- Printer
- Richard Clay & Sons, Limited
- Physical Description
- xiv, 498 p. : ill., maps ; 20 cm.
- Inscription
- "Department of Education Text-Book Branch" [label pasted onto front pastedown] "W-2d" [handwritten in black ink on "Department of Education" label on front pastedown] "218-227 supplement as regards your ____" [handwritten in black ink on front pastedown] "Canada 1932" [handwritten in black ink on front endpaper] "F94" [handwritten in pencil on front endpaper] "In case of fire Throw this in" [handwritten in pencil on back of front endpaper] "Patricia Jeffery" [stamped in black ink on supplement title page] "Class 4 P. N. S." [handwritten in black ink on supplement title page] "Patricia Jeffery" [handwritten in black ink on title page verso]
- Library Subject (LOC)
- Geography--Textbooks
- Canada--Description and travel
- Geography--Historical texts
- Notes
- "with numberous sketch maps, diagrams and illustrations"--T.p.
- "Authorized for use in the schools of British Columbia, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Quebec and Saskatchewan" --T.p.
- "With a supplementary chapter on British Columbia by V.L. Denton"
- Supplementary chapter on British Columbia p. 451-498
- Author's given name and dates: Cornish, George A. (George Augustus), 1872-1960
- Author's given name and dates: Denton, V.L. (Vernon Llewllyn), 1881-1944
A Canadian school geography
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumlibrary348
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection
- Special Collection
- Material Type
- Book
- Accession Code
- BV989.9.22
- Call Number
- 917.1 COR 1924 Copy 1
- Contributor
- Denton, V. L. (Vernon Llewllyn), 1881-1944
- Place of Publication
- Toronto
- Publisher
- J. M. Dent & Son Ltd.
- Publication Date
- 1924
- Printer
- Richard Clay & Sons, Limited
- Physical Description
- xiv, 498 p. : ill., maps ; 20 cm.
- Inscription
- "Ethel Anderson, 9387 Fullerton Ave., Victoria, B.C." [handwritten in black ink on front endpaper] "Ethel Anderson" [handwritten in pencil on front endpaper] Provinces and their capitals handwritten in pencil on back pastedown.
- Library Subject (LOC)
- Geography--Textbooks
- Canada--Description and travel
- Geography--Historical texts
- Notes
- "with numberous sketch maps, diagrams and illustrations"--T.p.
- "Authorized for use in the schools of British Columbia" --T.p.
- "With a supplementary chapter on British Columbia by V.L. Denton"
- Supplementary chapter on British Columbia p. 451-498
- Copy 1 of 2
- Author's given name and dates: Cornish, George A. (George Augustus), 1872-1960
- Author's given name and dates: Denton, V.L. (Vernon Llewllyn), 1881-1944
A Canadian school geography
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumlibrary1744
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection
- Special Collection
- Material Type
- Book
- Accession Code
- HV984.21.135
- Call Number
- 917.1 COR 1927
- Contributor
- Denton, V. L. (Vernon Llewllyn), 1881-1944
- Place of Publication
- Toronto
- Publisher
- J. M. Dent & Son Ltd.
- Publication Date
- 1927
- Printer
- Richard Clay & Sons, Limited
- Physical Description
- xiv, 498 p. : ill., maps ; 20 cm.
- Inscription
- "WOODWARDS LTD. BOOK DEPT. 90¢" [stamped in purple in on front endpaper] "Vera Morrow" [handwritten in red ink on front endpaper] "Section Page" [handwritten in pencil on front endpaper] "Vera Morrow" [handwritten in green ink on other side of front endpaper] "[All rights reserved] to Vera Morrow" [handwritten in red ink on page before t.p.] "Vera Morrow Kitchener St. school Geography Book (text)" [handwritten in pencil on back endpaper] Study notes handwritten in pencil in margins throughout the book
- Library Subject (LOC)
- Geography--Textbooks
- Canada--Description and travel
- Geography--Historical texts
- Notes
- "with numberous sketch maps, diagrams and illustrations"--T.p.
- "Authorized for use in the schools of British Columbia, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Quebec and Saskatchewan" --T.p.
- "With a supplementary chapter on British Columbia by V.L. Denton"
- Supplementary chapter on British Columbia p. 451-498
- Author's given name and dates: Cornish, George A. (George Augustus), 1872-1960
- Author's given name and dates: Denton, V.L. (Vernon Llewllyn), 1881-1944
Asia
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumlibrary358
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection
- Special Collection
- Material Type
- Book
- Accession Code
- BV989.9.32
- Call Number
- 915 CAR
- Place of Publication
- New York
- Publisher
- American Book Company
- Publication Date
- c1923
- Physical Description
- 479 p. : ill., col. maps ; 19 cm.
- Inscription
- "Ethel Anderson, 938 Fullerton Ave., Victoria, B.C." [handwritten in black ink on front endpaper] "T.N. Hibben & Co. ESTD. 1858 1122 Gov't. St. Victoria B.C." [sticker pasted onto back pastedown]
- Library Subject (LOC)
- Readers-- Geography
- Asia--Description and travel
- Geography--Textbooks
- Notes
- Author's given name and dates: Carpenter, Frank G. (Frank George), 1855-1924
Beautiful Burnaby, British Columbia
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumlibrary1108
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection
- Reference Collection
- Material Type
- Textual Record
- Call Number
- 971.1 BEA
- Place of Publication
- New Westminster, B.C.
- Publisher
- Jackson Printing Co.
- Publication Date
- 1921
- 1927
- Physical Description
- 40 p. : ill. ; 30 cm.
- Library Subject (LOC)
- Burnaby (B.C.)--History
- Burnaby (B.C.)--Description and travel
Europe
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumlibrary359
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection
- Special Collection
- Material Type
- Book
- Accession Code
- BV989.9.33
- Call Number
- 914 CAR
- Place of Publication
- New York
- Publisher
- American Book Company
- Publication Date
- c1922
- Physical Description
- 505 p. : ill., col. maps ; 19 cm.
- Inscription
- "T.N. HIBBEN & Co ESTD. 1858 1122 GOV'T. ST. VICTORIA B.C." [sticker placed at bottom of the back paste down]
- Library Subject (LOC)
- Readers-- Geography
- Geography--Historical texts
- Geography--Textbooks
- Europe--Description and travel
- Notes
- Author's given name and dates: Carpenter, Frank G. (Frank George), 1855-1924
The everyday library for young people : volume i : travels here and there
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumlibrary1782
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection
- Special Collection
- Material Type
- Book
- Accession Code
- HV983.39.11
- Call Number
- 031 MEE v.1
- Contributor
- Mee, Arthur, 1875-1943
- Thompson, Holland, 1873-1940
- Place of Publication
- New York
- Publisher
- Grolier Society
- Publication Date
- c1924
- Printer
- Colonial Press
- Physical Description
- 336 p. ; ill., col. front. ; 25 cm.
- Library Subject (LOC)
- Encyclopedias and dictionaries
- Travel
- Notes
- Edited by Arthur Mee and Holland Thompson
- "Random journeys in many lands" --t.p.
- Volume 1 of 4.
In the Heart of Savagedom : reminiscences of life and adventure during a quarter of a Century of Pioneering and Missionary Labours in the wilds of East Equatorial Africa
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumlibrary262
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Author
- Watt, Rachel
- Edition
- 3rd ed.
- Publication Date
- 1920
- Call Number
- 266.76 WAT
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection
- Special Collection
- Material Type
- Book
- Accession Code
- HV971.169.13
- Call Number
- 266.76 WAT
- Edition
- 3rd ed.
- Author
- Watt, Rachel
- Place of Publication
- London
- Publisher
- Pickering & Inglis
- Publication Date
- 1920
- Physical Description
- 422 p. : ill. ; 19 cm.
- Inscription
- "Heritage Village S3 m" -- handwritten in pen on endpaper (front). "Grace S. Saritty / 1703 Davie Street Victoria B.C." -- handwritten in ink on endpaper (front). "1703 Davie Street Victoria B.C." -- stamped on endpaper (front). "1703 Davie Street Victoria B.C." -- stamped on flyleaf.
- Notes
- edited by Stuart Watt, d. 1914, (husband of author)
- Includes index.
Our Canada: a Canadian citizen primer
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumlibrary2076
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection
- Special Collection
- Material Type
- Book
- Accession Code
- HV979.51.2
- Call Number
- 971 REA
- Place of Publication
- Toronto
- Publisher
- Ryerson Press
- Publication Date
- 1923
- Physical Description
- 130 p. ; 20 cm.
- Library Subject (LOC)
- Canada--History
- Canada--Politics and government
- Canada--Description and travel
Burnaby centennial anthology : stories of early Burnaby
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumlibrary5472
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Edition
- Rev. ed.
- Publication Date
- 1994
- Call Number
- 971.133 BUR COPY 3
in, with
Kanaka crewmen, all curled crinkly
hair and boy could they ever travel up
the rigging. Boy, I tell you they were
just like monkeys - I used to go and
talk to them and Id get little boxes
and the Japs would give me boxes of
wooden safety matches and the other
guys would give me things, too.
There were no
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection
- Digital Reference Collection
- Material Type
- Book
- ISBN
- 0969282826
- Call Number
- 971.133 BUR COPY 3
- Edition
- Rev. ed.
- Place of Publication
- Burnaby, B.C.
- Publisher
- City of Burnaby
- Publication Date
- 1994
- Physical Description
- 531 p. : ill. ; 28 cm.
- Library Subject (LOC)
- Burnaby (B.C.)--History
- Burnaby (B.C.)
- Biography
- Notes
- Includes index.
- 3 copies held: copy 3.
Digital Books
Follow that fire : the history of the Burnaby Fire Department
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumlibrary5194
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Publication Date
- 1997
- Call Number
- 363.378 PEN COPY 3
on the
boulevard.
BURNABY HISTORICAL SOCIETY
relying on public transit had to travel to downtown Vancouver by street car and then
east along the Central Park interurban line to Edmonds to pay their taxes at the munic-
ipal hall. It is interesting to note that into the late 1950s, North Burnaby Firemen using
public
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection
- Digital Reference Collection
- Material Type
- Book
- ISBN
- 0969282826
- Call Number
- 363.378 PEN COPY 3
- Place of Publication
- [Burnaby, B.C.]
- Publisher
- City of Burnaby
- Publication Date
- 1997
- Physical Description
- 160 p. : ill. (some col.), 2 maps, ports. (some col.) ; 29 cm.
- Library Subject (LOC)
- Fire departments
- Fire fighters
- Name Access
- Burnaby Fire Department
- Notes
- Maps on lining papers.
- 3 copies held: copy 3.