Hastings Grove Neighbourhood
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/landmark746
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Associated Dates
- 1905-1924
- Heritage Value
- During the height of the real estate boom between 1909 and 1913, Vancouver developer Frederick Munson plotted the subdivision of more than 150 acres of land on Curtis Street east of Sperling Avenue, on the newly logged slopes of remote Burnaby Mountain. Burnaby opened up Curtis Street to facilitate access to Hastings Grove and Munson agreed to pay one-third of the cost but never did. He also paid only $1000.00 down on the agreed price of the land. When he failed to make further payments, the mortgage holders foreclosed and re-sold the properties. People who had bought lots from Munson lost not only the land they though they owned, but also the money they had paid for it. Hastings Grove was a disaster. The converted automobile - which served as the bus - stopped running. The few houses and most of the lots reverted to the Municipality because of non-payment of taxes and are now part of Burnaby Mountain Park. The only remaining building is the old Hastings Grove Store which still stands as an apartment building.
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Lochdale (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Lochdale Area
Images
Lochdale Neighbourhood
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/landmark743
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Associated Dates
- 1905-1924
- Heritage Value
- "Picturesquely situated on the south-westerly slope of the highest hill on the Burrard Peninsula is a district that in many ways resembles the early pioneer settlements…its centre is at the intersection of east Hastings Street and Sperling Avenue. Only a few years ago a dense forest covered this area and the settlers were few and some distance apart. After the war working men began to enter the Lochdale woods in quest of cheap home-sites. Today there are more than 400 residents in the district who combine to make a happy contented industrious community living on the edge of a big city yet enjoying the life offered by the country...The Community Hall is the centre of all social activities. Dances, concerts and other forms of entertainment are all there...Curtis Street runs from Sperling Avenue up to the hill, locally known as Hastings Grove. From the top on a clear day there is a view for miles around." ~ From the Sunday Province, March 8, 1925.
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Lochdale (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Lochdale Area
Images
Sperling Avenue (Pole Line Road)
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/landmark761
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Associated Dates
- 1905
- Heritage Value
- The road currently known as Sperling Avenue was originally the "Pole Line Road" - so named because it served as the route for a power transmission line to connect the Buntzen Lake Power Plant to the Burnaby sub-station at Griffiths Avenue in 1905. It was named after Rochfort Henry Sperling, the Superintendant of the B.C.E.R. Company. The B.C. Electric Railway contracted Herbert Gilley to open the Pole Line Road from Hastings to Johnston Road, as Gilley Brothers were already actively logging the area.
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Burnaby Lake (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Sperling-Broadway Area
- Lochdale Area
- Ardingley-Sprott Area
- Morley-Buckingham Area
Images
Interview with Reidun Seim by Kathy Bossort January 13, 2016 - Track 1
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/oralhistory650
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date Range
- 1904-1940
- Length
- 0:11:22
- Summary
- This portion of the interview is about Reidun Seim talking about her father’s immigration to the USA in 1904 at age 16, his return to Norway and marrying Martine, her parents emigration from Norway to Vancouver in 1930, her father’s purchase of an acre of land on Curtis Street and building a two ro…
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Summary
- This portion of the interview is about Reidun Seim talking about her father’s immigration to the USA in 1904 at age 16, his return to Norway and marrying Martine, her parents emigration from Norway to Vancouver in 1930, her father’s purchase of an acre of land on Curtis Street and building a two room house for the family, Reidun’s birth in 1931, and the family’s move to Curtis Street in 1932. She talks about her childhood memories of playing on a big stump and cedar log in the yard.
- Date Range
- 1904-1940
- Length
- 0:11:22
- Names
- Seim, Sjur
- Seim, Martine
- Geographic Access
- Curtis Street
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Lochdale (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Lochdale Area
- Interviewer
- Bossort, Kathy
- Interview Date
- January 13, 2016
- Scope and Content
- Recording is of an interview with Reidun Seim conducted by Kathy Bossort. Reidun Seim was one of 23 participants interviewed as part of the Community Heritage Commission’s Burnaby Mountain Oral History Project. The interview is mainly about Reidun Seim’s memories about her parent’s farm on Curtis Street, events in her childhood, and the people who lived in or visited her neighborhood. She takes us on a tour of her neighborhood in the 1940s, telling us stories about families who lived on Curtis Street on and east of 7300 block, including people who lived on Burnaby Mountain in the old Hastings Grove subdivision above the end of municipal water service at Philips Avenue. She describes changes to Curtis Street, particularly after it provided access to Simon Fraser University in 1965. She also talks about her teaching career, and about how she values the green space and conservation area on Burnaby Mountain.
- Biographical Notes
- Reidun Seim was born in 1931 in Vancouver B.C. to Sjur and Martine Seim. Sjur and Martine Seim emigrated to Canada from Norway in 1930, and after settling in Vancouver, moved to an acre of land and a new home at the base of Burnaby Mountain in 1932. Sjur attended UBC to learn about poultry farming and began his own chicken and egg business in 1935. The farm animals and large garden also contributed to the family’s livelihood and self-sufficiency. The Curtis Street neighborhood was a lively place and extended well up Curtis Street on the west slope of Burnaby Mountain, where Reidun would babysit for families. Reidun attended Sperling Avenue Elementary School (Gr. 1-8), Burnaby North High School, and Vancouver Normal School for teacher training in 1950-1951. She began teaching primary grades in Port Coquitlam at James Park School. Most of her career was spent in North Delta, teaching at Kennedy and Annieville schools from 1954-1958, appointed Primary Consultant (1958-1960) and Primary Supervisor (1960-1985), before retiring in 1986. Reidun lived at home with her parents on Curtis Street, commuting to Delta, and continues to live in the original farmhouse.
- Total Tracks
- 14
- Total Length
- 2:35:58
- Interviewee Name
- Seim, Reidun
- Interview Location
- Burnaby City Hall in the Law Library
- Interviewer Bio
- Kathy Bossort is a retired archivist living in Ladner, BC. She worked at the Delta Museum and Archives after graduating from SLAIS (UBC) in 2001 with Masters degrees in library science and archival studies. Kathy grew up in Calgary, Alberta, and, prior to this career change, she lived in the West Kootenays, earning her living as a cook for BC tourist lodges and work camps. She continues to be interested in oral histories as a way to fill the gaps in the written record and bring richer meaning to history.
- Collection/Fonds
- Community Heritage Commission Special Projects fonds
- Media Type
- Sound Recording
Audio Tracks
Track one of interview with Reidun Seim
Track one of interview with Reidun Seim
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_Archives_Oral_Histories/_Unrestricted/MSS196-017/MSS196-017_Track_1.mp3![Pengelly's logging shack, [1909] thumbnail](/media/hpo/_Data/_Archives_Images/_Unrestricted/205/222-005.jpg?width=280)
Pengelly's logging shack
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription36082
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1909]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 9 x 11.5 cm
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of Pengelly's logging shack, believed to be at Union Street and Duthie Avenue. One lumberjack is standing just outside the shack with an axe in his hand, while another is wiping his face with a cloth and a third is standing with one foot bracing a felled log with a saw in his hand.
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1909]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Subseries
- Columbian Newspaper subseries
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 9 x 11.5 cm
- Description Level
- Item
- Record No.
- 222-005
- Access Restriction
- No restrictions
- Reproduction Restriction
- No known restrictions
- Accession Number
- BHS1989-19
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of Pengelly's logging shack, believed to be at Union Street and Duthie Avenue. One lumberjack is standing just outside the shack with an axe in his hand, while another is wiping his face with a cloth and a third is standing with one foot bracing a felled log with a saw in his hand.
- Media Type
- Photograph
- Notes
- Title based on contents of photograph
- 2 b&w copy negatives accompanying
- Geographic Access
- Duthie Avenue
- Union Street
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Lochdale (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Lochdale Area
Images
![Pengelly's logging shack, [1909] thumbnail](/media/hpo/_Data/_Archives_Images/_Unrestricted/205/222-005.jpg)