Clearing Land for Oakalla Prison Farm
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1910
- Collection/Fonds
- Peers Family and Hill Family fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 7.7 x 10.3 cm on page 21.5 x 28 cm (pasted in album)
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of the Oakalla Prison Farm site being cleared in the Deer Lake area. Claude Hill is to the far right but the other man is unidentified.
First Building at Oakalla Prison Farm
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1914] (date of original), copied 1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 3.4 x 5.4 cm print on contact sheet 19.8 x 26.2 cm
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of the exterior of the first building at Oakalla Prison Farm.
Oakalla Prison Farm
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1914] (date of original), copied 1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 2.9 x 4.2 cm print on contact sheet 19.8 x 26.2 cm
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of the exterior of the front building at Oakalla Prison Farm.
Oakalla Prison Farm
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Date
- [2019]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 painting (tiff)
- Scope and Content
- Item consists of a digital copy of a painting of a view of Oakalla Prison farm with Deer Lake in the background. The original painting was created by Burnaby Village Museum preparator Carly Bowman as part of an exhibit.
Oakalla Prison Farm papers
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1912 (date of original) -1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- File
- Physical Description
- 1 file of textual records
- Scope and Content
- File consists of paper records created or collected by Edmund Eckley on the history of the Oakalla Prison Farm in Burnaby. Included in the file are; newspaper clippings, the "Official Closing Tour / Lower Mainland Regional Correctional Centre / Oakalla Prison Farm" programme as well as photocopies …
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1912 (date of original) -1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Series
- Community Archives Collection series
- Subseries
- Ed Eckley subseries
- Physical Description
- 1 file of textual records
- Description Level
- File
- Record No.
- MSS120-001
- Access Restriction
- In Archives only
- Reproduction Restriction
- Reproductions subject to FOIPPA
- Accession Number
- BHS2006-01
- Scope and Content
- File consists of paper records created or collected by Edmund Eckley on the history of the Oakalla Prison Farm in Burnaby. Included in the file are; newspaper clippings, the "Official Closing Tour / Lower Mainland Regional Correctional Centre / Oakalla Prison Farm" programme as well as photocopies of "British Columbia / Gaol Rules & Regulations / 1912" and photocopied aerial photographs of the site.
- Media Type
- Textual Record
- Notes
- Title based on contents of file
- Included in the file is a resume for former Oakalla prison guard Robert Evans Shelly
Less detail
Oakalla Prison
- Repository
- Burnaby Heritage Planning
- Geographic Access
- Royal Oak Avenue
- Associated Dates
- 1912
- Heritage Value
- The Oakalla Prison Farm opened in 1912 and was hailed as the most modern facility of its kind. Initially designed to hold 150 men and 50 women, by the 1950s, the population was well over 1000. A working farm, the prison had its own dairy, vegetable gardens and livestock. From the beginning, the location of Oakalla on 185 acres of scenic land next to Burnaby's Deer Lake was the source of contention with residents petitioning the government to relocate the prison and by 1979 it was decided to close the farm and 64 acres of land were transferred to Burnaby for inclusion on the Deer Lake Park. In 1991, Oakalla closed forever and the buildings were demolished to make way for a new residential housing development and an expansion of the park.
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Burnaby Lake (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Oakalla Area
Less detail
Blacksmith Shop at Oakalla
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1914] (date of original), copied 1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 4.5 x 2.7 cm print on contact sheet 19.8 x 26.2 cm
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of the exterior of the first blacksmith shop at Oakalla Prison Farm.
Camp at Oakalla Site
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1910
- Collection/Fonds
- Peers Family and Hill Family fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 7.7 x 10.4 cm on page 21.5 x 28 cm (pasted in album)
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of the land clearing operation at the Oakalla Prison site in the Deer Lake area. Claude Hill is in the centre between two unidentified men. A line of clothes is hanging in the background.
Car Track at Oakalla
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1915] (date of original), copied 1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 2.9 x 5.2 cm print on contact sheet 20.7 x 26.7 cm
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of the rails of a car track at Oakalla Prison Farm.
Central Park agricultural exhibit
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1914
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 15.8 x 20.4 cm mounted on 25.3 x 30.2 cm cardboard
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of an exhibit of produce from Oakalla Prison Farm and the interior of Central Park Agricultural Hall. A sign above the display reads, "Produce from the Oakalla Prison Farm," and a sign to the left reads, "Not for competition."
Construction at the Oakalla Site
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1910
- Collection/Fonds
- Peers Family and Hill Family fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 7.8 x 10 cm on page 21.5 x 28 cm (pasted in album)
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of construction work and land clearing at the site of the Oakalla Prison farm in the Deer Lake area. Three unidentified men can be seen standing in the background to the left.
Grading at Oakalla
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1915] (date of original), copied 1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 2.9 x 5.2 cm print on contact sheet 20.7 x 26.7 cm
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of grading being done during construction at Oakalla Prison Farm. A team of Clydesdale horses is pulling a plough in front of a building with barred windows.
Grading at Oakalla
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1915] (date of original), copied 1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 2.9 x 5.2 cm print on contact sheet 20.7 x 26.7 cm
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of grading being done during construction at Oakalla Prison Farm. A team of Clydesdale horses is pulling a plough in front of a building with barred windows.
Grading at Oakalla
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1915] (date of original), copied 1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 2.9 x 5.2 cm print on contact sheet 20.7 x 26.7 cm
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of grading being done during construction at Oakalla Prison Farm.
Grading at Oakalla
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1915] (date of original), copied 1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 2.9 x 5.2 cm print on contact sheet 20.7 x 26.7 cm
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of grading being done during construction at Oakalla Prison Farm. A team of horses is pulling a plough in front of a building.
Grading at Oakalla
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1915] (date of original), copied 1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 2.9 x 5.2 cm print on contact sheet 20.7 x 26.7 cm
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of a crew of men working on a rail car line at Oakalla Prison Farm.
I.C.S. reference library, v 15 : mathematics , arithmetic, mensuration, elementary algebra and trigonometric functions, elementary mechanics, logarithms
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection
- Special Collection
- Material Type
- Book
- Accession Code
- BV991.45.140
- Call Number
- 510 INT Ver. 2
- Author
- International Correspondence Schools
- Place of Publication
- Scranton
- Publisher
- International Textbook Co.
- Publication Date
- c1905
- c1897
- Series
- I.C.S. Reference library
- Printer
- Burr Printing House
- Physical Description
- various pagings : diag. ; 23 cm.
- Inscription
- inside front cover : "Property of Oakalla Prison Farm" [ink stamp]
inside title page: "11 - 8808" [ink stamp]
- Library Subject (LOC)
- Mathematics--Textbooks
- Mathematics--Historical texts
- Names
- Oakalla Prison Farm
- Object History
- Salvaged from Oakalla Prison site in October 1991
- Notes
- "A series of textbooks prepared for the students of the International Correspondence Schools and containing in permanent form the instruction papers, examination questions, and keys used in their various courses."
- Includes index.
Less detail
Rock crusher in operation
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- August 1910
- Collection/Fonds
- Peers Family and Hill Family fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 7.5 x 10.2 cm on page 21.5 x 28 cm (pasted in album)
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of a rock crusher in operation. From a wall of rocks, a team of men puts the rock into the rock crusher. The crushed gravel is loaded up in a horse drawn cart, with a driver ready to transport it away. There are two men in suits to the right of the photograph watching the operation.
Staff at Oakalla
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [1918] (date of original), copied 1991
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Historical Society fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 3.2 x 5.0 cm print on contact sheet 19.8 x 26.2 cm
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of staff members in uniform at Oakalla Prison Farm. One of the staff pictured is a woman.
Oakalla Prison fonds
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1911-1953
- Collection/Fonds
- Oakalla Prison fonds
- Description Level
- Fonds
- Physical Description
- 6 cm. of textual records.
- Scope and Content
- Fonds consists of records created by the Oakalla Prison Farm, including administrative correspondence related to staff appointments and wages, and a staff shortage when employees left to fight in World War I. The records pertain only to staffmembers of the prison and are not directly related to any…
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- 1911-1953
- Collection/Fonds
- Oakalla Prison fonds
- Physical Description
- 6 cm. of textual records.
- Description Level
- Fonds
- Record No.
- 66669
- Access Restriction
- No restrictions
- Reproduction Restriction
- No restrictions
- Accession Number
- 2022-13
- Scope and Content
- Fonds consists of records created by the Oakalla Prison Farm, including administrative correspondence related to staff appointments and wages, and a staff shortage when employees left to fight in World War I. The records pertain only to staffmembers of the prison and are not directly related to any prison inmates.
- History
- The Oakalla Prison Farm was a model prison farm on 185 acres (75 ha) of land next to Deer Lake, Burnaby. The Oakalla Prison Farm was a full-service facility that originally opened on September 2, 1912, and was initially designed to hold 150 men and women.
The first inmate was William Daley, sentenced on July 31, 1912 to serve a year of hard labor for stealing some fountain pens valued at over $10. By April 30, 1913, some 328 prisoners had passed through the jail's doors. In 1916, the women's section officially opened, and in 1942, the women's unit opened on the grounds as a separate facility. It was renamed as the "Lakeside Correctional Centre for Women" in 1979. The original women's unit was expanded in 1953, and consisted of two cottage-style buildings.
By the 1950s, the population was well over 1000. As a working farm, the prison had its own dairy, vegetable gardens, and livestock. Executions in British Columbia were primarily carried out in Oakalla; after 1919, it was the sole penitentiary where executions took place. The first execution was that of 25 year-old Alex Ignace on August 29, 1919. 44 prisoners were executed by hanging at Oakalla from 1919 until the death penalty was abolished in 1959. In 1959, the last execution in British Columbia took place at Oakalla, with the hanging of former sailor Leo Mantha, aged 33.
Oakalla was also one of the locations that undertook the experiment of performing cosmetic surgery on inmates to remove deformities that made prisoners "more likely to offend". The experiment was led by Dr. Edward Lewison, and continued into the mid-1960s. Procedures were conducted on 450 inmates, voluntarily.
In 1970, the prison was renamed as the Lower Mainland Regional Correctional Centre (LMRCC)
The farm portion of the prison, providing work for the inmates and food in the prison, closed in 1979 and 64 acres of land were transferred to the City of Burnaby. This land was included in the existing Deer Lake Park that was adjacent to the prison.
Originally designed to house a maximum of 484 prisoners, Oakalla's population peaked in 1962-1963 at 1,269 inmates. With population averages of over 600, overcrowding was always a problem. In the institution's final years, two nationally-spotlighted events occurred. 13 maximum security prisoners escaped on New Year's Day, 1988, following an uprising on December 27, 1987, and on November 22, 1983, a violent and costly riot took place. Rioters caused more than $150,000 damage in a two-day spree.
Oakalla was closed down on June 30, 1991, and was developed into a new residential housing development and an expansion of the park. Prisoners from Oakalla were then moved to various other Correctional Facilities in British Columbia, including but not limited to the Vancouver Pretrial Services Centre (VPSC), the Fraser Regional Correctional Centre (FRCC), and the Alouette Regional Correctional Centre (ARCC), later Alouette Correctional Centre for Women.
Source: https://wikimapia.org/8004045/Former-site-Lower-Mainland-Correctional-Centre-Oakalla-Prison-Farm
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oakalla_Prison
- Media Type
- Textual Record
Less detail