Photograph of Pacific Assistance Dog (PAD) labrador retriever Eddie, with firefighters Bob Lyall, Kris Anderson, Dave Graystone and Dave Wallace, with Pacific Assistance Dog's (PAD) Laura Watamanuk standing beside a Burnaby Fire Department truck.
Photograph of Pacific Assistance Dog (PAD) labrador retriever Eddie, with firefighters Bob Lyall, Kris Anderson, Dave Graystone and Dave Wallace, with Pacific Assistance Dog's (PAD) Laura Watamanuk standing beside a Burnaby Fire Department truck.
Photograph of a fire fighter in uniform walking through a puddle in a parking lot after an explosion at Canadian Linen and Uniform Service. One of the company's trucks and a Burnaby Fire Department fire truck are parked in the background.
Photograph of a fire fighter in uniform walking through a puddle in a parking lot after an explosion at Canadian Linen and Uniform Service. One of the company's trucks and a Burnaby Fire Department fire truck are parked in the background.
Photograph of Burnaby firefighters Mark Fletcher and Douglas Penn presenting a cheque to Dr. John Jan and Pam Koerner for the Sunny Hill Health Centre for Children.
Photograph of Burnaby firefighters Mark Fletcher and Douglas Penn presenting a cheque to Dr. John Jan and Pam Koerner for the Sunny Hill Health Centre for Children.
This portion of the interview is about the equipment used by the fire department over the years, in particular about the pump and ladder trucks, and about Chief Waddell's wise choice of locations for the fire halls.
This portion of the interview is about the equipment used by the fire department over the years, in particular about the pump and ladder trucks, and about Chief Waddell's wise choice of locations for the fire halls.
Recording is of an interview with Al Nixon, conducted by Rod Fowler. Al Nixon 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 mainly about the history and operations of the Burnaby Fire Department from its beginning in 1911 to 1990, and Al Nixon’s stories about the various ways photographs, records and artifacts about the department were collected and saved. The interview takes place while looking at photographs, but the information is clear nonetheless (His photographs have been deposited in the Burnaby Archives). Al Nixon also talks about his father's career as a firefighter, and about his Douglas grandparents and their home “The Gables” [Seven Gables] and neighbourhood in Burquitlam. To view “Narrow By” terms for each track expand this description and see “Notes”.
Biographical Notes
Al Nixon was born in New Westminster Feb. 8, 1936, the son of Provincial Fire Marshal Basil Nixon (1904-1975) and Agnes Douglas (1909-?). His mother’s family immigrated to Canada from Scotland in 1922 and lived in a large ca. 1900 home in Burquitlam at 9957 Sullivan Road called “Seven Gables” (recently demolished). His grandfather Thomas Douglas, a Coquitlam Councillor and Socialist, was murdered in 1934 in his North Road service station. Al Nixon began his career as a firefighter with the Burnaby Fire Department in 1957, eventually becoming Deputy Fire Chief Operations in 1987 and Fire Chief in 1991, before retiring in 1993. In the mid 1980's Al Nixon became interested in the department’s history after finding a photograph scrapbook at one of the firehalls. It was in very bad condition but he recognized its value and began a project to collect and save photographs, artifacts and stories about the Burnaby Fire Department, a 6 month project that turned into years. The photographs and information gathered by Al Nixon became part of Douglas Penn’s book “Follow that Fire: the history of the Burnaby Fire Department”.
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.
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.
Photograph of Burnaby Councillor Dan Johnston standing outside city hall and holding up three new publications produced by city hall. The publications are: a guide for disabled people, a funding resource guide for community groups and a citizens' guide to the city hall bureaucracy.
Photograph of Burnaby Councillor Dan Johnston standing outside city hall and holding up three new publications produced by city hall. The publications are: a guide for disabled people, a funding resource guide for community groups and a citizens' guide to the city hall bureaucracy.
Collected by editorial for use in an April 1999 issue of the Burnaby NewsLeader
Caption from metadata: "Burnaby firefighters averted a bigger catastrophe when they managed to push a burning Valiant from a garage in the 7300 block of 10th Ave. Damage was restricted to the car, and some smoke in the garage."
Photograph of Burnaby mayor Bill Copeland with fire chief Wayne Brassington and Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) superintendent Bob Fenske leaving the Canadian Cancer Society's annual "Jail 'n' Bail" fundraiser. The mayor and fire chief were handcuffed together as they left the fundraiser.
Photograph of Burnaby mayor Bill Copeland with fire chief Wayne Brassington and Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) superintendent Bob Fenske leaving the Canadian Cancer Society's annual "Jail 'n' Bail" fundraiser. The mayor and fire chief were handcuffed together as they left the fundraiser.
Photograph of an automobile crash on an overpass. A police officer, firefighter and an unidentified woman are standing by the wrecked vehicles. The exact location of the crash is unknown.
Photograph of an automobile crash on an overpass. A police officer, firefighter and an unidentified woman are standing by the wrecked vehicles. The exact location of the crash is unknown.