The most reproduced Canadian photograph from World War II will soon be immortalized in New Westminster. Wait For Me, Daddy was captured by Claude P. Dettloff on October 1, 1940 as troops headed off to war with the BC Regiment. Recently the CBC met up with Warren (Whitey) Bernard, the little boy in the photo […]

The Vancouver Heritage Foundation is celebrating BC’s Heritage Week by offered a full lineup of events that focus on this year’s theme: Heritage Afloat. Around here, our waterways have shaped our history through transportation, connecting industry, recreation, and more. 1940-1948 – Coal Harbour and Vancouver skyline. Photographer: Burns Miller. Archives# CVA 1376-76. Vancouver Heritage Week […]

The Canadian Flag in Vancouver – New Design Hoisted February 15, 1965 at Vancouver City Hall. A Roundup of Flag Photos in Vancouver

If you are familiar with Lions Gate Bridge history then you’ll know that its construction was made possible by the Guinness family (yes, that Guinness) but did you know that its iconic string of lights was nicknamed Gracie’s Necklace? Photo credit: Shannon Leigh Photography on Flickr The Guinness family, of Irish beer fame, was convinced […]

I’ve had the pleasure of visiting Heritage Hall on several occasions for conferences, speaking engagements, and to meet with the Mount Pleasant BIA. This handsome building on the corner of Main and 15th has had many lives, and continues to be an elegant venue for special events, fashion shows, and weddings making it today’s Vancouver […]

The PNE Forum building at Hastings Park holds its share of history, from hockey and lacrosse, to war-time injustices, roller derby and Nirvana. 1931: Archives# CVA 99-4015. Photographer: Stuart Thomson. Vancouver Exhibition Forum This 45,000 gross square foot building was constructed on the Vancouver Exhibition grounds in 1931. 1931: Construction of the Forum. Archives# CVA […]

One hundred years ago, our fair city was 28 years old and already survived a Great Fire, erected the tallest building in the British Empire, built a courthouse that stands today as the city’s art gallery, had a thriving interurban transit system and a population well over 100,000 (a fifth of what it is today). […]

The first tourist bus service began running in Stanley Park in 1908 but it wasn’t until the 1920s that a public bus service “challenged the supremacy of the electric streetcar”1 in Vancouver. 1940s: Grandview Hwy & the Bus Stop Coffee Shop. Archives# CVA 1184-3267. Photographer: Jack Lindsay. On March 19th, 1923 under BC Electric Railway’s […]

Anna Ethel Sprott (1879-1961) has a legacy in Vancouver that most might associate with a radio jingle: “Sprott-Shaw Community College, since 1903!”. However, Anna Ethel Sprott did more than marry the school‘s founder, R.J. Sprott, in 1918 and take on the role of president after his passing in 1943. She was a solid member of […]

Empire Stadium Ski Jump