The port of Vancouver was a hard place to obtain a job. Applicants run from place to place, hoping to catch one of the few job tokens thrown out to the crowd by a foreman. There were many nasty affairs and strikes over working conditions. In 1935, hundreds of workers marched up to the harbour but were met with police mounted squad, tear gas, and special constables. The stickers were chased back. -O.Z.
Eastside Culture Crawl
Since 1997, many artists participate in the Eastside Culture Crawl by opening their studio doors and allowing the public to see their art every November. Eastside Culture Crawl features jewelers, painters, sculptors, furniture makers, potters, printmakers, photographers, weavers, glassblowers and so on. Different Artists from Railtown Studios and Railtown participate every year. Learn more about Eastside Culture Crawl at:http://culturecrawl.ca/ (picture is also from this site) -H.L.
CPR comes to Vancouver
When CPR President Van Horne asked to change the terminus in 1884 to Granville (now known as Vancouver; the terminus is in present day Railtown/ Vancouver Harbour), he also helped establish the name Vancouver for our city. The story is that when he was rowing near present day Stanley Park, the person he was in the boat with (either Alexander Wellington Ross or a CPR land commissioner) said to Van Horne that the city was destined to be great and needs to have a great name. Van Horne said to him that no one would knew where Granville was but everyone knew of Captain George Vancouver’s explorations. So from there, Vancouver became Vancouver. During the same year, CPR received 25,000 acres of land for their use of expanding the railway (which included Railtown). The railway displaced many people. The construction of the railway also destroyed salmon streams, hunting and gathering places of the Coast Salish First Nations. The railroad was finished in May 1887. -H.L
James A. Raymur
In 1869, James A. Raymur takes over Captain Edward Stamp’s sawmill. He renames the sawmill Hastings Mills, in honor of Rear Admiral George Fowler Hastings, an officer of the Royal Navy. When he saw how disorganized the mill was, he said, “What is the meaning of this aggregation of filth?” (see Places for more information about Hastings Mill.) (Picture fromhttp://search-bcarchives.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/captain-james-raymur) -HL
Vancouver’s First Punk Concert
In July 1977, the Japanese Hall and Japanese Language School held Vancouver’s first punk concert featuring two short-lived bands: Furies and Dee Dee and the Dishrags. (Picture fromhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dishrags ) -HL
Asahi Baseball Team
The Asahi Baseball Team was a Japanese baseball club that began playing in 1914. Known for their speed and tactic, they won 10 city championships between 1919 and 1940. The team played against many cities, sometimes going across the border to play in Seattle or Tacoma (Washington). In 1926, they won the Terminal League Championship. They were sponsored by Koichiro Sanmiya (more about him below). On September 18, 1941, they played their last game. Due to the Japanese internment, the Asahi Team never played again. The team was admitted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2003. (Picture from: http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/vancouver-asahi/ ) -HL