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Page 2 West Vancouver Historical Society February 2000 WESTVANCOUVER HISTORICALSOCIETY Offices "Gertrude Lawson House" 680 17th Street West Vancouver, B.C. V7V 3T2 Phone - 925-7299 Principal Officers ! President Helen Davies { 2nd-Vice President Al Hasley Secretary Anne Vernon f Treasurer . y Mia Bonettemaker Past President Ian Macdonald Hon. Archivist ^ 7 t ' hupert Harrison Director, fQ ji Special Events C'~ 'Laureen Jones Newsletter Team Publisher/Editor Anne Vernon Assoc. Editor Helen Davies Production and Distribution Tom Taylor Graphics & Display Laureen Jones Printer Quill Printing Ltd. West Van., B.C. Editorial Policy It is Society Policy: That every effort is made to ensure that all articles are accurate but the Society takes no responsibility for inaccuracies. That opinions expressed in contributions and presentations are those of the author and are not necessarily those of the Society That corrections, contrary opinions and contributions are welcomed. That excerpts from HISTORY-ONICS must be attributed to the WEST VANCOUVER HISTORICAL SOCIETY & reproductions, in whole or in part, are not permitted without the authorization of the Society. EXECUTIVE REPORT: By: Helen Davies In 1904, Sir Wilfrid Laurier declared that "the twentieth century belongs to Canada." While scholars will, no doubt, continue to debate whether his prediction was correct, there is little doubt that Canadians have witnessed much change. West Vancouver, too, has experienced its own metamorphosis over the years. Writing in 193 8, Municipal Clerk W. Herrin recalled in 1919 "stepping on to the old Sonrisa at Vancouver and after that delightful trip through the Narrows, landing at West Vancouver." He noted that, "having come direct from London, England, West Vancouver, with its dilapidated tents and shacks along the waterfront, its wooden sidewalks, its rough and unpaved streets, gave one the impression, despite its wild and picturesque surroundings, of having reached the end of the earth." Remembering that "oil lamps were then the fashion," he recalls how "one, to prevent his or her neck being broken, had, at night, to carry an improvised lantern, locally known as a 'bug.'" Lamenting that, by 1938, "gone are the days when the roosters next door woke us from a refreshing sleep at 2 a.m., or when one had to get up in the middle of the night to tether a goat which had got loose," Herrin wrote that the "possibility of expansion seemed very remote." However, by 1938, along with the two bridges spanning the Narrows, West Vancouver had "become thoroughly cosmopolitan and within its borders [were] to be found people from every quarter of the globe." Then as now, change was inevitable. Noting that "the municipality will move forward. It cannot help but do so," Herrin remarked that the "future will hold pitfalls in just the same way as the past." Nonetheless, he was hopeful that West Vancouver would avoid "the rocks and shoals" along the way. As we enter the 21 st century, the community continues to grow and change and this will result in new fond memories and personal stories of growing up and living in West Vancouver that, hopefully, will be documented in future issues of History-Onics, in years to come. Happy New Year to all of you! Excerpts are from an article by Municipal Clerk W. Herrin titled "West Vancouver: Past & Present" in the "Progress Supplement" of the West Vancouver News, Vol. XIII, No. 26, Thursday, November 24th, 1938. r^r%T> a T'IT' IV/f r> C grate/uUy acknowledge the support of our Corporate JOi iVXJLiVXJjALJX^ Members whose names appear here in order of joining Chapman Land Surveying Ltd. B.C. Rail Ltd. Simpson Home Hardware Holly burn Funeral Home Ltd. Dr. Robert N. Hicks, Inc. The Palm Guest House West Van Florist Ltd. The Square Rigger Pub V ancouver Historical Murchie’s Tea & Coffee Ltd. Dave’s Auto Body Shop Ltd. Society Crawford E. Laing Ltd. Quill Printing Limited Royal Canadian Legion - British Pacific Properties Ltd. The Capilano Golf and Branch 60 VanCity Savings Credit Union Country Club