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Miss Gertrude Lawson - contact. A home and grounds already in cultivation just west of the Federal Government Wharf in District Lot 775. The property was part of 160 acres pre- empted by James Blake In 1872. Blake later transferred his property to John "Navvy Jack" Thomas who built the home subsequently acquired by Mr. Lawson. The property was already well developed with some thirty fruit trees and it was not an uncommon sight for the Lawson family to see bears climbing into the apple trees after the fruit. Water for domestic purposes was obtained by way of a pipe from a weir some distance up the stream which flowed past the west side of the house and which was eventually named Lawson Creek. Fish abounded in the stream and the Lawson dog "Jock" was frequently seen catching his own fish. This stream sufficed for most of the year, but on occasions in the dry summer water was at a premium. In addition to the barn serving its obvious purpose, Mr. Lawson outfitted a part of it as a gymnasium for the benefit of the members of the family and friends. This was obviously the first gymnasium in West Vancouver. When the Pacific Great Eastern Railway line was constructed through West Vancouver In 1914; it bisected the Lawson property, leaving the barn isolated to the north. When the family moved from the property the barn was acquired and renovated as the meeting place of King David Lodge A.F. & A.M. It remained in this use until demolished in 1950 and was replaced by the present Masonic Lodge Building on the same site. At the time of arrival of the Lawson family there was no church of any denomination in the area, and being of the Presbyterian persuasion Mr. Lawson opened the living room of their home for church services. Eventually the numbers became too large to be accommodated in this room, and by that time Mr. Lawson's brother-in-law had built a large home at the foot of what is 20^^*^ Street, and so the church services were moved to the living room of that residence. Although Page Seven Cont'd. next column. Miss Gertrude Lawson - cont'd. the Thompson family was of Methodist denomination, the services continued as a more or less non-denomlnational type with Presbyterians, Methodists, Congreg- ationalists and Baptists attending. In time, even that facility proved inadequate, Mr. Lawson then donated a corner of his property which was at what is now the southeast corner of 18^^ & Marine Drive as a site for a church. A floor and sides approximately four feet high were constructed and a canvass tent roof was purchased for $50.00. During the first winter the roof of the tent collapsed under a heavyfall of snow. As a result of this disaster, funds were raised within the community and a proper roof was Installed thus providing protection from the elements. And as a more substantial building , It became available for town meetings, school and church services. Mr. Lawson's eldest daughter, Elizabeth, and her husband, William Pitman were the first couple married in the church. The first school teacher In West Vancouver was Miss Reid. She had been teaching In eastern Canada and came west to visit the Lawsons. Mr. Lawson persuaded her to stay and promised that a sufficient number of pupils could be gathered to make a class. By 1913, Hollyburn School at and Duchess had been constructed as a two-room school and the first principal was Mr. George Brealey who at this time was living with his family in Marpole. It is said that his salary at that time was $50.00 per month. When the Lawson family first moved to this area their means of access was by way of a rowboat which Mr. Lawson stored in the little cove just east of Prospect Point In Stanley Park. Subsequently he, his brother-in-law Mr. Willian Charles Thompson, Mr. John Sinclair, and Mr. W.W. Lefeaux, formed West Vancouver Transportation Company Limited in 1910 and commenced service between Coal Harbour and the foot of 17^*^ Street with a small launch named Cont'd. on page eight