A 麻豆传媒映画time travelogue brought to you by听.
According to City Archivist Major Matthews, the top image is the first known portrayal of what's now Vancouver. It's a copy of a watercolour painted by Lieut. Willies of the HMS Ganges in 1861 and shows members of the crew helping local Squamish people pull heavy fishing nets to shore. Matthews determined that the location was Greer's (now Kitsilano) Beach at the foot of Yew Street, where the bottom photo was taken in 1908.
The beach was named after , an Irishman and American Civil War vet who lived on the beach. He was eventually evicted by the CPR, but only after a gunfight between him and the sheriff.
In his notes included with the photo, Major Matthews writes:
Samuel Greer鈥檚 cottage stood on the low mound鈥攕and blown鈥攚here the long boat shed appears; his barn and water well were out of sight on the right; his orchard and garden, also milk-house were behind. His cows grazed in the swamp, where, in earlier days, elk had roamed. Three creeks entered this beach; one in the corner on right; one in the middle of beach; and a small one at far end; they almost dried up in summer. The Canadian Pacific Railway right-of-way is in the lower right-hand corner.It was first used as a resort for summer camps in the early 1890鈥檚; became most fashionable to have a camp there, was renamed 鈥淜itsilano鈥� by the Can. Pac. Ry, and when the single track street car line commenced, on or about Dominion Day, 1905, proved so popular that it became crowded. 鈥淭ent Town鈥� had two rows of camper鈥檚 tents, with an irregular 鈥渟treet鈥� of sand between them.
After serving as a camp site for more than 15 years, it was discontinued, after 1908, on account of improper sanitation, and the opening of the area for settlement 1909. The forest was cut down and burned, and a black empty clearing lay where it had been. The C.P.R. built five fine houses鈥攐ne here and there鈥攖o induce settlement. When False Creek was deepened in 1913, the sand was pumped on the swamp, and the muskrats & frogs in the slough disappeared.
Sources: Top image: Major JS Matthews,听,听(Vancouver: City of 麻豆传媒映画Archives, 1955); bottom photo: ; quotation: Major JS Matthews, (Vancouver: City of Vancouver, 2011), 33.
