Vancouver Historical Society

From our Mailbag

Penticton Art Walk: Charles Henry Rawson Exhibition

"Clay Cliffs Near Penticton, B.C." 1920, watercolour, C.H. Rawson
"Clay Cliffs Near Penticton, B.C." 1920, watercolour, C.H. Rawson

In 2021, the VHS received a package of drawings and watercolours by Charles Henry
Rawson from his descendant James Wilson of Santa Barbara, California. The package
included a list of his landscape sketches, although many of the originals had been removed, presumably by relatives.

They will be presented at an upcoming exhibition in Penticton as part of the Art Walk and Auction.

A Little but Important Engineering History

In 1887 the Capilano River was selected as the primary of Burrard Inlet into the city. Then, in 1908 a wooden fir stave pipe was constructed 11 kilometres from the mouth of the Seymour River. A second intake, 600 metres north of the first one, was built in 1913. This pipeline supplied water to residents of North Vancouver and later carried water underneath the Second Narrows Bridge to houses in Vancouver, Burnaby and Richmond. The Vancouver Historical Society was contacted by a gentleman in the State of Washington with a photo collection related to the building of the water system in North Vancouver. There were photos of gigantic wooden pipes, heavy equipment and observing wives and friends. The photos represented meaningful work, laudatory engineering and most of all progress.
Cover of 1935-1936 catalogue. Reference code AM369-S1–Catalogues of goods for sale.

2025 LECTURES

APR
24
2025

What's not to love about the Vancouver Special?

Introduced in the 1960s, the Vancouver Special was banned — that’s right, banned — by City Hall in 1984. Over 10,000 units were built, mostly in East Van, and opposition to the spread of this homegrown style was most intense on the west side of town. These days, the Vancouver Special is getting some of the love it deserves….

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