FVC History Edition - Nov. 29, 2024 - Winter on Sumas Lake

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Good morning!

It’s hard to believe we have been doing these History Editions for nearly six months already! It’s been such a pleasure to dive into Fraser Valley history, and to work with the region’s many archivists and curators to find interesting stories for you all. More than some of our other work, the History Edition has also given us an opportunity to get to know all you readers better. We’ve had many people email in with story tips, photos, and memories to share—and it makes working on this newsletter so much more enjoyable.

If you want to support us in producing the History Edition, and others things like it, today is a great day to get started. For one day only, we have Black Friday pricing on our memberships, which means you can get an annual membership for only $79.20. (It works out to $6.60 a month, or roughly one Starbucks coffee.) If you don’t want to commit for the year, you can also get a monthly membership for $8.79 a month. You can get the discounted pricing here.

– Grace

🌤 Local forecast: Langley | Chilliwack | Abbotsford | Hope

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🛣 Click here for links to road cameras across the Fraser Valley, including those for the Coquihalla, Highway 7, Hope-Princeton, Fraser Canyon, and Highway 1 in Langley and Abbotsford.

HISTORY

Marie Weeden’s Notes on Christmas

Marie Weeden has always been a part of Chilliwack.

Born into the Wells family—one of the preeminent settler families in the area—Marie grew up enveloped in the importance of history. Her father, Oliver Wells, not only ran the historic Edenbank Farm, established by his grandfather in 1867, but also helped revive Salish weaving practices with his Indigenous neighbours. He was an amateur ethnologist, and the first president of the Chilliwack Historical Society.

When he passed, Marie took up his mantle—editing his manuscripts, publishing his work, and continuing his advocacy for Indigenous art. But Marie was also a woman of her own passions and projects.

She made a decade-long attempt to preserve her family home for future generations, advocated for mental health support for her son and others, became the only non-Indigenous member of the Salish Weavers, created her own artwork—and, like any other person ahead of the holidays, worked to create a magical season for her kids, her friends, and her family.

Each year, Marie sent out dozens of Christmas cards, checking off the ones she had sent in a dedicated holiday address book. And each year, she would take a moment to write down her memories of the season—notes of joy and connection, but also of heartache and loss.

Marie’s Notes on Christmas now resides at the Chilliwack Archives, along with many of the other diaries and writings from her and her family.

Today, join us as we step into the past with Marie, and share in the universal feelings of love, hope, and melancholy that each holiday season brings.

• We begin in 1967, when Marie and her husband Dick set off on a skiing trip to Silver Star, and Marie’s mother Sara took their children, Shelley and Geoffrey, for the week.

This story would not be possible without the generous assistance of the staff at the Chilliwack Museum and Archives.

Related

🦌 Nov. 18, 1898: Robert Silverthorne and H. Goater of Lytton went on a shooting expedition and secured a fine deer [The Prospector]

💔 Nov. 23, 1911: Rev. Thomas Hall, pastor of Chilliwack’s Carman Methodist Church, died unexpectedly of heart failure; his death ‘cast a gloom over the whole valley’ [Chilliwack Free Press]

💰 Nov. 6, 1914: An Abbotsford benefit concert raised $200 for the Belgian Relief Fund [Abbotsford Post]

🚧 Nov. 7, 1923: The provincial government undertook a new survey to find a safer alternate route for Dewdney Trunk Road from Ruskin into Agassiz; engineers suggested four different potential routes [Agassiz Record]

💉 Nov. 7, 1957: Aldergrove firefighters received their ‘anti-Flu shots’ at a local clinic; low vaccine supply meant shots were limited to essential workers like firefighters, telephone operators, and doctors [Aldergrove Herald]

🏠 Nov. 28, 1979: BC said it would not buy Edenbank Farm to turn it into a heritage pioneer farm park [Chilliwack Progress] / Edenbank was the family home of Marie Weeden, who is featured in this month’s main story [FVC]

⚖ Nov. 13, 1996: The lawsuit between the Langley School District and fired superintendent Susan Everett was resolved; Everett sued the district after she was let go for allegedly ‘usurping authority’ [Aldergrove Star]

New in history

📖 The Semá:th First Nation and UFV scholar Keith Carlson are collaborating on a new book about the history, cultural resurgence, and reconciliation journey of the Semá:th people [Semá:th First Nation]

📸 UFV’s South Asian Studies Institute has received more than three million photographs taken by late BC photojournalist Chandra Bodalia; the photographs are in the process of being digitized [UFV SASI]

🎥 A Belgian filmmaker is working on a new short film about Chilliwack bagpiper Private James C. Richardson, who defied orders to inspire his fellow troops with song [Kickstarter]

✈ The Canadian Museum of Flight is moving to Pitt Meadows after 30 years at the Langley Airport [Langley Advance Times]

SPONSORED BY FVC

Fraser Valley Current memberships are 20% off for a limited time. An annual subscription is now $79.20, or only $6.60 a month! To see the details and get your membership, click here.

Winter on Sumas Lake

Farmers might be setting up snow fences across their fields in Sumas Prairie today, but in the early 1900s, cold weather sparked a very different set of activities.

Before Sumas Lake was drained in the 1920s, the shallow wetland was a temporary stopping ground for many birds on their annual trips south from the Arctic. People would also make their way to the lake for a winter visit. The lake and its tributaries would regularly ice over in the winter months, and inspired a slew of skaters to test the ice. According to Before We Lost the Lake, Charles Wilson, a member of the Northwest Boundary Survey, commented in November 1859 that the lake was “smooth and slippery as glass. I only wish I had my skates up here, should have good fun.” The Bowman family, pictured above with their friend Nora York, were also fond of skating on Sumas Lake and made at least one trip in 1905.

The winter fun on the lake, which included sleighing as well as skating, wasn’t enough to offset the settlers’ desire for farmland and a mosquito-free community. You can read our award-winning story about the history of Sumas Lake, including how it was drained, here.

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Noma Christmas lights

Muriel (Wakefield) Murphy bought these decorations at Black’s Drugs where she worked in the 1940s, likely for her first Christmas with husband John “Spud” Murphy. The lights were a major improvement on earlier strings that went completely dark when one light burnt out. Each bulb had to be checked until the burnt-out bulb was finally found and replaced. Black’s Drugs was located on Essendene Avenue in Downtown Abbotsford.

This artifact is courtesy of The Reach Gallery Museum.

Free flight history: Langley's Canadian Museum of Flight is offering free admission and a chance to meet Santa Claus on Saturday, Nov. 30 from 10am to 4pm. Kids can make aviation ornaments and learn more about flight in Canada. Details online.

Dickens Tea: The Agassiz-Harrison Historical Society hosts its annual Dickens Tea on Saturday, Dec. 7 at the Friendship House on Morrow Road. Tickets are available at the museum. Details online.

Railway holiday: The Kilby Historic Site hosts Christmas by the Railway on two consecutive weekends (Dec. 7-8 and Dec. 14-15) between 1 and 6pm. Visit the toymaker in his workshop, write a letter to Father Christmas, and make a tree ornament. Details online.

Santa origins: Seniors 55 and older are invited to the Abbotsford Recreation Centre to learn about the origins of Christmas and Santa Claus on Tuesday, Dec. 10 starting at 10am. Details online.

Voyageur reenactment: The Living Arts Society hosts a three-day portage from Surrey to Langley from Friday, Dec. 13 to Sunday, Dec. 15 to commemorate the passage of voyageurs into Stó:lō territory in 1824. Langley City's Portage Park features its celebration on Saturday, Dec. 14 with free activities and reenactments. The voyageurs come to Fort Langley on Sunday, Dec. 15, and visitors have the opportunity to join in the paddle if space is available. Details online.

Kid’s party: The Mission Museum hosts a Merry Little Christmas Party on Saturday, Dec. 14 from 1 to 2pm or 3 to 4pm. Parents can relax in a cozy and festive space while young children enjoy a Christmas story time, historic scavenger hunt, and hot chocolate. Tickets are $10. Details online.

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Catch up

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