FVC History Edition - Sept. 27, 2024 - Residential school records

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Good morning!

On Monday, Sept. 30—Truth and Reconciliation Day, or Orange Shirt Day—Canadians will consider how their government unfairly treated Indigenous people across the country. We will think about the impacts of residential schools, and how non-Indigenous people can best reconcile with Indigenous nations.

So in today’s history edition, you will notice a theme. We are doing our best to share elements of Indigenous heritage through the history of trains, an examination of missing residential school records, and a celebration of Stó:lō weaving.

We don’t claim to be a complete resource for local Indigenous history. People wanting to learn more can find lots online, or by going to a local reconciliation event and listening to survivors. Indigenous artifacts held by the Stó:lō Research and Resource Management Centre can be viewed online. Sq’éwlets has an amazing digital museum showcasing local history, including place names and their pronunciation. Stó:lō Shxwelí is another great resource for language, songs, and stories.

Programming note: you will not receive a newsletter on Monday, Sept. 30. We’ll return to your inbox on Tuesday.

– Grace

P.S. I recently did an interview with Abbotsford centurions Vic and Jean Arnold. The pair shared their memories of the community, and I will be writing an article based on the stories they told. I’d love to hear more stories from long-time valley residents! If you, or someone you know, would like to share your memories, just hit reply on this email.

HISTORY

Your train history questions answered

A train is never far away in the Fraser Valley.

But what, exactly, is the history of rail in the Fraser Valley? Who built the railways that cut through the canyon, the flood plains, and the farmland? And how did the introduction of those new rail lines impact Indigenous people in the valley?

Several months ago, we asked you for your questions about trains in the valley. Since July, we have answered your queries about freight trains and passenger travel.

Now, we take a dive into your questions about the history of trains, looking at the impacts on our communities, the people who lost their lives building Canada’s transcontinental connection, and the effect railways had and continue to have on Stó:lō and Nlaka'pamux people.

• Today, Grace answers your questions about train history.

🌲 Sept. 3, 1866:  Prisoners were used to clear stumps off Douglas Street in Yale, an improvement that was ‘much required’ [British Columbia Tribune]

☕ Sept. 16, 1893: The people of Cedar Valley hosted a tea party to help fund the construction of a new church [Mission City News]

🐐 Sept. 23, 1910: A herd of Angora goats were killed in Clayburn, they climbed onto a railway trestle and were hit by an incoming train [Abbotsford Post]

🛶 Sept. 7, 1938: A Vancouver man drowned in Cultus Lake in a canoe accident in early September; the summer season had otherwise been free of fatal accidents [Chilliwack Progress]

🌲 Sept. 13, 1961: Thieves robbed an Aldergrove TV store of 12 radios, a tape recorder, a 19-inch television, and two amplifiers [Aldergrove News]

New in history

🏠 The Chilliwack Heritage Society is bringing back its historic home tour after a six-year hiatus [Chilliwack Progress]

🎂 Retired Abbotsford teacher Paul Redekop celebrated his 100th birthday this month [Abbotsford News]

✈ The Canadian Museum of Flight offered visitors a close look at the legendary Spitfire plane on the anniversary of the Battle of Britain [Langley Advance Times]

Access to residential school records cumbersome, incomplete

The federal government needs to give the Royal BC Museum and Archives more funding so it can digitize records from St. Mary’s Residential School, and other residential schools around the province.

That is one of the recommendations in a new report from Canada’s Standing Senate Committee on Indigenous Peoples. The report, “Missing Records, Missing Children,” looks at how a lack of proper access to residential school records has made it more challenging for First Nations to learn what happened to the children who attended those institutions. Many Indigenous people have to travel to view records in person, and often must comb through reams of paper to identify missing children who may be buried in unmarked graves.

In 2022, the Royal BC Museum and Archives agreed to send the National Truth and Reconciliation Commission digital copies of its residential school records. But so far, it has not completed the task. The Royal BC Museum and Archives has yet to deliver many of the records from the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, a Catholic group that ran the St. Mary’s Residential School in Mission, the Kamloops Residential School, and others.

When Jodi Giesbrecht, the vice-president of the museum, spoke to the Senate committee in 2023, the museum was working on digitizing the records, but had only digitized 36% of the records. She said there were 19 linear metres of records related to residential schools at the archives. Those likely include personnel files of school employees, as well as photographs, correspondence, maps, and more.

The committee noted that the Royal BC Museum and a non-profit that also holds Oblates of Mary Immaculate records were working to get records to the NTRC, but that their funding is “woefully inadequate” to undertake the task.

The committee called for more funding from the federal government, in collaboration with provincial governments, to hire more staff to digitize the records. Other recommendations included amending the Access to Information Act to make it easier to access federal residential school records, and developing a formal policy to proactively disclose residential school information.

The full report and recommendations can be found here.

Truth and Reconciliation events

🔸 The National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation is hosting its final free online lunch-and-learn on Friday, Sept. 27. Each session is two hours and focuses on a different topic related to reconciliation. Details online.

🔸 Chilliwack Secondary School hosts its third annual Orange Shirt Day Powwow on Friday, Sept. 27 and Saturday, Sept. 28. Everyone is welcome to attend and admission is free. Details online.

🔸 The Fort Langley National Historic Site hosts a free event to honour Orange Shirt Day on Saturday, Sept. 28. The day will include a presentation about colonial Canada, a button craft, and Indigenous films. Details online.

🔸 The Semá:th First Nation hosts Walking Forward, an event honouring residential school, day school, and ’60s Scoop survivors, all day on Sunday, Sept. 29. The event will include a survivors panel, a squidilitch ceremony, a slahal tournament, and a salmon BBQ dinner. Details online.

🔸 Stó:lō leadership and the Sts’elemeqw Residential School Thrivers Society are hosting an event honouring residential school survivors at the former Coqualeetza Residential School in Chilliwack on Monday, Sept. 30. The event goes from 10:30am to noon, with a meal to follow. Details online.

🔸 The Stetís ímexstowx Gathering is happening on Monday, Sept. 30 at Abbotsford’s Civic Plaza from 10am to 3pm in honour of Orange Shirt Day. The event will include story presentations, crafts, and a puppet performance of Luminous Waters. Details online.

🔸 Reconciliation Langley hosts a Day of Truth on Monday, Sept. 30 at the Derek Doubleday Arboretum. Learn about the history of residential schools, listen to Indigenous drumming, and engage in a candlelight vigil to honour the remains of children found at residential schools. Details online.

🔸 The Ruby Creek Art Gallery is offering free admission to its exhibit Lighting the Path: Our Stories of Resilience, on Monday, Sept. 30. Book the free tour online.

Past stories

You can learn more about Indigenous history in the Fraser Valley through some of our past stories below. You can also read the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Final Report and its Calls to Action online.

• The man who stole a valley

• Your Fraser Valley city and reconciliation

• BC is failing the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s first call to action

• Warnings abounded about dire conditions at Fraser Valley residential schools

• 'Have fun, don't forget the history': How to use a park where a residential school once stood 

• What has been lost: One family, and truth before reconciliation

Stó:lō Weaving

This rug was woven by Málí (Mary Peters) of Skowakul (Seabird Island). Born January 1, 1900, at American Bar, B.C., Málí married Edmund Joe Peters on October 20, 1929. They raised two daughters: Annie Alex of American Bar and Siyamiyateliyot (Elizabeth Phillips) who is the last fluent speaker of Halq'eméylem. (We wrote about Siyamiateliyot and her work to revive the language here.) Málí died January 5, 1981, in Harrison Mills.

Málí was an active member of the Salish Weavers Guild, and a central figure in the revival of Salish weaving techniques. Her designs were traditional family designs, which she originally used to make baskets before she began weaving rugs in the 1960s. In 1967, she was part of a group that was commissioned to weave a tapestry for the Hotel Bonaventure in Montreal. The tapestry consisted of 150 pounds of naturally dyed wool. Her loom was designed based on memories of looms previously owned and used by her family for rugmaking.

Málí was a member of the Coqualeetza Elders group, contributed to the preservation of the Halq'eméylem language and traditional cultural practices, including the creation of fine coiled baskets. She was referred to as the "one who knew everything, because she never went to school."

This artifact is provided courtesy of the Chilliwack Museum and Archives.

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