Editorially speaking…
It was over almost as soon as it began but still worth the time and trouble to drive to Crofton.
I’m referring to Sunday evening’s flypast by the famous Martin Mars water bomber, Hawaii Mars, on her final flight to retirement at Sidney’s BC Aviation Museum. (Bonus: She was escorted by the Snowbirds in perfect formation.)
Never again will the Hawaii Mars skim the waves, scooping up water to fight a forest fire. —Courtesy Andrew Waldegrave
Think of it: a monster aircraft that’s over 80 years old and still airworthy. One of only seven that entered service with the U.S. Navy during the Second World War, she and single surviving sister, Philippine Mars, are now saved for posterity as museum exhibits.
When the Hawaii Mars is opened to the public in September, Belinda and I will be there. I’ve seen her moored at Sproat Lake, and have had an awesome view of her passing directly overhead at low altitude, but never been on board.
Years ago, I had the opportunity to sit in the cockpit of a German bomber and a B-17 at Cassidy Airport but had to pass on a last-minute invitation for a tour of a DC-3 and a Canso PBY which were about to leave the Island forever.
Longtime Chronicles readers will recall previous mentions of my having been blessed to see and to hear other multi-piston radial engines—music to the ears, much like that of a steam locomotive vs. a diesel. In other words, no contest!
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Coal miners’ cottages in Cumberland. —BC Archives
The Cumberland Museum & Archives is hosting an ‘Old Townsites Tour’ this coming Sunday, August 18th.
It’s easy to be lulled into thinking that summer will last forever but we all know that it’s already drawing down. So if you’re thinking of things to do before the fall rains begin, consider a visit to historic Cumberland this weekend.
Although there’s nothing left of Chinatown other than Hor Sue Mah’s cabin, guide and local historian Dawn Copeman will “walk through the main streets of Hai Gai and Low Gai, where, from 1888 to 1968, a vibrant community flourished with shops, churches, factories, clubhouses, bakeries, theatres, and family-run farms.
“Dawn will recount the lives of the ordinary and extraordinary people who made Chinatown a self-contained and thriving community nestled in the wetlands.”
The tour includes No. 1 Town of Cumberland’s Japanese community, now marked by some concrete pillars. If there is little to see, Dawn is sure to more than compensate with her extensive research and firsthand input from area families and descendants.
Much like I tried to do when leading Black Track tours of the South Wellington area. It’s all in the stories, after all, while actually walking in the footsteps of the pioneers. They may be gone but, thanks to historians and museums their memories and deeds live on.
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Last month, “a portion” of the famous and popular Othello Tunnels Coquilhalla Canyon Park near Hope was reopened to the public after being damaged by flooding in November 2021.
This stretch of the Canadian Pacific Railway was built in the early 1900s to link the Kootenays with tidewater—a monumental engineering feat as it required the blasting of five tunnels through three mountain ranges!
This former railway grade, immortalized as McCulloch’s Wonder in honour of its chief engineer, has since become phenomenally popular with hikers and cyclists and reopening of the tunnel has been eagerly awaited.
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On the downside, a heritage building in Nanaimo has been damaged by fire. Fortunately, the former No. 2 Fire Hall at 34 Nicol Street was saved from destruction by firefighters who confined the damage to the exterior. But the wooden entrance doors and stone brickwork have suffered from the fire.
Anyone who enters or departs Nanaimo from the south end cannot help but notice and admire the 1893 heritage structure’s Victorian Italianate architecture that was popular in the 19th century. Its loss would be nothing less than a tragedy.
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Finally, a note from reader Morris Wadds:
“I just wanted to say that I have read and enjoyed your work over the years.
“After my retirement I began researching my family only to discover that they were early BC residents with 1 grandma arriving in Vancouver alone in 1886, married grandpa in 1888 & homesteaded Hatzic Island.
“My paternal side arrived in 1889/90. Both sides got involved in the Kootenays mining activity.
“So a big thank you for all your research. Cheers, Morris Wadds.”
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