WEST END

Vancouver - British Columbia - CANADA

History

Vancouver is one of the youngest urban centers of its size or larger in North America. At the time of its birth (April 6, 1886), Victoria on Vancouver Island, New Westminster and Fort Langley, both on the Fraser River, had already been developing for several decades only to be overshadowed by Vancouver and its designation as western terminus for the transcontinental railway.

The purpose of this page is to provide a chronological context to the physical, cultural, social and political environments that shaped and influenced the West End's development and evolution. This list is intended as a guide only and is not to be viewed as definitive or comprehensive. The content is a mix of details that I hope will inform and entertain the viewer. Details of interest or relevance will be added regularly.
This chronology highlights the relatively short span of time in which the Vancouver area evolved to its present status, some 150 years. Of this the West End has taken only the last 100 years.

A Chronology

1775	Admiral Quadra sails from Mexico to Alaska and claims the Pacific Coast for Spain
1778	Captain Cook sails up the west coast and becomes the first European to set foot on what is now the western shore of Canada
July 5, 1791	Spanish explorer Narvaez anchors off Isla de Langara now called Point Grey
June 12, 1792	Captain George Vancouver arrives, charts and names Point Grey, the Strait of Georgia, Point Atkinson, English Bay and Burrard Channel.
1793	Alexander Mackenzie becomes the first European to reach the west coast of Canada by land at what is now Bella Coola.
July 2, 1808	Simon Fraser becomes the first European to reach the area now known as Vancouver by land.
1827	Hudson Bay Company trading post Fort Langley on the Fraser River is established.
June 15, 1846	The 49th parallel as the border with the US is extented west of the Rockies.
1846	Vancouver Island is made a Crown Colony with Fort Victoria as its capital.
1858	Gold Rush on the Fraser
August 2, 1858	Crown Colony on the mainland of British Columbia is established.
February 14, 1859	Qeensborough becomes the capital of the colony. Name is changed to New Westminster on July 20, 1859.
1859	Colonel Tom Moody constructs first road in the area, now known as North Road, connecting New Westminster and the Burrard Inlet.
July 16, 1860	City of New Westminster incorporated.
1862	The Three Greenhorns (John Morton, Samuel Brighouse and William Hailstone) purchase all of what is now the West End.
September 26, 1862	First settlers (the McCleery family)arrive on the north arm of the Fraser in what is now Vancouver. The land is now McCleery Golf Course.
1865	Captain Edward Stamp logs 100 acres around what is now known as Brockton Point providing a clearing for settlement.
July 1865	Captain Edward Stamp establishes Hastings Mill the generally accepted origin of what becomes Vancouver.
1866	Colonies of British Columbia and Vancouver Island are united under the name of British Columbia.
March 28, 1867	The British North America Act (Canada's constitution) becomes law.
July 1, 1867	Canadian Confederation - Canada is born.
September 30, 1867	John Deighton "Gassy Jack" arrives at Hastings Mill and opens first public saloon.
May 25, 1868	Capital of colony is moved from New Westminster to Victoria on Vancouver Island.
April 11, 1869	First telegraph message is sent from Moody's Mill on the North Shore to Hastings Townsite to New Westminster.
1870	Granville Townsite named but residents refer to it as Gastown after "Gassy Jack".
1870	Vancouver Townsite is named.
July 20, 1871	British Columbia joins Canada and becomes a province.
October 2, 1872	First bridge over False Creek is opened.
end of 1870's	Though still undeveloped, ownership of the West End has been redistributed amongst a larger group including David Oppenheimer as a major owner.
December 12, 1883	First local telephone call is made between Port Moody and New Westminster.
November 7, 1885	The last spike is driven at Craigellachie in the Rockies. The transcontinental rail system is complete.
April 6, 1886	City of Vancouver incorporated, based in area around Gastown, population about 1000.
June 13, 1886	Fire destroys most of Vancouver.
May 23, 1887	First transcontinental train arrives in Vancouver - Engine #374. This engine is on display at the False Creek Community Centre.
June 13, 1887	S.S. Abyssinia arrives in Vancouver from Yokahama loaded with tea and silk. Cargo is placed on transcontinental train and arrives in New York a week later and in London a week after that. This series of events establishes Vancouver as a trade gateway.
August 8, 1887	First streetlights are turned on in Vancouver.
September 22, 1887	The Vancouver Board of Trade is formed.
1887	Construction of the first Hotel Vancouver
September 27, 1888	Official opening of Stanley Park by Mayor David Oppenheimer
October 29, 1889	Dedication of Stanley Park by Lord Stanley, Governor General of Canada.
end of 1880's	With the arrival of train service to Vancouver, railway employees and management began to build homes in the eastern portions of the West End.
June 28, 1890	The Vancouver Electric Railway and Lighting Company officially begins operations.
1890	Population of Vancouver 15,000.
1890	The landmark now known as The Lions are named.
September 11, 1891	The Interurban Rail system begins with a connection to New Westminster.
Spring 1892	Hastings Street becomes the first paved street in Vancouver.
September 8, 1892	City of Burnaby is incorporated.
May 1894	Serious flooding in the Fraser Valley.
August 15, 1895	Mark Twain lectures at the Vancouver Opera House.
August 2, 1897	A Kinetoscope exhibition at Market Hall shows motion pictures and Edison's wonder speaking phonograph.
March 28, 1898	The first long-distance telephone in Vancouver goes into operation.
1900	The approximate beginning of accelerated growth and development in Vancouver and the West End in particular.
October 31, 1902	The Pacific Cable opens.
July 2, 1905	The English Bay Bathhouse is opened.
May 13, 1907	The city of North Vancouver is incorporated.
1909	Ferry service begins to West Vancouver.
September 6, 1909	The first Granville Street bridge is opened.
1910	With most of the wealthy homeowners deciding to move to the new area of Shaughnessy the West End becomes the home of a more transient population, converting many of the mansions into rooming houses.
1910	The Interurban rail system is completed to Chilliwack.
January 15, 1917	The Ballet Russe opens at the Opera House. Amongst it's performers is Nijinski.
January 1, 1922	Traffic in Vancouver is switched to the right-hand system.
1923	Vancouver population 100,000
1926	Grouse Mountain Chalet opens.
August 27, 1929	The Graf Zeppelin visits Coal Harbour.
November 30, 1933	Approval granted by Vancouver for the building of the Lions Gate Bridge.
December 4, 1936	Current city hall is opened at 12th and Cambie Street.
November 11, 1938	Lions Gate Bridge opens.
May 25, 1939	The current Hotel Vancouver opens.
November 5, 1939	Dial telephone established in Vancouver.
February 4, 1954	Current Granville Street Bridge opens.
1954	First cocktail bar in Vancouver opens at the Sylvia Hotel in the West End.
1980	Final portion of Stanley Park Seawall is completed.

Home Page

Photographer: Maurice Jassak
Web page design: Maurice Jassak
Images West Marketing
www.vancouverbccards.com
maurice@vancouverbccards.com