British Columbia History 51.1 | Spring 2018

British Columbia History is a quarterly magazine chronicling British Columbia’s unique story through the words and images of community writers, archivists, museum professionals, academic historians and more. THEMES British Columbia History publishes one theme issue per year. Spring 2019 — Our special issue of 2019 will focus on the law. Historic legal cases, legal rights, lawyers, etc. SUBMISSIONS Submissions to British Columbia History are reviewed three times a year (Winter, Spring, Fall) by the magazine Readers’ Panel, which assists the Editor in selecting articles that are a good fit for the magazine. Our editorial team makes every effort to respond to all submission enquiries; however, our magazine operates with a small part-time staff and it may take some time for us to get back to you. PRINT SCHEDULE Our editorial…

School, for better or worse, has had a lasting impact on many of us. It is not necessarily what we learned in the textbooks that shaped us but instead it was the environment inside those walls. As students we were inspired, bullied, bored, and sometimes reluctantly, educated. A lot of the memories from our school years are not what was on the blackboard, or modern equivalent, but the lessons we learned in interpersonal relationships, standing up for ourselves, and lifelong friendships. Some of us bear lasting mental and/or physical scars. Some of us found our lifelong passions. The buildings themselves have stories too. Tales of care, fire, neglect, and restoration. Many of the buildings have been repurposed, some long demolished. Although I should not have been surprised, I was overwhelmed…

Surrey’s oldest remaining one-room school house has endured a long and sometimes challenging history. Following its life as a pioneer school it has served the community for a variety of uses; it has been relocated and suffered extended periods of vacancy. Now however, this little school is facing a bright new future as it is about to embark on another relocation and a new purpose on the grounds of the Surrey Museum currently undergoing expansion in Cloverdale. The original Anniedale School opened in 1891 with thirteen pupils and is one of Surrey’s valued heritage structures. As the oldest existing school in the District it is a classic example of early pioneer one-room school houses. It was built by Sam Edge of Hammond, BC with a contracted price of $750. However,…

Archival Papers Anniedale School Collection, 1904-1968, Textual Records. Surrey Archives Books and Reports Barry McGinn Engineering & Preservation Ltd., Conservation Plan, Old Anniedale School, (City of Surrey, 2016) Donald Luxton & Associates, Anniedale Area “A” Heritage Study, (City of Surrey, 2006) Surrey Heritage Advisory Committee, Surrey’s Heritage: A Selection of Surrey’s Historically Significant Buildings, Volume Four, (District of Surrey, 1993), 195-199. Newspaper Articles Laube, Alyssa. “Over $800,000 in Federal Funds Given to Surrey to Improve the City’s Cultural Infrastructure,” The Runner, February 27, 2017, http://runnermag.ca/2017/02/over-800000-in-federal-funds-given-to-surrey-to-improve-the-city’s-cultural-infrastructure/. Reid, Amy, “Surrey Historical Society Fights to Keep Anniedale from ‘rotting away,’” May 18, 2016, http://www.bclocalnews.com/news/surrey-historical-society-fights-to-keep-anniedaleschool-from-rotting-away/. Reid, Amy. “Heritage Buildings Moving to Museum of Surrey Site,” Surrey Now-Leader, May 11, 2017, http://www.bclocalnews.com/news/422017663.html. Online Resources Brown, Jack. “Development of Early Schools in Surrey,” www.surreyhistory.ca/. “Old Anniedale…

During the Colony of Vancouver Island’s formative years (1849–1853), three types of basic education evolved: church-run, Hudson’s Bay Company-controlled, and common schooling. Who taught in that first schoolhouse? Which type of education represents the origins of the current public school system in the province? In 1849, the British government established the Crown Colony of Vancouver Island and leased its 31,284 square km to the Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) for 7 shillings (about $54 today) a year.1 The Colonial Office cut a special deal with the HBC directors.2 The HBC agreed to act as the Crown’s “sponsoring agent,” if it could retain a relatively free hand in governing the colony. The Company was contracted to: survey the island, sell land at “reasonable price,” promote immigration, regulate commerce and industry, and spend…

1. Conversion to current dollars is a rough calculation. 7 shillings in 1849 converts to approximately £33.32 in 2016 money. MeasuringWorth, 2017. accessed January 17, 2018. www.measuringworth.com/ukcompare/relativevalue.php. Second source: £33.32 converts to $54.43 at a rate of 1.6335. Coast Capital Savings, accessed January 17, 2018. https://www.coastcapitalsavings.com/Calculators/ForeignExchange/ 2. The Charter of Grant is reprinted in James E. Hendrickson, ed., Journals of the Colonial Legislatures of the Colonies of Vancouver Island and British Columbia (Victoria: Provincial Archives of British Coumbia, 1980), Vol. 1, 374–378. Also see: Hudson’s Bay Company, “Colonization of Vancouver’s Island,” January 24, 1849, HBC Archives A.37/42 fos. 13–14d. 3. Margaret A. Ormsby, British Columbia: a History, 104. 4. G. Hollis Slater, “Rev. John Staines: Pioneer Priest, Pedagogue, and Political Agitator” in British Columbia Historical Quarterly (Victoria: Provincial Archives of…