SUMMARY: "Sardis and the Vedder River", the tenth episode, features the settlements east of Sumas Lake. Voices heard include: Dan Milo, Nellie Patriquin, Mrs. Albert Cooper, Fred Toop, Fred Zink, and Oliver Wells. The story of the Chilliwack River is also discussed.

The recording is incomplete.

SUMMARY: The sub-series consists of episodes from the fourth series of "Living Memory", a CBC Vancouver radio program about people and places in British Columbia history, based on oral history interviews recorded by Imbert Orchard. Four series aired from 1961 to 1964. The fourth series, broadcast from April 9 to June 25, 1964, dealt primarily with settlement of the Fraser Valley.

SUMMARY: "Sumas Lake", the eleventh episode, recounts the story of land reclamation. The 1894 Fraser Valley flood, and the drainage of Sumas Lake to reclaim land for farming, are recalled by Joy Starr, John Fraser, Fred Sinclair, and Fred Toop.

The recording is incomplete.

SUMMARY: "The Way In", the first episode in the series, describes the trails, roads and rivers used by the first settlers. The voices heard are: Jim Kipp, Leon Ladner, Constance Cruickshank, and Bert Williams.

New Westminster District

This series consists of correspondence files relating to water management, water utilities, and water rights applications. Includes correspondence with Dewdney-Alouette Regional District, 1972-1978, and Minutes Of Dewdney-Alouette Technical Planning Committee, File 4987; Sunshine Coast Regional District, 1967-1978, File 3787; and Squamish-Lillooet Regional District, 1969-1976, regarding water supply.

Footage. Two rolls of aerial views, presumably culled from various outs for use as stock footage. The first roll, compiled from stock dated 1957 and 1960, shows Second Narrows, False Creek, Stanley Park, Fraser Valley and the Coast mountains, with some overall shots of Vancouver. The second roll, on stock dated 1954 and 1955, consists of low-level aerial views of downtown Vancouver, Burrard Inlet and a logging camp (?); "tilt-ups" from the CPR docks to the North Shore mountains; and some high-level aerial views of the city, one of which is on 1947 stock.

SUMMARY: A morning program with Dorwin Baird, who talks about the Fraser Valley flood via CHWK's portable broadcasting equipment.;

Shows southern portion of the New Westminster Land District, including most of the Fraser Valley. Surveyed land, railways and major roads shown.

RECORDED: Mission (B.C.), 1976-02-17 SUMMARY: TRACKS 1 & 2: Mrs. Margaret Blatchford (nee Cleary) recalls her childhood in Hatzic and Hatzic Prairie. School days. The family later lived in Mission, where her parents worked at the cannery. She recalls people, places and businesses in Mission and the vicinity.

CALL NUMBER: T0779:0001 RECORDED: [location unknown], 1965-03-12 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Mrs. Mary Teskey recounts her family's history; her grandfather; her father's early life and work in Yale as a brick maker for the CPR in 1879; her mother's trip to BC with the family in 188;1; family life in Yale; the town of Yale; their trip and settlement in Clover Valley, as Cloverdale was known; Surrey; other settlers in the area. TRACK 2: Mrs. Teskey talks about establishing the first school in Cloverdale; her father's appointment as Reeve; the family move to Hazelmere; the family farm; school; Indian graves; Joe Semiahmoo; schools in the area; her father's work for the Yorkshire Guarantee Company in England as a settlement agent; sawmills; the Great Northern Railway; mail; stage coach routes; Halls Prairie.;

CALL NUMBER: T0779:0002 RECORDED: [location unknown], 1965-03-12 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Mrs. Teskey continues with stories about other settlers in Surrey; anecdotes; the naming of Hazelmere and Glenwood; childhood recollections; her work at age eleven in New Westminster and Gastown; English Bay in 1893; the family's hop farm; strawberries. [TRACK 2: blank.]

Minutes of meetings of a committee consisting of federal, provincial, municipal and private relief agency representatives relating to the 1948 Fraser River flood emergency.

The series consists of correspondence out created by the Resident Mining Engineer of district no. 6 (Western) between 1935 and 1946. The correspondence is indexed by each volume.

Minute books.

Minute books (6 volumes).

RECORDED: [location unknown], 1975 SUMMARY: [No content summaries available.];

SUMMARY: Radio program with Ellen Harris, announcer, about: British Columbia flood, Fraser River; public health, dangers from flooding.;

CALL NUMBER: T0732:0001 RECORDED: [location unknown], 1964-06-03 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Mrs. Albert Cooper talks about her early life and schooling at Coqualeetza in the 1890s; describes conditions at the school; Mr. and Mrs. Tate; school experiences; the flood of 1894; life an;d religion at the school. She discusses legends and native people around Chilliwack Lake. TRACK 2: Mrs. Albert Cooper talks about native people and the first settlers; churches; Captain John; India;n houses; the Coqualeetza School; the incident about the Reverend Tate and the hidden masks; Methodist revival meetings; teachings and fear of hell-fire; changes in native people and loss of their language.;

CALL NUMBER: T0732:0002 RECORDED: [location unknown], 1964-06-03 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Mrs. Albert Cooper recalls Chief Captain John, a preacher; Billy Supass, a translator for the minister; visitors to Coqualeetza; Chilliwack roads and canals; Vedder River; her grandmother, a Sto:lo Indian; place names. [TRACK 2: blank.]

RECORDED: [location unknown], [197-] SUMMARY: [No content summaries or documentation available for this interview.];

SUMMARY: Interview with an unidentified male speaker about Murrayville.

The item is a copy of "My memoirs of the '48 flood", Cornelius Kelleher's reminiscences of the 1948 Fraser River flood.

The item is release print of an industrial film made by Canadian Bechtel Ltd. between 1955 and 1957. It shows the
construction of Westcoast Transmission's natural gas pipeline from the Peace River gas fields to Huntington in the Lower Mainland. It includes views of the Peace River region, Fraser Valley, Fraser River and Thompson River, construction of pipeline river crossing in Coquihalla Canyon, land clearing, shipload of pipe arriving at Vancouver Harbour, views from PGE train carrying pipe north and procedure of welding and ditching pipe.

Naturalization register showing the certificate number.

CALL NUMBER: T0438:0001 RECORDED: [location unknown], 1963-04-05 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Nell Patriquin recounts her father coming to Chilliwack to join his brother, John Ryder. She describes her aunt, Mrs. Harrison, who owned the Harrison House Hotel; the hotel accommodation; notable guests; grounds; meals. She talks about local settlers in the area, "Sheep MacDonald" and Bob Menton; Minto; Mrs. Harrison's relations with the Indians; Volkert Vedder; Adam Vedder; Five Corners; Henderson's Store; bartering; Centreville; and St. Thomas Anglican Church. TRACK 2: Mrs. Patriquin recounts the story of her uncle, John Ryder, coming to the area with the Hudson's Bay Company and his initial settlement in Cheam, ca. 1862; the Ryder Lake District. She describes her uncle John Ryder; her father, Corry Spencer Ryder, settlng in the Cheam District in 1873; the family log cabin; cougars; the 1894 flood; childhood memories; schooling; Mrs. Jean Templar.

CALL NUMBER: T0438:0002 RECORDED: [location unknown], 1963-04-05 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Mrs. Patriquin talks about the move of St. Thomas Anglican Church from Port Douglas to the Chilliwack location in the 1870s; Dr. J.C. Henderson, his life and practice; the Indians' performance of passion plays; the seven stations of the Cross; the community of Popkum; fire in the family home; politics. TRACK 2: On this short tape (ca. 3 min), Mrs. Patriquin relates a childhood experience riding to school on "Old Nellie".

This series consists of New Westminster County Court minute books, June 1865 - April 1873; June 1904 - Feb. 1913; docket, May 1888 - Dec. 1889.

The series consists of appraisal reports of reverted lands from the New Westminster land district, 1931 to 1932. These reports are in two volumes and are divided into arbitrary land areas labeled "F", "E", "G", and "H". Reports are arranged numerically by report number. Information may include assessment district, land registry office, legal description, date of forfeiture, plan number, acreage, suitability, improvements, soil, water supply, irrigation or diking, accessibility, nearest settlement or Post Office, nearest school, topography, and assessed and appraised value. The report usually includes a coloured sketch map of the property. The information is indexed by District Lot number to report number.

This series consists of records related to the administration, management and alienation of land in the New Westminster land district from 1882-1978. The records were primarily created by the provincial Government Agent and the Dominion Land Agent stationed in New Westminster. The majority of these records are homestead files created by the dominion government. These files contain information about homesteaders, their applications and the process of obtaining title to land.

Record types and subject matter include, but are not limited to: land alienation through pre-emption or purchase from the provincial government and homesteading or purchase from the federal government; a variety of leases of Crown land; other general subject files; and records regarding Indigenous Peoples or Indian Reserves.

Records related to land alienation include: applications for pre-emption, purchase or lease; land classification reports; forms completed by land inspectors of the Department of Lands Inspection Branch; declarations of occupation and permanent improvement on pre-emption claims; applications for homestead entry, cancellation, and abandonment; homestead Inspector’s reports; affidavits in support of an Application for Entry; land sales records; correspondence with settlers and other government officials; patents; Crown Grants; certificates; forms; maps and plans; financial records including receipts and cheques; court records, such as probates; survey records; notices of sale or cancellation; and sale agreements.

Records related to leases and other uses of Crown land include: grazing leases; foreshore leases; dredging leases; special use permits; timber permits; timber berths; water licenses; applications for dyking schemes; campsite leases; oyster bed leases; right-of-ways (ROWs) through land for railways, roads, powerlines or pipelines; petroleum and natural gas leases; quarry leases; bar leases; coal leases; mining leases; and mineral claims. Other uses include government reserves, the establishment of parks, and the reservation of land for school sites or other public uses.

Other more general subject files include: inquiries about land availability; preliminary plans and correspondence for the survey and sale of townsites; Soldier Settlement Board records including forms, correspondence and records of soldier land grants; correspondence files on specific topics such as canal construction, the reclamation of Hatzic Lake, the draining of Sumas Lake and the establishment of fish culture and fish hatcheries; and business records of the office, including inter-department correspondence, circulars, and memorandum related to matters of land administration.

Files also exist for specific Indian Reserves, and can include correspondence; water records; surveys; and inspection reports created in the process of allotting new, and canceling or amending existing Indian Reserves. Some files document instances of overlapping land use and conflict between settlers and Indigenous peoples on specific parcels of land.

Files are generally either correspondence files on a particular subject, or a variety of records related to a particular piece of land. Many files cover a wide time period and may be associated with multiple individuals or companies, as land rights were often transferred to others or cancelled and reapplied for.

Only the name of the first individual listed on the file is included in the file list. This means there may be additional names associated with files not included on the file list. The file list may also only include part of the legal description of land in cases where the description was exceptionally long, or included many different pieces of land. Single individuals may also have multiple files for each piece of land they are associated with.

The series also includes some files related to land in the Yale Division and Kamloops Division of the Yale Land District; as well as the Lillooet Land District. These records were created in the offices of the Kamloops and Clinton Government Agents, but at some point became intermingled with the New Westminster records.

Maps, plans and sketches indicating the parcels of land relevant to the file are commonly found throughout the records.

This series consists of a variety of bound volumes related to the administration, management and alienation of land in the New Westminster land district from 1858-1980. The records were primarily created by the provincial Government Agent and the Dominion Land Agent stationed in New Westminster. The records have been arranged into the following subseries:

1. Indexes and maps.

The indexes cover many of the homestead files in GR-4121, by file number and alphabetically by name of the homesteader or licensee. There are two volumes of reference maps for various municipalities, sub-divisions, right-of-ways and townships.

2. BC government land registers : district lot system

Variations of this system of surveying land were used from 1859 onwards. All of these volumes appear to have been created and maintained by the BC government. The registers list the lots in numerical order and record the alienation of land from the Crown by purchase, pre-emption, lease, mineral claims, timber use, etc. Information may include the name of the purchaser, dates and numbers of certificates issued (including Crown Grants), dates and amounts of payments, and reference numbers to correspondence files and field books. There is an alphabetical name index in most volumes. The registers cover range 1 Coast District, range 4 Coast District, Yale Division Yale District (YDYD) country lands, Texada Island District, Point Grey townsite, Powell River townsite, Hastings townsite, and New Westminster District group 1, group 2 and 3 group 3.

3. BC government land registers : township system

Variations of this survey system were used from 1873 to approximately 1912. All of these volumes appear to have been created and maintained by the BC government. The land entered in the majority of the volumes was surveyed and made available for settlement in 1873 and 1874. The registers list land in numerical order by Sections within Townships and record the alienation of land from the Crown by purchase, pre-emption, lease, etc. Information may include the name of the purchaser, dates and numbers of certificates issued (including Crown Grants), dates and amounts of payments, and reference numbers to correspondence files and field books. There is an alphabetical name index in most volumes. The registers cover New Westminster District townships 1 to 50 with some townships missing.

4. Dominion government : general land registers

These volumes were likely created by the Dominion Land Agent. It appears that at least some records were copied from provincial records to determine what land had been alienated before the transfer of the Railway Belt and what Crown land still needed to be managed by the dominion government. The registers, arranged by legal description, indicate the nature of the grant, the number, date of entry, file number, patent approval date, and name of grantee. The registers cover various townships in the New Westminster District and various lots throughout the Hope district, Yale district, Kamloops district, town of Hope, town of Yale, and Boston Bar.

5. Lease registers

These volumes were created in the New Westminster government agent's office. They record leases for a variety of purposes including: quarry, campsite, booming ground, agriculture, foreshore, forestry, and grazing. Many volumes are indexed and may include file numbers linking to GR-4121.

6. Pre-emption records

These records were created by the BC government. Pre-emption was a system of obtaining title to unsurveyed land (similar to the Dominion "homesteading" system) which occurred until 1970. Individuals could purchase land which had not been fully surveyed. However, grants to these lands were not issued until the applicant had made specified improvements, passed inspections, satisfied residency requirements, and had the lands fully surveyed. Records include certificates of improvement for the Vancouver Divisions of the New Westminster District and Coast District; certificates of pre-emption for the New Westminster District and Vancouver Division; and registers of pre-emption records.

7. Land purchase records

These records were created by the BC government. Once land was surveyed, it could be purchased outright instead of being pre-empted. These records include certificates of purchase for the New Westminster District.

8. Mining records

The majority of these records were created by BC Government Agents, Gold Commissioners or Mining Recorders. Records include mineral claim minute books, records of conveyances, bills of sale, applications for mineral lands and petroleum and natural gas leases, and coal applications. Records are from the New Westminster District, Hope and Yale. Most volumes include an alphabetical index and some may include references to file numbers in GR-4121.

9. Range and timber records

These records were created by the dominion and BC governments. Records include range leases, grazing leases and information on timber berths.

10. Water licence applications

These records are water licence applications created by the BC government.

11. Cancellation records

Cancellation registers created by the BC and Dominion governments. Some volumes include alphabetical indexes and have file numbers related to GR-4121.

12. Financial records

Various financial records created by the Dominion government and BC Government Agents. Records include Dominion crown timber financial statements; form J (cash books) created by Government Agents documenting their expenses and fee collection, such as the sale of marriage licences; and a land revenue return of payments from the central Victoria land office.

13. Other land administration records

Includes dominion created applications for patents and homestead inspectors instructions, as well as BC Government Agent books recording lands resumed under Soldier’s Homestead Act, Crown granted mineral claims which have reverted to the Crown for non-payment of taxes, and surveyed lands open for use.

This series consists of New Westminster Land District forfeiture certificates of lands reverted to the Crown from 1915-1957. Records relate to the Coquitlam, Maple Ridge, Pitt Meadows and Matsqui Dyking Districts. The certificates are arranged chronologically without regard to Dyking District. Information may include the legal description of the land, the plan number, the date it was subject to forfeiture, the date of the end of the period of grace, and the date of forfeiture. Certificates are indexed alphabetically by owners name, and numerically by plan to folio numbers.

Coquitlam Dyking District lies within the limits of the City of Port Coquitlam, and the Municipality of Coquitlam.

Pitt Meadows No.2 Dyking District lies within the defined boundaries of the Municipality of Pitt Meadows, and is situated 1 1/2 miles north of the Dewdney Trunk Road at the confluence of the Pitt and Alouette Rivers.

Maple RIdge Dyking District lies within the boundaries of the Municipalities of Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows, including the Townsite of Hammond.