THE KÜTNE READER

Nelson’s first fire chief following the city’s incorporation in 1897 was also the youngest chief ever — and the shortest serving. But for a long time, I didn’t know what happened to him. Nelson firefighters in front of the fire hall at the corner of Victoria and Josephine streets, sometime prior to 1913. Samuel Calkin worked out of this building. (Nelson Museum and Archives 59-09-017) Samuel Frank Calkin (or Calkins — the S appears as often as not) was born in February 1871 o

After writing about Chinese-indigenous births at Rock Creek , I received a message from Nelson’s Mona Smith, who noted that her mother, aunt, and uncles were born to Chinese-Canadian parents in Midway in the 1920s. She put me in touch with her uncle in Ontario, Johnnie Bing, and loaned me several volumes of family history he compiled. Therein lies a fascinating tale. This old truck from the 1940s or so sits on the Bing property at Willow Point. Johnnie’s dad, Soo Bing Quan, a

Here’s a list of local historical questions I wish I could answer and some others I have recently been able to find answers to. 1) What happened to the Nelson firebug? In 1911-12, Nelson’s fire department was run ragged responding to an arson spree. Targets included the brewery on Latimer Street (a $50,000 loss), the idled smelter ($200,000), lumber yards, and a tool shed next to the fire hall ($750). The prime suspect, John Bradshaw, stood trial several times before finally

In 2019, I wrote here about some long-lost footage showing survivors of the Empress of Ireland disaster of May 29, 1914 that claimed more than 1,000 lives, including several people from West Kootenay. I didn’t hold out much hope the film would be found more than a century later, but I’m thrilled to report that is exactly what has happened and the images depict two of the ship’s most extraordinary passengers. Silverton’s Robert Crellin saved his neighbour’s young daughter , F

Grand Forks police chief Harry Sheads was involved in shootouts in 1899 and 1900. What happened before and after was incredibly weird.

Despite being such an historic and picturesque site, little has been written about the history of New Denver’s cemetery — until now. This story originally appeared in the Winter 2019 edition of The Silver Standard , the newsletter of the Silvery Slocan Historical Society. The Silvery Slocan Historical Society hosted a well-attended tour of the New Denver cemetery in October 2018. (Paula Cravens photo) In the upper, lower, and Masonic sections lie the remains of nearly 1,000 p

In 1923, Frances West (also known as Florence), the six-year-old daughter of Edbert West, manager of the Ogilvie elevator in Taber, Alberta, spent the summer in Nelson with her mother Addie. Frances took her first swimming lesson from J.B.B. Smith at Lakeside Park. She showed promise, to say the least. Within weeks, she swam without help across Kootenay Lake, about three quarters of a mile. The Vancouver Sun of Aug. 27 called her an “aquatic prodigy.” There was some skeptic

This is the story of a local woman’s search for the place where her father died more than 60 years ago. It begins with Donald Edward (Ted) West. He’s six feet tall, 170 pounds, and in great shape. He’s handsome, athletic, has a brilliant smile and fine social graces. Furthermore, he’s kind, reliable, and adventurous. He’s a strong leader who isn’t afraid to challenge authority. He’s also an avid golfer, prominent at Edmonton’s Mayfair Golf and Country Club, where in 1939, at

One oft-asked historical question is exactly when Nelson’s Big Orange Bridge was painted orange. It was originally silver when built in 1957 although the date of its hue conversion was unclear. We knew, however, who decided on the colour: Jack Kelsall (1924-2009), a Silverton native who worked as a traffic engineer in Prince George, New Denver, Grand Forks, and Revelstoke, then as provincial bridge inspection engineer in Victoria before settling in Nelson in 1969. His obitua

Fifty-five years ago today, the Ainsworth post office ceased to exist. The following day, it was reborn as Ainsworth Hot Springs. The envelopes pictured below, which sold on eBay recently, were postmarked Jan. 10 and 11, 1964 as the change took effect. The explanation for the change is found in a letter to the postal inspector of Oct. 3, 1963 from A.E. Catterall, district director of postal service (held in the place names duotang of the Martin and Jane Lynch fonds at the Koo

Helena White’s 1984 booklet, Sixty Bloomin’ Years: A History of Creston, British Columbia contains this statement on page 21: “Moviegoers were thrilled to learn that Clark Gable had been recognized in the area. The actor was on holiday at Kootenay Cottages on the lake.” Intrigued, I asked Creston Museum manager Tammy Bradford about it. She quickly found the source, an item in the Creston Review of Aug. 11, 1939. Bradford adds: “I took a quick look at the local and personal

One of West Kootenay’s best bits of folklore is the Flying Steamshovel , the story of an amateur aviation enthusiast who apparently built and flew a homemade helicopter in Rossland that crashed on its maiden voyage in 1902. (Since 1990, it has also been the name of a Rossland pub.) Historians Valerie Patanella and Ron Welwood have looked into it — both the tale itself and the man who popularized it, Father Thomas Freney. He collected affidavits from witnesses for a story publ

An envelope mailed from London to Fort Shepherd in January 1862 sold today for $1,600 Cdn. The piece was part of the Gerald Wellburn gold rush collection being auctioned by All Nations Stamp and Coin . The envelope is addressed: “Mr. James Cooke, Fort Shepherd, near the mouth of Pond [sic] Oreille River in Vicinity of Colville Mines on Columbia River British Columbia North America.” It bears a London postmark of Jan. 2, 1862 as well as Port Townsend, Washington Territory. U

Betty Ridge, who died in Nelson on Dec. 23, 2018 at age 98, was probably the last surviving person born in the mining town of Phoenix, BC. She was already believed to be the last person born there (on April 14, 1920) before the city disincorporated. Phoenix, ca. 1900s. (Greg Nesteroff collection) Her parents, Russell and Maggie Macdonald, married in Greenwood in 1909. Her father was a crusher boss at the mines in Phoenix, where two of her brothers were also born: Roy, who die

The following story is completely fabricated. The names and circumstances were made up but passed off as genuine. It says something — though am I not sure exactly what — about the dissemination of tall tales by newspapers in the late 19th century. The version I have assembled combines several, sometimes contradictory accounts. August Methfessel illustration from the San Francisco Call , June 25, 1899 In June 1899 (and for the several months afterward), papers around the world

Of the 100 or so cemeteries in West Kootenay/Boundary, two dozen can no longer be visited because they were either flooded out, exhumed, ploughed over, covered by slides, or simply lost. In addition, five cemeteries never actually existed. Three were proposed but didn’t happen and two others entered the historical record in error. These phantom graveyards are detailed below. PASSMORE The Passmore notes of the Slocan Enterprise of July 13, 1927 read: “The Farmers Institute he

A terrific cover from Silverton, postmarked July 28, 1894, sold for $192.50 Cdn yesterday on eBay. It was sent from Hunter & McKinnon,...

Twice this year I’ve learned secret details about someone that made me re-evaluate everything I thought I knew about them. The first case concerned pioneer prospector Eli Carpenter , who co-discovered the claim that started the Silvery Slocan mining rush and once walked a tightrope over Slocan City’s Main Street. Although it was rumoured Carpenter came to BC after his wife was unfaithful, I was dismayed to discover he tried to kill her and her paramour. His drunken stupor pre

Curious thing: this ad appeared in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette on March 26, 1911 and subsequent issues. Koch Siding is a nearly-obsolete name for the area of Slocan Park that’s on the flats across from the cemetery. It was the site of a sawmill built by William Koch that operated from 1906 into the 1920s. Lawrence Twoaxe was a Mohawk from the Kahnawake reserve in Quebec, born in 1885 in Cornwall, Ont. to Thomas Twoaxe and Margaret Hill. In 1935, while living in Oakland, he e

Robert Main was sometimes referred to as the poet laureate of the Kootenays. In the 1920s, he ran a small roadside stand at Beasley called the Pop Inn, which sold, well, pop, plus chocolates, cigarettes, and fruit from local orchards. For 10 cents you could also buy his publication, The Pop Inn Annual, filled with poems, ads, and nonsense. Robert Main (left) is seen offering refreshments at the Pop Inn at Beasley, 1927, the same year he issued the publication seen below. At r