In 1858 the mainland of British Columbia became a colony with its capital located at New Westminster. British Royal Engineers surveyed the area under the command of Colonel Richard Moody. As private secretary to Colonel R. C. Moody, the Colony’s land commissioner Robert Burnaby displayed talents as an explorer, legislator and speaker. In 1859, when Moody received word from local natives that a fresh water lake existed north of New Westminster, Burnaby immediately volunteered for the survey party. Moody later named his discover Burnaby Lake. Pioneer citizens in 1892, named the thriving municipality Burnaby.
Burnaby is located within a large territory on the coast of British Columbia that has been the traditional home of Coast Salish peoples for thousands of years. Burnaby had resources that were harvested by First Nations, such as cranberries and large game, such as elk. By the 1890s, logging was a major industry in Burnaby with many sawmills processing lumber. Timber for ship masts was delivered to Ireland in 1865.
In 1891, the Westminster and Vancouver Tramway built an electric railway line between the two cities, and what would become Burnaby lay between the two cities. Initially, land was less expensive in Burnaby, but prices skyrocketed during the first real estate boom (1909-1912). In response to the growth of the community, a local police force was established, schools were built, and the business district grew. Many housing developments attracted people who wanted to live in the country and commute to the cities of New Westminster and Vancouver on the interurban trams.
Although the residential areas of Vancouver and Burnaby seem to merge, Burnaby has its own personality. Simon Fraser University is situated on top of Burnaby Mountain – from here you can gaze north to the waters of Indian Arm, a mountain-rimmed inlet of the sea.
Burnaby Village Museum represents a typical interurban community in British Columbia’s Lower Mainland region during the period of 1890-1925. Burnaby’s first European settler, William Holmes, came to East Burnaby in 1860. In 1891, an interurban line was opened between New Westminster and Vancouver, passing through what is now Burnaby. The convenience of this system encouraged more people to take up land in this area, and in 1892 Burnaby was incorporated as a municipality with about 250 people. Burnaby was a heavily forested area, and as the giant trees were cleared away, farms were established. Many Burnaby farms grew fruit and kept chickens and cows. By the early 1920s, Burnaby had started to change from a rural to an urban community. In 1992, Burnaby celebrated its 100th anniversary, and in that year became a city with a population of over 160,000.
Burnaby Village Museum “Elworth†– The rural setting near picturesque Deer Lake drew Mr. Edwin Wettenhall Bateman and his wife Mary to this part of Burnaby. “Elworth†was built in 1922 as a country home for Mr. Bateman, an executive with the Canadian Pacific Railway. The house is on its original site. Mr. Bateman lived in this house with his second wife Mary, his daughter May, and his son Warren. Mrs. Bateman was an avid gardener. The house was named after the district in England where Mr. Bateman came from. The main floor of the house has been restored to its original appearance with a formal front room, an elegant dining room, and a cozy den where the family gathered to listen to the radio.Tom Irvine House – Tom Irvine and his friend Bob Moore built this small house in 1911 on Laurel Street in Burnaby; this was just west of Burnaby Lake near the tram line. Bob Moore died soon after but Tom lived in the house until 1958. Tom was a prospector in the Yukon. He helped build the Burnaby Lake tram line and railway trestles around B.C. Tom never married and died at the age of 100 in 1964.Burnaby Centennial Park Carousel #119 was built in Leavenworth Kansas by C.W. Parker in 1912. It was operated in Texas from 1913-1915, was upgraded at the factory, and then it is thought to have operated in California. From 1936 to 1989, it operated at the Pacific National Exhibition in Vancouver. It was purchased, restored and donated to the City of Burnaby.Seaforth School opened in Burnaby in 1922 with twenty students. It was located on the north side of Burnaby Lake at Government and Piper.In our seats ready for class to start…Jesse Love Farmhouse – Believed to be one of the oldest surviving buildings in Burnaby, it was constructed in East Burnaby in 1893. Jesse Love (1849-1928) and his wife Martha (1858-1920) moved to Burnaby with their family in 1893 to start a fruit ranch and market garden. The original house was constructed by local builder George Salt and consisted of an entrance hall, dining room, lean-to kitchen, master bedroom, and an open area upstairs with a shoulder-height divider in the center to separate boys and girls. The original kitchen was a lean-to attached to the dining room. It is believed that the house was expanded and a kitchen built between 1907 and 1910 with most of the carpentry work being done by the oldest son, George Love. George owned a sash and door company and built many houses. The detailed casing work around the doors and windows in the kitchens show off his talents. Love also built several large boats which were used for family outings and hunting at Pitt Lake.7026 Patterson Avenue4251 Victory StreetGreta Street5668 Chaffey Avenue6450 Deer Lake Avenue – Robert & Bessie Anderson House – 1912 – Arts and Crafts style6664 Deer Lake Avenue – Frederick and Alice Hart estate “Avalon,†now in used as the Hart House Restaurant, was built by local real estate agent F.J. Hart in 1912. Born on the Avalon Peninsula in Newfoundland, Hart came to New Westminster in 1890. He purchased this site in 1904 as a summer retreat for his family. The home is designed in the Tudor Revival style and has a massive tower with mock battlements, corbeled chimneys, cobblestone foundations and decorative half-timbering. When the house was built, it was in a quiet, rural community where people lived around the lake surrounded by a dense forest. The narrow roads that snaked through the trees towards New Westminster and Vancouver were rough and long; life was centered around the home and the immediate neighborhood of Deer Lake. People hunted in the forest, fished and swam in the lake, and grew most of their provisions in their own gardens.5725 Buckingham Avenue
