DOCSLIB.ORG

Destination Nation: Writing the Railway in Canada

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Destination Nation: Writing the Railway in Canada Destination Nation: Writing the Railway in Canada by Kevin Flynn McGill University, Montreal August 2001 A thesis submitted to the faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in partial fulfilment ofthe degree ofDoctor ofPhilosophy. © Kevin Flynn 2001 National Library Bibliothèque nationale ~I of Canada du Canada Acquisitions and Acquisitions et Bibliographie Services services bibliographiques 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington OttawaON K1A0N4 Ottawa ON K1A ON4 canada canada Your file Votre réliJrem:iJ OUr 6Ie NoIre rëfllrencB The author bas granted a non­ L'auteur a accordé une licence non exclusive licence allowing the exclusive permettant à la National Library ofCanada to Bibliothèque nationale du Canada de reproduce, loan, distribute or sell reproduire, prêter, distribuer ou copies ofthis thesis in microform, vendre des copies de cette thèse sous paper or electronic formats. la forme de microfiche/film, de reproduction sur papier ou sur format électronique. The author retains ownership ofthe L'auteur conselVe la propriété du copyright inthis thesis. Neither the droit d'auteur qui protège cette thèse. thesis nor substantial extracts frOID it Ni la thèse ni des extraits substantiels may be printed or otherwise de celle-ci ne doivent être imprimés reproduced without the author's ou autrement reproduits sans son pemnSSIOn. autorisation. 0-612-78686-2 Canadâ for Debbie and Connor and in loving memory ofGershwin, who nearly made it to the end iii Contents Acknowledgments IV Abstract VI Résumé VIl Introduction: Points ofDeparture 1 Chapter One Destination Nation: Early Travel Narratives ofthe Canadian Pacifie Railway 28 ChapterTwo Hacking in Ties What Emily Etched in Bone: The Railway in Canadian Poetry 92 Chapter Three Ties That Bind: E. 1. Pratl's Towards the Last Spike 159 Chapter Four The Other Side ofthe Tracks: The Railway in Canadian Fiction 187 Conclusion: The End ofthe Line 248 Works Cited 253 iv Acknowledgments This project began, in a sense, in Mrs. Justason' s eighth-grade Social Studies class, when 1 started to write an essay on the Canadian Pacific Railway but threw in the towel after 1 realized that 1 would never be able to do in ten neady written, double-spaced pages what Harold Innis, Pierre Berton, R. G. MacBeth, and John M. Gibbon, among many others, had done in thousands of pages of printed text. (1 wrote an essay on a more manageable topic instead: Canadian history in the 10 years before and 15 years following Confederation.) Exploring Canada's literary response to the railway has proved to be a smaller task, but not much smaller. And it is a task that 1could not have completed without a lot ofhelp. My research would not have been possible without funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada and the generous support of the Max Bell Fellowship in Canadian and Northern Studies and the Robert and Mary Stanfield Dissertation Fellowship. 1 am grateful for the financial assistance provided by these programs. Sincere thanks are due also to friends and colleagues who provided helpful suggestions and guidance while 1 was working on this dissertation. First among these is Joel Baetz, whose willingness to read and make insightful comments on earlier drafts of my work went above and beyond the calI of dutY and friendship. Dean Irvine and Professor D. M. R. Bendey were each kind enough to pass along a handful of relevant poems and articles that they uncovered during their own, unrelated, research. As always, Professor Brian Trehearne's curiosity about my work was a welcome stimulant; our friendly conversations helped me to focus my v thinking at times when 1 felt overwhelmed by the scope of my project. Special thanks are extended to Jennifer du Feu and Col. (ret.) W. K. Bawden OMM, CD for their assistance with the French translation ofmy dissertation abstracto Professor Robert Lecker's advice and supervision have been invaluable. His provocative, pointed questions about my research were both encouraging and daunting, and inspired me to explore avenues of investigation and argument that 1 might not have considered otherwise. Of course, no protracted research project would be possible without the much-needed support and occasional diversions provided by friends and family. Sincere thanks go to my family, for everything; to Merril Bawden and Jennifer and Richard du Feu for their cherished friendship; to Joe Donahue and Huey Lord for helping to fund my work through their abysmal performance in our yearly football pool; to Dan and Kendra Thompson for countless kindnesses; to Sybil Woodford for help in looking after my son, Connor, so that 1 could work as often as possible; and to all of my teammates on the Grace O'Malley's Mighty Nine for giving me something to look forward to on those hot summer nights and for bearing witness to my own personal shot heard 'round the world. John Mclntyre's unfailing good humour was a necessary antidote to the sometimes grim realities ofgraduate study. David McGimpsey has been a constant source offriendship and encouragement; his insightful and heartfelt counsel during our many long lunches helped me to dispel doubts about my work--and myself--that threatened to derail this project. Last of all, thanks to my wife, Debbie, for her love, her confidence in me, and her incredible patience. vi Abstract Since the completion ofthe CPR, the railway has held an important place in the Canadian imagination as a symbol of national unity, industry, and cooperation. It would seem to follow, given the widely held beliefthat nationalliteratures help to engender national self-recognition in their readers, that Canadian literature would make incessant use of the railway to address themes of national community and identity. This assumption is false. With a few notable exceptions, Canadian literature has in fact made very little deliberate effort to propagate the idea that the railway is a vital symbol ofCanadian unity and identity. Literary depictions of the railway do, however, exhibit a tension between communitarian and individualist values that may itself lie at the heart of the Canadian character. Sorne of the earliest representations of the railway, in travel narratives of the late nineteenth century, make explicit reference to the notion that the railway was a sign and a product of a common national imagination. But poets of this period virtually ignored the railway for fear that its presence would disturb the peaceful contemplation, and thus the identity, ofthe individuals who populated the pastoral spaces of their verse. Modern poets did eventually manage to include the train in their work, but used it most often as a vehicle to continue the private musings of their individual lyric speakers rather than to explore the terrain of the national consciousness. One prominent exception to this tendency is E. J. Pratt's Towards the Last Spike, in which imposing individuals such as Sir John A. Macdonald and William Van Horne and thousands of unnamed rail workers combine their efforts in order to construct the railway, which stands as a symbol of vii how individuals and communities can work together in the national interest. Canadian fiction demonstrates the same impulses as Canadian poetry by using the railway as a means of depicting the thoughts, feelings, and experiences of individuals, but it also challenges the myth of the railway' s creation of a unitary national culture by showing how diverse communities--of race, c1ass, and region-­ imagine their relationship to the railway in very different ways. The varied character of Canada's literary treatment of one of the country's central national symbols suggests that a tension between individualism and communitarianism also informs Canadian literature itself, whose writers have used the railway to fulfill their goals in individual texts but have rarely employed it as a symbol ofnational community. viii Résumé Depuis que la société Canadien Pacifique (CPR à l'époque) a établi la première ligne ferroviaire transcontinentale en Amérique du nord, le chemin de fer fut, dans l'imagination canadiaenne, symbole de la cooperation, de l'industrie, et de l'unité nationale. Vu ce phénomène, on croirait que la littérature canadianne soit pleine d'exemples où des auteurs se servent du chemin de fer pour exposer les thèmes de communauté et d'identité nationale. Cette hypothèse est fausse. On trouve rarement dans la littérature canadienne des constations à l'effet que le chemin de fer soit symbole importante de l'identité canadienne ou de l'unité nationale. Toutefois le chemin de fer sert à illustrer le conflit entre les valeurs de communauté et celles de l'individualisme--un conflit au fond du caractère canadien. Les histoires narratives du fin du 1ge siecle suggèrent que le chemin de fer soit la réalisation d'une imagination nationale et commune. Par contre, les poètes de cette époque n'ont presque jamais mentionné le chemin de fer. Des poétes modernes mentionnent le chemin de fer dans leurs oeuvres--mais rarement en tant que quelque chose pour explorer la conscience nationale. Une exception imortante est Towards the Last Spike de E. J. Pratt. Ce dernier parle de l'effort d'individus importants tels que Sir John A. Macdonald et William Van Home ainse que des milliers d'ouvriers anonymes qui, ensemble, ont créé la ligne ferroviaire transcontinentale--symbole des possibilités quand les communautés ets les citoyens coopèrant dans l'intérêt national. Au Canada, les livres de fiction ressemblent ceux de poésie quant au traitement du chemin de fer--il sert à illustrer les pensées et les expériences des individus. Par contre, des livres de fiction démontrent comment les gens de certains classes ou races, ou ix regions, voient différemment leur rélation au chemin de fer. Or, le chemin de fer comme instrument d'unité nationale est un mythe.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • GLENBOW ARCHIVES MAJOR HOLDINGS (Current As of November 2018)
    GLENBOW ARCHIVES MAJOR HOLDINGS (current as of November 2018) AGRICULTURE Glenbow holds records from most of the major agricultural organizations based in the Calgary area, and from many of the significant agricultural families and individuals, including over 20 members of the Alberta Agriculture Hall of Fame. [total 750 collections]: Alberta Irrigation Projects Association Alberta Sheep Breeders Association Alberta Sugar Beet Growers Association Alberta Wheat Pool Carl J. Anderson Bow Slope Shipping Association Canada Land and Irrigation Company Howard Falkenberg Eastern Irrigation District Lalovee Rogers Jensen Lethbridge Northern Irrigation District Charles Sherwood Noble Asael Exile Palmer Charles Walter Peterson United Farmers of Alberta United Grain Growers Western Irrigation District William Berry family W. D. Albright John C. Hargrave Cooper family Perry family Stirling/Holmes family Farmers Union of Alberta/Unifarm COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY Glenbow holds one of the larger corporate archives collections in Canada and we have many types of business records from 20th century Calgary and southern Alberta. We also have the files of several business and professional organizations. [total 440 collections]: Bennett and White Ltd. Building Owners and Managers Assn. Calgary Chamber of Commerce Crown Lumber Company Golden Fleece Woollen Mills Great West Saddlery Hay and Harding Ltd. Hays and Company Hook Signs Ltd. Hurst Construction Company Jenkins Groceteria Ltd. Administrative Management Society Motor Car Supply Company Ted Riback Calgary Power James Kerr Lamont Real Estate Dominion Bridge Molsons Brewery, Western Silvester Building Supplies W. F. Nelson Leon Plotkins Canadian Information Proc. Society, Calg. Riley & McCormick Canadian Pacific Hotels Kerry Busby Better Business Bureau 1 COMMUNICATIONS Glenbow has the records of most of the major newspaper, radio & television companies in the city.
    [Show full text]
  • CHUCK ROAS'ts 3 DAYS Onty-^ FREE U .S
    ^ V . s r r . - r V f ' S . M «fc: THURSDAY, MAY ; IW J PAOB TWENTT-FOUB 4 Average OaRy Nat Prcee Run inmtrlrrsEtrr Ett^nitts i$m U i F o r iho WoOk IM o 8 The Waither /• Marah IL 1961 Foroeut of V. K WottiW OI«w tonight, front . About Town 13,317 notmnlly eoMor areas. Law Mamber of Um Audit Sntmday sonny, but :k Chapman Churtr^OMar oC Ama­ Bamuo of Oiraalutton eibndy during uftorUoan. ranth, win inM tomorrow nt T:45 Mancheiter—^A City oflYiUage Charm aed mild. High M 89s. pjn. nt the-XMonki Temple. Cnn- dldatae . wtU be imtlated. Ofllcem wlU 'itrienr ndtlte gosma. Mra. VOL. LXXX, NO. 183 (TWENTY-POUR PAGES—IN TWO SECTIONS) ^leoige Strlmaltis wtU be In MANCHESTER, CONN., FRIDAY, MAY 5, 1961 (Claaalflod Advortlsing on Pago 88) charge of refreshments. r<lil TRADE? PRICE FIVE CBNIB The Mea'e Chib of North Meth­ Wi^ The World^s Largest General Electric Dealers odist caiurch wtn bold n supper meetingMonday at 6 p.m., follow­ ed by Installatloa of omeern. ‘Wbnt’e Tour M. L Q.T" wlU be the program topic. 3 DAYS ONtY-^ Dr. Harold 8. Barrett of Man- cheater, deputy state health com- U.S. mtmioner, was re-elected a tUreo- tor-at-large of Uio Connecticut Tu- berculoBls and Health Association Buy a huge 1961 GE Washer at the agency's meeting today in Berlin. 12 Mias Sandra Doutt, 746 Center •BlgUPotnidLood For Only St„ is a patient at the New Eng­ land Deaconess Hospital In Bos­ * bdushra 6C FMar>Fto Shepard^ Capsule Go Miles ton, Mnsa.' 115 5^000 Miles an H o u r VvfiipivTviy MWiwfimiG Reaervatlons for the mystery ride sponsored by the Army end « Fm FIhsIi Agoinsf tb* Navy Auxiliary wlU close tomor­ Done with Full Puhlicity - row.
    [Show full text]
  • As One of Canada's Five Largest Research
    1998 s one of Canada’s five largest research- Research Works by attracting intensive universities, the University of funding from many sources A Alberta plays a major role in meeting the strategic challenges facing Alberta and Canada today. With more than 2,200 faculty, almost 3,000 In 1997/98 the University of Alberta received support staff and 30,000 students, the University is $125.6 million from external sources for a proud partner with industry and government in sponsored research: expanding Canada’s global competitiveness. – $50.6 million in Canadian Government funding The largest research institution in the province, the – $28.4 million from the Alberta Government, University of Alberta continues to increase its including $15.3 million from the Alberta Heritage research capability, extend its industrial and Foundation for Medical Research government partnerships, and is a major engine of – $12.6 million from Canadian industry economic development through the transfer of – $13.3 million from Canadian associations, University-based technology and knowledge to the foundations, institutes, local governments and commercial sector. individuals Research Works ’98 sets out the economic impact – $7.4 million from foreign governments, industries, of U of A research on the Edmonton, Alberta and associations, institutes, foundations and other Canadian economies. Research works in many sources ways, from bringing new technologies to market to – $13.3 million from endowment earnings for research providing employment to thousands of people in the Capital Region. Most of all, research works by accomplishing what a great university does best: Research Funding 1988/89 to 1997/98 creating and disseminating knowledge.
    [Show full text]
  • Great Canadian Oil Patch, 2Nd Edition
    1 THE GREAT CANADIAN OIL PATCH, SECOND EDITION. By Earle Gray Drilling rigs in the Petrolia oil field, southwestern Ontario, in the 1870’s. The rigs were sheltered to protect drillers from winter snow and summer rain. Photo courtesy Lambton County Museums. “Text from ‘The Great Canadian Oil Patch. Second edition: The Petroleum era from birth to peak.’ Edmonton: JuneWarren Publishing, 2005. 584 pages plus slip cover. Free text made available courtesy JWN Energy. The book is out of print but used copies are available from used book dealers.” Contents Part One: In the Beginning xx 1 Abraham Gesner Lights Up the World xx 2 Birth of the Oil Industry xx 3 The Quest in the West: Two Centuries of Oil Teasers and Gassers xx 4 Turner Valley and the $30 Billion Blowout xx 5 A Waste of Energy xx 6 Norman Wells and the Canol Project xx 7 An Accident at Leduc xx 8 Pembina: The Hidden Elephant xx 2 Part Two: Wildcatters and Pipeliners xx 9 The Anatomy of an Oil Philanthropy xx 10 Max Bell: Oil, Newspapers, and Race Horses xx 11 Frank McMahon: The Last of the Wildcatters xx 12 The Fina Saga xx 13 Ribbons of Oil xx 14 Westcoast xx 15 The Great Pipeline Debate xx 16 The Oil Sands xx 17 Frontier Energy: Cam Sproule and the Arctic Vision xx 18 Frontier Energy: From the End of the Mackenzie River xx 19 Don Axford and his Dumb Offshore Oil Idea xx Part Three: Government Help and Hindrance xx 20 The National Oil Policy xx 21 Engineering Energy and the Oil Crisis xx 22 Birth and Death of the National Energy Program xx 23 Casualties of the NEP xx Part Four: Survivors xx 24 The Largest Independent Oil Producer xx 25 Births, obituaries, and two survivors: the fate of the first oil ventures xx Epilogue: The End of the Oil and Gas Age? xx Bibliography xx Preface and acknowledgements have been omitted from this digital version of the book.
    [Show full text]
  • Development Derailed: Calgary and the CPR, 1962–64
    Development DeraileD Copyright © 2013 Max Foran Published by AU Press, Athabasca University 1200, 10011 – 109 Street, Edmonton, AB T5J 3S8 ISBN 978-1-927536-08-1 (print) 978-1-927536-09-8 (PDF) 978-1-927536-10-4 (epub) Cover and interior design by Natalie Olsen, Kisscut Design. Printed and bound in Canada by Marquis Book Printers. Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication Foran, Max Development derailed : Calgary and the CPR, 1962–64 / Max Foran. Includes bibliographical references and index. Issued also in electronic formats. ISBN 978-1-927536-08-1 1. Economic development — Political aspects — Alberta — Calgary — History — 20th century. 2. City planning — Alberta — Calgary — History — 20th century. 3. Urban renewal — Alberta — Calgary — History — 20th century. 4. Public- private sector cooperation — Alberta — Calgary — History — 20th century. 5. Canadian Pacific Railway Company — Planning — History — 20th century. 6. Railroads — Political aspects — Alberta — Calgary — History — 20th century. 7. Calgary (Alta.) — Economic conditions — 20th century. I. Title. FC3697.4.F676 2013 971.23’3803 C2012-906353-3 We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Book Fund (CBF) for our publishing activities. Assistance provided by the Government of Alberta, Alberta Multimedia Develop- ment Fund. This publication is licensed under a Creative Commons licence, Attribution–Non- commercial–No Derivative Works 2.5 Canada: see www.creativecommons.org. The text may be reproduced for non-commercial purposes, provided that credit is given to the original author. To obtain permission for uses beyond those outlined in the Creative Commons licence, please contact AU Press, Athabasca University, at [email protected].
    [Show full text]
  • Schedule (PDF)
    Data Mining Workshop MITACS Industry Session October 14-16, 2004 MEALS Breakfast (Continental): 7:00 – 9:00 am, 2nd floor lounge, Corbett Hall, Friday & Saturday (included in workshop) Lunch (Buffet): 11:30 am – 1:30 pm, Donald Cameron Hall (Cost: $12.50 + tax) Dinner (Buffet): 5:30 – 7:30 pm, Donald Cameron Hall (Cost: $23 + tax) Coffee Breaks: As per daily schedule, 2nd floor lounge, Corbett Hall (included in workshop) **For other lighter meal options at The Banff Centre, there are two other options: Gooseberry's Deli, located in the Sally Borden Building, and The Kiln Cafe, located beside Donald Cameron Hall. There are also plenty of restaurants and cafes in the town of Banff, a 10-15 minute walk from Corbett Hall.** MEETING ROOMS All lectures will be held in Max Bell 159. Hours: 6 am – 12 midnight. LCD projector, overhead projectors and blackboards are available for presentations. Please note that the meeting space designated for BIRS is the lower level of Max Bell, Rooms 155-159. Please respect that all other space has been contracted to other Banff Centre guests, including any Food and Beverage in those areas. Workshop Moderators • Jeff Lucas, MITACS • Frank Tompa, University of Waterloo Attendees : Industry • Richard Boire, Boire Filler Group • Krzysztof Dzieciolowski, Bell Canada • Jonathan Lowenhar, Harra's Entertainment inc • Rick Makos, Teradata Canada • Hugh McDonald, Intrawest Corporation • Daymond Ling, CIBC • Michael O'Connor, Rogers Communications Inc. • Jeff Schulz, BCLC • Andrew Storey, Scotiabank • Terry Taciuk Academics
    [Show full text]
  • 2015 REPORT to DONORS Your Support in 2015 Saved Lives and Helped Improve the Health of Families in Communities Thank Across Canada
    2015 REPORT TO DONORS Your support in 2015 saved lives and helped improve the health of families in communities Thank across Canada. The pages that follow are filled with examples of how your generosity created impact. Thanks to you, research is transforming our knowledge of how to treat and prevent heart disease and stroke. Thanks to you, thousands more Canadians know how to respond quickly and effectively you for to stroke and cardiac arrest. And thanks to you, we conducted essential health promotion programs and activities in schools, recreation centres and healthcare facilities across the country. creating And yet there is so much more to do. The need to fund life-saving research on heart disease and stroke is more urgent than ever, as other sources of research dollars decline. We must keep improving the health and fitness of Canada’s youngest and most vulnerable citizens. And with your help, we will build on the critical support we provide to the growing more number of people living with the devastating effects of heart disease and stroke. There’s more. Inspired and moved by the Truth and Reconciliation survivors Commission’s recent calls to action, the Heart and Stroke Foundation committed to help address the grim social and economic determinants that put the Indigenous peoples of Canada at a dramatically increased risk for heart disease and stroke, compared to other Canadians. Redressing these health inequities is a huge task, and an urgent one. With help from you and other donors, we can and will meet these challenges. We are profoundly grateful for your support.
    [Show full text]
  • Nauticapedia.Ca Project Article Caretaker of Twin Islands Lodge - a Retreat for Royalty and Celebrities in the Strait of Georgia
    Nauticapedia.ca Project Article Caretaker of Twin Islands Lodge - A Retreat for Royalty and Celebrities in the Strait of Georgia by George Duddy 2018 Introduction Shirley Whitehouse spent six years, from 1958 - 1964, on Twin Islands at the northern end of Strait of Georgia where she and her then-husband George Lott were caretakers and hosts of a magnificent log lodge—Twin Islands Lodge—frequented by well-known royal and celebrity guests. The lodge also served as home for their three young children. Location of Twin Islands Lodge with Shirley's children: Richard, George and Carmen 1 Early History of the Island The two islands, now joined by a causeway and henceforth in this article referred to as either Twin Islands or the island, was originally named Ulloa Island by Spanish explorers Galiano and Valdes in 1792. The details of recorded ownership of the island are beyond the scope of this article other than it was originally divided into five crown grants that were issued starting in 1896. After being owned by a hand logger, it was purchased in 1912 or 1913 by the Reverend Harpur Colville Nixon, a well-to-do Anglo-Irish gentleman. A strange story of possible murder emerges from the murky details of an injury that Nixon sustained aboard his boat anchored between the Islands in1915. Before his passing, he insisted that no investigation into the details of this incident be pursued. The story, however, unfolds in detail in the on-line article The Mysterious Deaths of Harpur and Margaret Nixon of Twin Islands BC by Jeanette Taylor.
    [Show full text]
  • Pacific Press 2.Qxd 10/11/01 1:39 PM Page I
    Pacific Press 2.qxd 10/11/01 1:39 PM Page i Pacific Press Pacific Press 2.qxd 10/11/01 1:39 PM Page ii Pacific Press 2.qxd 10/11/01 1:39 PM Page iii Pacific Press The Unauthorized Story of Vancouver’s Newspaper Monopoly MARC EDGE NEW STAR BOOKS VANCOUVER 2001 Pacific Press 2.qxd 10/11/01 1:39 PM Page iv Copyright 2001 Marc Edge All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means — graphic, electronic, or mechanical — without the prior written permis- sion of the publisher. Any request for photocopying or other reprographic copying must be sent in writing to the Canadian Copyright Licensing Agency (CANCOPY), Suite 1900, 1 Yonge Street, Toronto, Ontario M5E 1E5. New Star Books Ltd. 107 - 3477 Commercial Street Vancouver, BC V5N 4E8 www.NewStarBooks.com Cover by Rayola Graphic Design Typeset by New Star Books Printed & bound in Canada by Transcontinental Printing 1 2 3 4 5 05 04 03 02 01 Publication of this work is made possible by grants from the Canada Council, the British Columbia Arts Council, and the Department of Canadian Heritage Book Pub- lishing Industry Development Program. NATIONAL LIBRARY OF CANADA CATALOGUING IN PUBLICATION DATA Edge, Marc, 1954- Pacific Press ISBN 0-921586-88-4 1. Pacific Press — History. 2. Newspaper publishing — British Columbia — Vancou- ver — History — 20th century. 3. Canadian newspapers (English) — British Columbia — Vancouver — History — 20th century. I. Title. PN4919.V362E33 2001 070.5’722’0971133 C2001-911329-3 Pacific Press 2.qxd 10/11/01 1:39 PM Page v This book is dedicated to the memory of John Allan “Jack” Edge (1919-1985), who was there in Victory Square.
    [Show full text]
  • Petroleum Industry Oral History Project Transcript
    PETROLEUM INDUSTRY ORAL HISTORY PROJECT TRANSCRIPT INTERVIEWEE: John Downing INTERVIEWER: Susan Birley DATE: November 1983 SB: It’s November 2nd, 1983, Susan Birley interviewing John Downing in his office at Elveden House. Mr. Downing I wonder if you could just first of all tell us where you were born and raised and a bit about your early background. JD: Certainly. I was born in Vernon in British Columbia, February 14th, 1916. I lived there for 18 years and then went to work in the mines in British Columbia, specifically Copper Mountain. I attended one year at UBC and then ran out of money and went to work again in Copper Mountain and then in 1939 went to Montana School of Mines. In 1940 I came back and in ‘41 joined the Canadian Army, primarily overseas and spent 4 years there. I came home in 1945. or was it ‘46, I’m not sure. Anyway I went back to school in 1946, Montana School of Mines and graduated in 1948 with a Bachelor of Science in Geological Engineering. #019 SB: Was there one company that was in charge of the Copper Mountain mines? JD: Yes, Granby Consolidated, they owned it. They were actually mining copper when copper was selling for 7 cents a pound, which is a fairly efficient operation. SB: Is that what made you interested in geology was your start in mining? JD: I suppose. Primarily I worked underground in Copper Mountain and the miners told me if I ever wanted to be a miner I should work in Butte, in Montana.
    [Show full text]
  • 2011 Annual Report on Giving PHILANTHROPY MAKES OUR POLICY WORK POSSIBLE
    Institut C.D. HOWE Institute Essential Policy Intelligence | Conseils indispensables sur les politiques 2011 Annual Report on Giving PHILANTHROPY MAKES OUR POLICY WORK POSSIBLE he annual Benefactors Lecture is a highlight of our crowded calendar – Tour chance to say “thank you” to the Institute’s members and friends and acknowledge their impact – your impact – on our policy work. Tonight’s event is particularly significant – for the first time the Benefactors Lecture – which celebrates philanthropic giving to the Institute, has been sponsored through a personal donation. Please join us in thanking longtime Institute member Briar Foster, Chairman and founder of Foster & Associates, for his wonderful gift. William B.P Robson We are also using this occasion to announce that we are now very close President and CEO to completing fundraising for our Endowment for Special Studies. This endowment, launched with Alfred Wirth’s $1.05 million challenge grant – the largest single gift in the Institute’s history – is well on the way to crossing the $2.1 million threshold. Members of the Board, together with current and former staff and Institute friends, have risen to Alf’s challenge to make personal philanthropy a core value in the Institute’s culture. Their gifts, in combination with support from our corporate members and institutional subscribers, is enabling the Institute to respond nimbly to emerging policy debates, get in front of the issues that are defining Canada’s future, and by so doing, improve the economic and social well-being of all Canadians. By supporting the Institute, individuals, corporations and foundations are Duncan T.
    [Show full text]
  • CHARTING OUR COURSE Bringing Clarity to Canada’S Climate Policy Choices on the Journey to 2050 ABOUT the CANADIAN INSTITUTE for CLIMATE CHOICES
    CHARTING OUR COURSE Bringing clarity to Canada’s climate policy choices on the journey to 2050 ABOUT THE CANADIAN INSTITUTE FOR CLIMATE CHOICES WHO WE ARE The Canadian Institute for Climate Choices is It’s time for a more integrated approach to an unparalleled collaboration of experts from developing climate policy: one that across the country. We undertake rigorous and addresses the causes and effects of climate independent research, insightful analysis and change while also keeping life affordable, broad engagement to bring clarity to the climate reducing health risks, and making Canada’s challenges and transformative policy choices communities, infrastructure and economy ahead for Canada. more resilient to the changes ahead. VISION WHY WE EXIST Canadians acting together on climate solutions Climate change is one of the most complex to create resilient communities, thriving, challenges of our time. It is already affecting inclusive economies, and a better world. the natural environment, the economy, and the health and quality of life of many MISSION Canadians. Science indicates the effects of We clarify Canada’s climate policy choices to climate change will intensify as the years go by, create a strong foundation for decision creating more risk and unpredictability — as making. well as new opportunities — for Canada. CHARTING OUR COURSE • II GOVERNANCE The Canadian Institute for Climate Choices is an unparalleled collaboration of experts at the top of their fields, from regions and communities across the country. This report is a product
    [Show full text]