The British Isles Historic Society History, Traditions & Customs 05-20 May Issue DEAR READER: The purposes of “The British Isles Historic Society” and our newsletters are: 1.) To create ways to help future generations Our British Isles Heritage understand their heritage. 2.) Though research, to bring the past into the What is Heritage? There are no hard and fast future. Even though we may not have been born in rules, that determine what is, and what is not, British Columbia or raised here we still have a tie to heritage. Of course, everyone thinks of heritage as the history and heritage of those that came from old buildings, however, heritage is whatever a the British Isles to settle in British Columbia. community, past or present values, and would like to pass on to the future, regardless of age or vintage. It 3.) To recognize the contributions made by those can be a place, a landscape, a cultural practice or a fur traders, explorers, engineers, pioneers, trades language, to name a few. It does not have to be people and settlers that came from the British Isles associated with a famous historical figure or event, to make British Columbia their home. or in the case of buildings and structures, 4.) To stimulate interest in wanting to know who architecturally significant or aesthetically pleasing, to we are as a descendent from a country in the be considered heritage. British Isles and what are our traditions and https://heritagebc.ca/ customs that we should be celebrating. Our research and publications 5.) To have you share your heritage, history, will include the art, buildings, historic tradition and customs with your families and sites, people, traditions, customs and friends. beliefs that a society considers We welcome your comments, suggestions and important to our history and culture. ideas on how we may better share our heritage as The British Isles Historic Society members of the British Columbia family. Chuck Davis: Frederick John Westcott, best known by his stage name Fred Karno, was an English theatre impresario This page is dedicated to Chuck Davis, keeper of the British music hall. As a comedian of slapstick of Vancouver's historical flame and creator of he is credited with popularizing the custard-pie-in- https://www.vancouverhistory.ca/index.htm the-face gag. Chuck Davis passed away on Saturday, Born: March 26, 1866, Exeter, United Kingdom November 20, 2010. But his contribution of research Died: September 18, 1941, Lilliput, Poole, United on the History of Vancouver has made a major Kingdom contribution to many items in my newsletters. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Karno The following was taken from his oddities pages: In 1929 the New Westminster Exhibition was opened by a British Victor Andrew politician named Winston de Bier Everleigh Churchill. The 55-year-old Churchill was not yet Prime Minister. John Wayne and Victor McLaglen McLaglen https://www.vancouverhistory.ca/oddities_1923_1930.htm in the “Quiet Man” In 1909 world heavyweight In 1936 when the boxing champ Jack Johnson fought an visiting Lord Mayor of exhibition bout in Vancouver with London helped Vancouver boxer Victor McLaglen, who would celebrate its 50th birthday later become an Oscar-winning movie actor. he presented the city with the civic mace it uses to Victor Andrew de Bier Everleigh McLaglen was this day. Among the a British-American film actor. He was known as a other gifts the Lord character actor, particularly in Westerns, and made Mayor brought: “. a seven films with John Ford and John Wayne. sprig from a tree in the McLaglen won the Academy Award for Best Actor in orchard where a falling apple gave Isaac Newton the 1935 for his role in The Informer. idea that led to his theory of gravity.” Born: December 10, 1886, Stepney, London, United Kingdom Died: November 7, 1959, Newport Beach, California, In 1895, The United States English Cannery, owned https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victor_McLaglen by Henry Bell- Irving, https://www.vancouverhistory.ca/oddities_1900_1922.htm burned down. Upon Fred Karno rebuilding it was renamed the Phoenix In 1912 an English revue Cannery. The site is now company called Karno’s Comedians part of the Britannia performed in Vancouver. Included in Heritage Shipyard. the cast: Charlie Chaplin and Stan Laurel. Major-General Sir Samuel Steele became one of the first Fort Steele members of the North-West Mounted Police. Major was a gold rush General Sir Samuel Benfield boom town founded in Steele KCMG CB MVO was a distinguished Canadian 1864 by John Galbraith. The town was originally soldier and police official. He was an officer of the called "Galbraith's Ferry", named after the ferry set North-West Mounted Police, most famously as head up by the city's founder over the Kootenay River. It of the Yukon detachment during the Klondike Gold was the only ferry within several hundred miles so Rush, and commanding officer of Strathcona's Horse Mr.Galbraith charged very high prices to get across. during the Boer War. The town was renamed Fort Steele in 1888, after legendary Canadian lawman Superintendent Sam Elmes Yelverton Steele (February 6, Steele of the North-West Mounted Police solved a 1781 – August 6, 1865) Sam Steele’s father, was a dispute between a settler who had unjustly accused naval officer, militia officer, farmer and political one of the local First Nations men with murder. This figure in Canada West. He was born in Coleford, dispute had caused a great deal of tension between Gloucestershire, England in 1781. He was the son of the town and the native people. Sam Steele, finding Elmes Steel (d.1824), surgeon of Coleford, and Mary no real evidence against the accused natives, had Benfield (1749-1831). Two of his brothers served as the charges against them lifted. Both the town and officers in the Royal Navy and three as officers in the the First Nations people were so grateful that they British Army. renamed the town Fort Steele. Much to Steele's https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Steele,_British_Columbia dismay, the "Fort" part of the name comes from the NWMP setting up a station in the town, whereas the July 1, 1891, town itself was never a real fort. John Galbraith The Douglas Border Crossing, John and Robert were two of US Immigration the nine children of Alexander and Office, Blaine, named after Sir James Douglas, (born Rose Galbraith, all born in Ireland. It 1918. Aug. 15, 1803, Demerara, British was John Galbraith and his wife Guiana—died Aug. 2, 1877, Victoria, B.C., Can.), Sarah who were the first white Canadian statesman known as “the father of British settlers on Joseph’s Prairie and it was they, along Columbia.” He became its first governor when it was with John’s brother Robert, who first laid claim to a newly formed wilderness colony. the land later purchased by James Baker to become Note: the USA side is called Peace Arch present-day Cranbrook. crossing, the Canadian side is called Douglas Border crossing. Great U.K. Traditions and Irish Dancers Celebrations in British Columbia Irish dance is a group of traditional dance forms Morris Dancers originating from Ireland. Solo Morris dance is a form Irish dance includes the most of English folk dance usually well-known form of Irish dance, accompanied by music. It is Irish stepdance, which was based on rhythmic stepping and the popularised from 1994 onwards by dance shows such as Riverdance, and which is practiced execution of choreographed figures by a group of dancers, usually wearing bell competitively across the Irish diaspora. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_dance pads on their shins. Implements such as sticks, swords and handkerchiefs may There is Eire Born School of Irish Dancers here in B.C. https://www.eireborn.net/ also be wielded by the dancers. In a small number of dances for one or two people, steps Scottish are near and across a pair of clay tobacco pipes laid one across the other on the floor. They clap their Highland Dancers sticks, swords, or handkerchiefs together to match Highland dance or with the dance. Highland dancing (Scottish https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morris_dance Gaelic: dannsa Gàidhealach) is a style One such group here in B.C. is the Tiddley Cove of competitive solo dancing Morris Dancers. developed in the Scottish Highlands in https://www.facebook.com/TiddleyCoveMorrisDance/ the 19th and 20th centuries, in the Scottish Country context of competitions at public events such as the Highland games. It was created from the Gaelic folk Dancers dance repertoire, but formalised with the Scottish country conventions of ballet', and has been subject to dance (SCD) is the influences from outside the Highlands. Highland distinctively Scottish form of dancing is often performed with the accompaniment country dance, itself a form of of Highland bagpipe music, and dancers wear social dance involving groups of couples of specialised shoes called ghillies. It is now seen at dancers tracing progressive patterns. A dance nearly every modern-day Highland game event. consists of a sequence of figures. These dances are Highland dance should not be confused with Scottish set to musical forms (Jigs, Reels and Strathspey country dance, cèilidh dancing, or clog dancing. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottish_highland_dance Reels) which come from the Gaelic tradition of Highland Scotland, as do the steps used in There is a Highland Dance School in B.C. https://www.heatherjolleyhighlanddancers.com/ performing the dances. Traditionally a figure corresponds to an eight-bar phrase of music. English Country Dance is a social dances of a type that originated in the British Isles; it is the repeated execution of a https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottish_country_dance The Royal Scottish Country Dancers in B.C.