Community Brief:
Revelstoke Museum & Archives curator Cathy English's June 8 Brown Bag lunchtime presentation focused on Revelstoke exactly one century ago in 1911.
Her lunchtime talks explore themes, topics, personalities and other interesting subjects from Revelstoke's history. They start at 12:15 p.m. and wrap up before 1 p.m. See the Revelstoke Times Review Community Calendar for listings. Here are some tidbits gleaned from the 1911 presentation:
- 1911 was a census year. Questions included: 'Are you crazy, lunatic, idiot or silly?' and 'How much money are you worth?' If one of your ancestors happened to be behind bars on the census day, it's noted in the census, which is available to this day.
- Alderman Hector McKinnon headed the finance committee and railed against overspending at city hall. "There are to be no musts unless you show me where the money will come from," he warned staff. One of his pet proposals was to slash telephone costs. He wondered why the mayor needed a telephone on his desk when there was one in the reception outside his office. He also wanted to take away the city-funded phone at the fire chief's home, arguing the city could save $96 annually. Instead, McKinnon proposed installing a bell at the chief's residence to summon him during emergencies.
- An extended feature in the Mail Herald explored the new Eidelweiss Village in Golden, B.C. It welcomed new Swiss guides and their families. It said the village would provide "a glimpse of Swiss life" that welcomed "the hearty mountaineers from across the sea."
- Did you know that Colbeck Road in Revelstoke is named after Henry Colbeck, engineer of the SS Revelstoke steamwheeler, which plied its trade on the Columbia in 1911?
- Plans arrived for the new Revelstoke Courthouse. Estimated cost: $113,000. The cornerstone was laid in 1912, and it was finished in late 1913.
- The police commissioner cracked down on Sunday bar openings, which were illegal but hadn't been enforced. An audience member commented that they didn't reopen on Sundays until Expo 86.
- Prince Leopold of Batenburg toured past town in a train, making a brief stop.
- The Mail Herald reported that notable Revelstokian Robert Tapping, who built an opera house here, was married for the second time. "Victim of woman's charms," the Mail Herald reported.
- Two hunters returned from the Big Bend with 16 bear hides, two black bear cubs and two grizzly cubs. It was considered significant at the time since no grizzly cubs had been rendered into captivity in 40 years, the newspaper reported. They chained the bears up on Front Street for public display. The black bears took to humans, but the grizzlies hissed and threatened anyone who came near.
- The amateur dramatic society put on a play at the Edison Theatre, the proceeds went to support the Revelstoke Gun Club -- the 'Rod' part came later. English noted the Revelstoke Rod & Gun Club recently donated an historical trophy to the museum that dates back to 1895, and is engraved with the names of winners over the subsequent decades.
Editor's note: A previous version of this story spelled Robert Tapping's name incorrectly as 'Tappen.' A sentence reporting the Prince of Wales visited Revelstoke in that year has been removed -- it was included in English's speech, but as part of side note about the Prince's visit later in 1919.