November 2023 - Langley Heritage Society

A Toast to Sir James

LHS director Pierce Smith, president Fred Pepin and UFV historian Scott Scheffield Our annual Douglas Day Dinner was a well attended affair at the historic Fort Langley Community Hall. Thank you to Scott Sheffield, Associate Professor of History at the University of the Fraser Valley. His talk explored British Columbia's relationship with the Second World War, and how many layers of community were affected by it on the home front: women, Indigenous peoples, Japanese Canadians, farmers and soldiers' families. Artifacts that once belonged to Sir James Douglas were also on display, courtesy of the Fort Langley National Historic Site. Special thanks to Glenn Disney for taking these photos. Associate professor Scott Scheffield continues to research how the Second World War affected British Columbians. James Douglas artifacts: travel bag, replica of his foot stool, metal mace used to declare the colony, and [...]

Mark Forsythe2023-11-20T01:21:42+00:00November 20th, 2023|

Douglas Day

The Langley Heritage Society's annual Douglas Day Dinner is coming this Friday November 17th at the Fort Langley Community Hall. Douglas declared the colony of British Columbia at Fort Langley in November of 1858. Thanks to the National Historic Site, we'll have some of his personal artifacts on display. Douglas was a man of mixed blood, who forged ties with Indigenous peoples, Blacks, and other minorities. He signed the first treaties on Vancouver Island, and was instrumental in maintaining this region as a British colony -- not the next American state. A toast to Old Square Toes!Douglas Day

Mark Forsythe2023-11-16T16:36:20+00:00November 16th, 2023|

Have Your Say on Old Yale Road

Old Yale Road is an historic connection that originally linked New Westminster and Yale in the 1860s as a wagon road. In 1922 a concrete surface was added as the automobile was becoming the primary means of transportation. It's now in serious need of repair. Visit the Township of Langley website by November 17th to comment on the possible path ahead. Langley Heritage Society supports commemoration of the road, which includes reconstruction of a short stretch, west from the Five Corners, and the rest of the road brought up to asphalt standards. See the TOL survey HERE Below: The veins of time. Cracked concrete on Old Yale Road, looking west.

Mark Forsythe2023-11-14T04:05:53+00:00November 14th, 2023|

Speaker Series Continues on Douglas Day

"British Columbia's Second World War in History and Memory" Our next speaker, Scott Sheffield, will present during the annual Douglas Day Dinner on Friday November 17th at the Fort Langley Community Hall (doors open at 5:00 pm). Members can purchase a ticket from Dave at: dalwyneb@telus.net R. Scott Sheffield is an Associate Professor of History at the University of the Fraser Valley who spent the bulk of his career researching Indigenous military service and authored The Red Man’s on the Warpath: The Image of the ‘Indian’ and the Second World War (UBC Press, 2004), and (with Noah Riseman) Indigenous Peoples and the Second World War: The Politics, Experiences and Legacies of War in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand (Cambridge U Press, 2019), as well as numerous articles and book chapters.His current research explores British Columbia’s home front during the Second World War, especially the role of community [...]

Mark Forsythe2023-11-09T05:43:20+00:00November 9th, 2023|

A Toast to Sir James

Douglas Day

Have Your Say on Old Yale Road

Speaker Series Continues on Douglas Day

Quick Links

Contact