*Information sourced from the Sidney Museum & Archives*
|
Pioneers
The first white settlers to reside at North Saanich were John and Mark Coles who arrived in early 1857. Unlike the majority of those who came before the Fraser River gold rush, the Coles were not formerly indentured employees of the Hudson's Bay Company. Writing in January 1858, Governor James Douglas referred to them as living "a distance of 20 miles" from Victoria. This would place them near Deep Cove, where land records show they held property. Apparently, they had a cabin/store where they were trading actively with the local Saanich People. A few months after the advent of the Fraser River gold rush excitement in April 1858, most of the North Saanich District was spoken for by white gold miners, settlers and speculators. Among them were William & Charles Reay, Donald Fraser (later known for his glamorized accounts of the Cariboo gold rush in the London Times), William Booth, and Octavuis Ommaney (who purchased the land which is now part of the town of Sidney). During the next 15 years, the ownership of the land now comprising the Sidney area changed hands several times; by 1874 the pioneers who were to become the major settlers had established substantial farms. |
|
Early Sidney
When East Saanich Road was extended just north of Sidney in the mid 1870s, the area's first industry was developed: the Brackman & Milne Grist Mill, later known as Saanich Steam Mills, and then Brackman & Ker. "The mill will be of large capacity and its existence will stimulate the growth of wheat on the Saanich Peninsula," the Colonist reported on 14 July 1877. On 23 December, "the North Saanich grist mill has now commenced grinding every variety of grain, more particularly oats. This will prove an undoubted boon to the country as hitherto all the oatmeal has been imported.…" The mill's first shipment was sent to Victoria in March 1878 aboard the sloop 'Helen'. With the development of local industry, the north end of the Peninsula became the focus of other prominent businessmen of Victoria. One was the brewer Arthur Bunster, the Member of the Dominion Parliament for Vancouver Island (1874 – 1882), who grew barley in both North and South Saanich for his brewery. In October 1879, Bunster proposed that the terminus of the Canadian Pacific Railway should be in Victoria. A ferry system from the mainland would deliver freight and passengers to the northern end of the peninsula and a Saanich Shunt line would transport them to the city. However, Bunster's scheme failed to gain general acceptance. |
|
|
Railways
In the early part of this century, three separate railway systems served the Saanich Peninsula. These railways opened up the area for passenger and freight traffic and provided a link with steamboats and ferries to the mainland. The Victoria and Sidney Railway Company commenced operations on June 1, 1894 with a passenger excursion from Victoria to Sidney. Included in the trip was a picnic and dance in the "pine", - a park like section of land reserved by the company for such events. On June 18, 1913, the British Columbia Electric Railway held an inaugural run on its new route from Victoria to Deep Bay (now Deep Cove). This line did not run directly into Sidney, as the Victoria and Sidney Railway's franchise disallowed any other railway within one mile of the town. However, a passenger platform was provided one mile up Beacon Avenue. The third line, the Canadian Northern Pacific Railway (C.N.R.), opened on April 30, 1917 from Victoria to Patricia Bay, serving the eastern section of the Peninsula. Despite ambitious starts, all three railroads experienced financial difficulties as the years passed, due in part to declining passenger and freight traffic and increased competition from bus services. 
|
|
Pictured Below: Flight Lieutenant George Walter Du Temple, Commanding Officer of 111 Squadron, Pat Bay 1940 -1941. The first RCAF aircraft was an AVRO 626 flown by Du Temple, with crewman Corporal W.S. (Rusty) Hopper October 22, 1939. 
|
Airport
From it's early beginnings as an airfield in the 1920s, Victoria Airport has developed into one of Canada's busiest airports through sport and recreational flying, and also domestic, international and charter airline companies transporting passengers to airports in Canada and the USA. In 1930 the airport was owned privately by British Columbia Airways Ltd. Most of the transportation was by seaplane, and the large body of water called Patricia Bay on the west side of Saanich Peninsula provided a natural haven for the aircraft to land and take off. Department of Transport felt there was a need for a large military airport on the southern end of Vancouver Island, and favoured the site at Sidney. The airport opened in 1940, and was soon to accommodate the Royal Canadian Airforce, the Royal Airforce, and the Royal Canadian Navy. The airport was known as Victoria (Patricia Bay) Airport. The name remained until 1959 when the airport received the official title of Victoria International Airport.Trans-Canada Air Lines (TCA) started a regular passenger service to Vancouver in 1943, and in 1948 Transport Canada took on the responsibility for the airport. RCAF units remained until 1952, and there is still a military presence with 443 Helicopter Squadron of the Royal Canadian Navy. Wing Commander Du Temple
In October 1939 an event occurred which would eventually change North Saanich, Sidney and Ardmore Golf Club. Wing Commander George Walter du Temple, on instructions from the R.C.A.F., landed a biplane Avro 626 in a field owned by the Jones family near the site of the present terminal building of the Victoria International Airport. He had orders to oversee the construction of a military airfield. Eighteen airmen came by steamship to Victoria and then to Sidney. Landing strips were to be prepared with farm tractors. Mr. G.W. du Temple made arrangements with local businessmen and farmers for the necessary supplies – milk, butter, eggs, beef, and earth moving equipment. The Jones family barn was converted into the first hangar. When the first airstrip was ready for use a flag raising ceremony was held and the first wind-sock was raised. The wind-sock had been sewn by Mrs. Alice du Temple, wife of the Commanding Officer. As well as overseeing the construction of the airport as Commanding Officer, G.W. du Temple and some of his airmen learned to play golf at Ardmore Golf Club. , The golf course facilities were made available to members of the R.A.F, the R.C.A.F., the R.A., and the R.N.Z.A.F. stationed at Patricia. Bay. The fees set at 50 cents per month from Nov 1st to April 30th, and 75 cents per month from May 1st to October 30th, with clubs supplied. The same Mr. du Temple who negotiated these arrangements would buy the golf course in 1946 after decommissioning from the R.C.A.F. ~ Taken from '100 Year History of Ardmore' by Ed Ostachowicz / Wally DuTemple |
|
Shipping and Ferries
In the 1880's, the only means of marine transport was the Esquimalt and Nanaimo's ship "Label", which left Victoria every Tuesday morning for Comox. The 140 mile, two-day trip had stops at Sidney and Nanaimo. The inauguration of the Victoria and Sidney (V&S) Railway in 1894 provided citizens of Victoria with a faster route to the Gulf Islands and Nanaimo through connections made at Sidney. The Sidney and Nanaimo Navigation Company's Steamers "Unecan" and "Strathcona" (a stern wheeler replaced later by the "Iroquois") connected travellers to points further north. The "Iroquois" was built in 1901 for T.W. Paterson (later to become Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia). The "Iroquois" and her sister ship, the "Sechelt", operated to the spring of 1911, when, within a period of three weeks, both sank, with great loss of life. In November, 1900, the newly created Victoria Terminal Railway and Ferry Company took control of the V&S as part of a planned rail-ferry route to the mainland. The S.S. "Georgian" began the run the following year. In 1902, the Victoria Terminal Railway and Ferry Company was taken over by the Great Northern Railway, which placed the S.S. "Victorian" on the route from Sidney to Port Guichon, located on the Fraser River. The "Victorian" operated on the run until 1904. |
|