STANLEY PARK NOTEBOOK

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by Jacqui Birchall
(click images to enlarge)

 THE FELLING OF HEMLOCK TREES

This month the Park Board is felling numerous dead and diseased hemlock trees in Stanley Park. These trees are in poor condition due to the combined effects of looper moth activity and longer summer droughts in recent years.

Intermittent work closures will affect Pipeline Road, Tunnel Trail (completely closed until November 3), Tisdall Trial, Park Drive, and parts of the seawall.

Felled Hemlock trees awaiting removal from Stanley Park (Jacqui Birchall Photo)

The parking lot off Pipeline Road — near the still-broken-down Stanley Park train — will operate at half capacity until November 27. Intermittent work closures along Stanley Park Drive will restrict parking throughout the month in certain areas as well.

DEADMAN’S ISLAND

Deadman’s Island lies in Stanley Park on the Coal Harbour side. At approximately two hectares — and dwindling due to wave erosion — this small area has a huge history.

The bridge to Denman’s Island. (jacqui Birchall Photo)

Called Skwatasa7s by the Squamish people and ƛ̓ces by the Musqueam, the tidal island was a First Nations’ burial site for millennia before the arrival of settlers. 

People were often buried in cedar boxes, tied up high in the island’s trees. There are also accounts of 200 Squamish warriors being slaughtered in a hostage exchange on the island at one point.

Prior to the construction of Mountain View Cemetery in 1887, settlers also used the island as a burial ground. After the fire of1886, which burnt down most of the newly incorporated city, 21 victims were buried there. Then, in 1888, the island was used as an isolation centre for those suffering from smallpox; and as a burial ground for those who died in the epidemic.

Shacks were built on the island over the decades. These were the homes of ‘newly-arrived squatters’, as they were dubbed. It was tough living, with no electricity or running water, and access solely possible by boat.

Police assigned to stand guard during what became known as “The Battle of Deadman’s Island”. (Photo by Broadbridge-Bullen - Vancouver City Archive Photo)

In 1889, Seattle industrialist Theodore Ludgate applied to lease the island to log it and build a sawmill. Many Vancouverites were opposed to the sawmill application. Not caring for the law at all, Ludgate arrived on the island with a group of loggers. Then-mayor James Garden met them with a police escort. Ludgate returned with a larger group of loggers one month later. Once more he was repelled, and he took his case to the English courts. After a lengthy process he was told he could log but not have a sawmill.

After logging the island and attempting various money-making schemes with the land, Ludgate eventually lost Deadman’s Island to the federal government.

The Park Board and the Harbour Commission then fought over the island, the former wanting to build a war memorial and the latter a seaplane base. In 1929 the Park Board applied for, and was granted a 99-year lease at $1 per year.

The Park Board evicted the so-called ‘squatters’ but the cash-strapped board didn’t know what to do with their newly rented island. 

In 1941 it was suggested as a site for a military college, and in June 1942, it was transferred by an Order-In-Council to the Department of National Defence for a Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve. The construction of HMCS Discovery began in June, 1943.

The Vancouver Police Training Academy shared the space from 1967 to 1975.

A contemporary Aerial view of Deadman’s Island.

In  2007, then-mayor Sam Sullivan headed to Ottawa to try to get some of Deadman’s Island released for public use. Sullivan wanted to use the island as a ferry destination and a museum to preserve and display the heritage of Indigenous people.

Commander Rod Hughes, then the acting chief of operations for the Joint Task Force Pacific, said the site was too militarily important to give up. Ernie Campbell, the late, much-respected Musqueam Chief, said it is traditional territory, and federally held land, and therefore any changes would need to be done in consultation with First Nations.

Today, Deadman’s Island seems so deserted. There is a watchman’s hut, a barricade, the building that houses the officers’ mess and administrative building, a few trees, and an environmental reporting station. The administrative building is used for training cadets in the summer. One wag says the police have lockers there for use when exercising in Stanley Park. HMCS Discovery occasionally has an open house, the latest one on May 6, 2023, when they hosted an open house and job fair. They have an active Facebook page if you are interested in future open houses.

STANLEY PARK ECOLOGY SOCIETY (SPES)

The Stanley Park Ecology Society continues to impress.

I was lucky enough to enroll in a workshop called  “Creatures of the Night” led by Anna Bondartchouk. This was a great opportunity to walk around Lost Lagoon in the dark — with the safety of a group — and learn about the nocturnal inhabitants of the park. Anna taught us a lot about owls’ eyesight and how their feathered feet allow them to walk silently. Also, did you know that beavers are the second largest rodent in the world and they have iron-infused teeth which never stop growing?

Land near Beaver Lake after removal of invasive and before planting with native plants. (Chris Rothery Photo / SPES)

In addition, SPES volunteers have continued their energetic work in clearing the invasive species in the park. 

SPES writes, “this weekend's planting event was the first of several planting events that will be open to volunteers this season.”

There will be an event at Beaver Lake on November 4, and at Lost Lagoon on November 16. Volunteers can see these events on SPES’ event calendar on their website, and sign up ahead of time.

SPES volunteers planting native herbs, shrubs, and trees, including deer fern, salal, and Pacific bleeding Heart. (Chris Rothery Photo / SPES)

Some of the upcoming planting events are as follows (click each link for details):

“In all, we will be planting over 1,200 Native herbs, shrubs, and trees to kickstart understory recovery in severely damaged areas of the park. It's our biggest and most biodiverse planting season ever, including deer fern, salal, Pacific bleeding heart, and other species,” SPES said.

SPES November Workshops
(click on links for all the information)

Sign Up for Winter EcoCamps

SPES is offering a four-day "Winter Wildlife" camp during the Vancouver School Board winter break from January 2 to 5, for students aged 7-11.

Students will spend time outdoors in the winter wonderland of Stanley Park, looking for winter birds, and tracking wildlife footprints in the snow, as well as spending plenty of time warming up indoors with nature-themed crafts and activities.

Registration is open at the SPES website here.