OPENING THE TREASURE BOX: A Panel of Historians

522 East Cordova, East School on Oppenheimer Street, 1887 or 1888 Sch P46

This Saturday I am hosting an event for the Heart of the City Festival called:

OPENING THE TREASURE BOX: A Panel of Historians
Saturday October 27, 4pm – 6pm
Chapel Arts, 304 Dunlevy

This will be an exciting opportunity to meet and pose questions to a number of the historians who live, share and celebrate the storied and rich history of the Downtown Eastside. Our panel of history treasure hunters features: house history researcher and heritage activist James Johnstone;author and civic historian John Atkin; Lani Russwurm, writer and Vancouver history blogger; Larry Wong, enthusiastic historian and writer born in Chinatown; Kat Norris, Coast Salish activist and community leader; and Grace Eiko Thomson, freelance curator and respected Japanese Canadian elder. Houses, rumours, streets, labour strife, ancestors, and community successes are just some of the fascinating topics in the neighbourhood treasure box of DTES history. 

Admission is Free

Since the event is taking place at Chapel Arts, a former funeral home located at East Cordova and Dunlevy, I thought my talk would focus on the history and heritage of the two block radius around the venue. I will be using a lot of archival images from the City of Vancouver Archives and the Vancouver Public Library. This promises to be a great presentation. The Heart of The City Festival plans to makes this an annual event.

Bird's Eye view map of the East End in the 1890s