Many, maybe most of Richmond’s residents are unaware of the influence of the thoroughbred horse racing industry had on Richmond’s history, or of Richmond’s contributions to the horse racing industry. There is little doubt that not long after men learned to mount a horse and ride it, the first race occurred. Over centuries, the sport developed worldwide into an organized event, leading to selective breeding of horses, strict rules and betting. The modern era of racing is generally considered to have started in the late 1700s when the first of the classic English races were established.
Horses break from a manual starting gate at Brighouse Racetrack in 1924. City of Richmond Archives photograph 1978 11 3.
One of the problems with racing horses is having a fair start and false starts and disputes about them were common. Early races depended on jockeys keeping their horses behind the start line, marked by a tape, chalk line or wooden structure, until the starter waved his flag to commence the race. Often an assistant starter would stand farther down the track to wave his flag in the event of a bad start.
The first automated starting system was developed in Australia in the 1890s and consisted of a spring-loaded wire that stretched across the starting line. When the race was started the wire would spring up and away from the horses. Various versions of this starting system were used in Australia and around the world up into the 1930s, an improvement over previous starting methods but still subject to false starts and broken equipment by overeager horses.
An early version of the Puett starting gate in action at Lansdowne Park Racetrack. City of Richmond Archives photograph 2014 12 2.
Enter Clay Puett. Born in Texas in 1899, he quit school in grade seven, went to work as a ranch hand and then got interested in horse racing. He worked his way up the ladder from groom to starter at racetracks, adding to his already considerable knowledge about horses and their behavior. He recognized early on that a consistently safe and reliable method of starting races was needed in the sport and began to tinker with designs to allow this. His early conceptions didn’t work out too well but in 1933 he built an experimental hand-operated a two-stall gate with breast plates which worked fairly well, although jockeys were occasionally thrown when their horse hit the breast plates a bit too hard.
Some more years of tinkering and perfecting the design ensued until a model was patented and built. This trial unit also had two stalls, operated electrically and was experimented with at Hollywood Park near Los Angeles. The design incorporated narrower stalls than previous gates with a backstop at the rear to prevent horses from backing out and “V” shaped tubular gates in front. Held closed by electro-magnets, the gates sprung open simultaneously when the circuit was broken by a master switch. Individual gates could also be opened independently of the others if necessary.
Once the race was started, the gate had to be removed from the track. Draft horses were used to carry out this task until they were replaced by tractors. In this photo from 1953, Richmond’s Don McKay drives Bonny and Smoky while Ashley McCallan stands by. City of Richmond Archives photograph 2014 12 3.
A full-sized version was built and used in a race for the first time on July 1, 1939, at Lansdowne Park Racetrack in Richmond. A report in the Daily Racing Form stated, “Clay Puett’s new starting gate, introduced to organized racing for the first time at Lansdowne, last Saturday, is being hailed by horsemen as the greatest and most beneficial contribution to the turf since the advent of the totalisater.(tote board)”
Prominent California owner and trainer Elmer O’Connell, who was racing at Lansdowne said, “For thirty years I’ve been to the races, and this is the biggest single improvement I’ve ever seen in the business, including the photo-finish machines.”
Starter Don McKay (Centre), George Dunn (L) and Tom Kendall (R) stand in front of the Puett starting gate at Lansdowne Park Racetrack. Two draft horses, in this case Nelly and Flossy, were used to move the gate around. City of Richmond Archives photograph 2014 12 7.
Vancouver Province reporter Johnny Park described the first race using the Puett gate. Instead of unruly horses, jostling and misbehaving at the starting line, “Nine of the youngsters paraded in the special, and acting like perfect little ladies and gentlemen, showed more experienced horses how to act at the post and run straight and true. They walked right into Puett’s stalls, stood still for a moment, and broke as a team.”
Clay Puett was the starter at Lansdowne and Exhibition Park tracks for 24 years. His starting gate became the standard for flat racing world-wide and, while modifications and improvements have been made over the years, all of the gates used today are based on his original design which was used first in Richmond. As for Puett himself he said. “I have enjoyed being the inventor of the starting gate, but I have never capitalized on it. Oh yes, I am an extrovert and I love talking about it, but I have always been smart enough to know it would be just a short period of time before the gate just became a piece of equipment used all over.” Clay Puett passed away in 1998.
This photograph from August 17, 1984, shows three starters at Exhibition Park, Clay Puett, Chip Fortin and Don McKay, standing in front of the Puett designed starting gate. City of Richmond Archives, May/McKay Family Records, Accession 2026 44.
Lance Carey had a long career as a field hockey player and coach, notably as a member of Canada’s team at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal in 1976. He was for many years instrumental in administering the affairs and coaching teams of the Richmond Field Hockey Club, established in 1970. Lance donated records of his own career and of the Club to the Richmond Archives in two lots in 2019 and 2023. At the latter time, he also donated a copy of his self-published Together Everyone Achieves More: A Memoir. It is not often that a community archives acquires either a rich body of records detailing events of a sporting career or of development of that sport in the community.
In writing his memoir, Lance relied on journals he kept of his international play. The following mines two of those journals and his memoir that together offer his observations on the places he visited and his reflections on matches he played and his development as a player, but concentrates on excerpts from his diaries reflecting his observations of the cultures of Mexico, where a University of British Columbia team visited in 1968 and where Mexico City was preparing to host the 1968 Summer Olympics, and an extensive tour of Australasian countries he visited during a two-months long tour of a Canadian team in 1969.
From his Journal of the University of British Columbia Men’s Team’s tour to Mexico City, May 12 -25, 1968:
May 12, “Up early. Had breakfast. Tremendous orange juice. Split up into groups and went downtown…. Dave’s and my shorts (cut-offs) very popular with the populous. Wolf whistles every where we go.”
May 16, “Saw Jai Alai last night. Tie and jacket necessary. Betting is done. Same as horse racing. Fantastic game. 3 walls about 50 yds long, hard ball, hollow sound to it. Walls 30 feet tall, marble floor. Uniform: white shirt, white long pants, white runners. Basket or instrument they use to throw ball. [Throwing] motion with whole arm not snapped from elbow as in baseball…. One man plays up, other back. Tremendously fast unorthodox movements. Betting very interesting. Can bet at wickets or with bookies who give odds as they pass among the crowd. Throw a sliced tennis ball to person in the crowd who wishes to place a bet, [who] throws it back to the bookie. Bookies wear red tams with white jackets, shouting odds which reflect the closeness of the game. Game stops when betting is intense.”
May 19, “This afternoon went to the bull fights. Great to see once for experience. The first part where the Toreadors showed their stuff was great. Colourful and interesting. The remainder, the process of killing the bull, was grim & to me disgusting. Two fellas on armoured horse with spears. Next the picadors. Short spears, 6 of them. Process of tiring the bull for the matador. Matador comes in. Very cocky attitude. Runs the bull around, taunts him with the cape, somewhat skilful then kills him with a long sword. Sometimes took four stabs. Very procedural. The bull falls and a fella kills with a short stab in the back of the neck. The whole affair is colorful, noisy but to a Canadian & American gruesome.
From his journal of the two-months long Hawks ’69 Australasian Tour, June 26th – August 30th. The Hawks were a team formed in 1965. Although Lance was not a member of the Hawks before the ‘69 Tour, many of the team members were from the Vancouver area and played, as did Lance, for teams of the University of British Columbia. On the tour the team played games in Japan, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore; then in the Northern Territory and every state in Australia; then in both the North and South Islands of New Zealand, and finally a single game in Fiji on the way home.
June 26, “Departure Japan Air … Stopped in Anchorage – unimpressive airport. Quite surprised when we walked into the terminal and were surrounded by Amer. soldiers returning from Viet Nam, in battle dress.”
June 29, “Tokyo: Up at 7:00 a.m. for breakfast. Off touring the city at 10:00 a.m. Did some washing today. Hope I don’t have to do much of this myself…. Personally I think the city is simply immense. Every inch of space is put to use. It strikes me that there are very few skyscrapers in Tokyo. Highest (in Asia) is 36 stories, new one of 40 stories is going up. It is Sunday and everything is open. The shopping areas are teeming with people + cars. I think what struck me most on this tour was the Emperor’s residence. It occupies 4 sq. miles. Lovely manicured grounds. But what struck me about it was the fact that amongst all the congestion & need for space was the residence with its large unoccupied grounds…. Lunch was terrific. Ate it all with chopsticks again.
Doug, Dave, Mort and myself went outside the hotel tonight for dinner Cost 430 [yen] & was terrific. Noodles – tempura — 1 quart or litre of beer. Thoroughly Japanese as the hostess didn’t understand any English. Very enjoyable indeed.”
July 3, “Up at 9:00 a.m. Rough night sleep on the floor. Had a bath after breakfast and lazed around until game time. Was a tremendous game which we won 6-3 after being down 3-1 at the half. Was vs. Osaka select. They are apparently the best team in Japan. Our second half was magnificent. Osaka has really put on a beautiful effort for us. The banquet tonight was excellent…. Drinks at the bar were all free. The pitch [for the game that day] was very hard, fast, sandy gravel. An excellent field hockey pitch actually. Wouldn’t be a bad idea for Vancouver if it were rolled properly. Very impressive opening ceremony. We played at a girl’s school. It was like a reception for the Beatles. Approximately 800 – 900 spectators. The Japanese played very good hockey. Today was our day. A beautiful game.”
July 3, “Arrived in Hong Kong. The view of H.K. from the plane is fantastic. A very beautiful city of thousands of white hi-rises set against a background of green with a harbour of very blue water. Magnificent. After gathering our baggage we were taken by taxi to the Kowloon Cricket Club. We are honorary members there for the duration of our stay in Hong Kong. From there we were distributed to our billets. Doug and I were billeted with a Mr. and Mrs. Mepham at Repulse Bay Villas. A 30 minute drive along a narrow road from the Vehicular ferry. They are excellent people (Canadians). That evening they took us to dinner at the Repulse Bay Hotel. During the 2nd W.W, the hotel was the headquarters of the Japanese forces in Hong Kong.”
July 4, “… played our first game in H.K. against the 1st division champions…. We defeated them 2-0 …. I was a bit dizzy in the 2nd half and was the closest I have ever been to collapsing.… The next morning I had a not too severe case of dysentery but severe enough…. Luckily Mrs. Mepham had some Mexaform pills and I am now on these. I’ve had nothing to eat for 2 days now and won’t for another day. Strictly liquids. I will be very happy when we get to Australia.”
July 5, “As I mentioned I’m hung up with the trots…. We met at Blake Pier for a boat ride around Hong Kong Island. Really enjoyable. Very, very picturesque. Hi-rises all over the Island. H.K. is a very large island…. We passed through a fishing village, Aberdeen. Thousands of junks moored here. Facilities for repair, which to me appeared quite antiquated … very little mechanization [to haul the boats ashore]. The junks are all serviced by little sampan-type boats (food and drink). Apparently nearly all the junks have diesel motors in them now but we did see a few in full sail which I thought were quite spectacular. I’ve been amazed at the beauty of Hong Kong + the number of Hi Rises. On the other side of the coin the poverty is very evident. The place, particularly Kowloon, is teeming with people. To a North American the eating habits + the lack of care in which food is handled is frightening. The boat ride was extremely enjoyable + my health improved greatly….”
July 7, “On our way to Bangkok today. [Lance would later write in his diary that his favourite stop was Bangkok.] Baggage weight is mounting up for everyone. [Two team members] purchased a lot of stereo equipment. Beautiful stuff.
Arrived in Bangkok. Was 91 degrees but not as humid as Hong Kong + there was a breeze. We were driven to the Royal Bangkok Sports Club where we were made Temporary Members. Fantastic place. Horse track, golf course, Olympic size pool, grass tennis courts, pool room, reading room, dining area, bar, showers. They have facilities for everything…. I met my billet at the Club, Mr. Alan Brown, Scotsman, very nice. Shares a beautiful flat with an American fellow, who has returned to the U.S. for a few months. I am by myself, which I don’t particularly like, but [others of us] are quite close by. Have a beautiful stereo in my room. Slept well.”
July 8, “Up at 9:00 + had breakfast. Walked over to the ‘Y’ to see a few of the guys + then went to the Club a little later. Spent most of the day around the Club. Robert and I met an Indian fellow at noon at the Club. He told us where we could get Thai silk & took us there. He seems quite nice but Alan says I should be careful. Mort and Rick got taken yesterday for $12 each by a couple of operators over a tour of some sort. So I’m on my guard. I almost bought a ruby tie tack yesterday. I think I am a walking mark. Will have to wisen up. I’m learning, I guess.”
July 9: I still have the trots. It’s a real hang-up. I don’t know if I’m going to have to live with it until I get to Australia or what. Still taking the Mexiform pills though. Went to the club and met Doug, Rigs and Eric. Went shopping for Thai silk. Got some great silk … [and] came back for dinner + we went out from there to Chris’s. Had a riot just BSing.
July 10: Up at 6:00 a.m., about 3 hrs’ sleep. Off to the Floating Market. Was really interesting. Canal just packed with people, vendors of all types. Must have been 50 to 100 of these excursion boats on the canal. [Some of the team got a free ride.] I wonder what the people thought of us. It was like going to a zoo. They as the animals & we the viewers. I am really becoming a cynic. The kids swim in the canal. Absolutely filthy water. They use that water for everything. Stopped at the Temple of Dawn and at the garage for the 9 royal barges…. After lunch, [we] went to see the temple by the royal palace. Some emerald Buddha, fantastic. Their chapels are incredibly ornate, their temples as well. Too much in my opinion. They are beautiful as well. Took a few great shots I hope …. We couldn’t get in to see the palace. One must wear a jacket and tie to tour through those … we stopped at the Bangkok World office and picked up a few copies of the Tuesday supplement’s spread on our tour. [A copy of which is in his donation to the Richmond Archives, along with a large number of local newspaper reports of the games the Hawks played in other places on the trip.]
July 11: Up at 7:00 and left for the Bridge over the River Kwai [the movie of the same name was released in 1957] …. The Bridge itself was nothing but we did walk across it. Saw one of the graveyards. This one had 7000 men in it who had died working on the Railway or fighting. Must have been horrible …. Back in time for a short rest before the game. I was exhausted throughout the game. I scored a goal though …. Showered and dressed quickly and then went to a reception put on by the Canadian Ambassador, Mr. Britain. Was quite enjoyable.”
Because, as Lance reflects in the next excerpt from his diary, there were riots in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the team’s stay in Bangkok was extended. In his memoir, he sums up their stay in Bangkok: “All in all our extended stay in Bangkok worked out well as we were able to see more of Thailand and the activities of the people than we would have, and for me personally to recover from dysentery. I was actually down to 130 pounds from just over 150 pounds. I never did fully recover until several months after our return to Vancouver.”
July 12, “Off to Kuala Lumpur today. Really a delightful city (pop. 500,000.) Very modern, gov’t run + planned, Beautiful buildings. Saw a rubber plantation & were shown the method of tapping the tree. A good tree will last about 40 yrs. Before being cut down for lumber. Needed more time here. Soldiers everywhere after the resent disturbances. The trouble is religious & racial, and long-lasting. We were taken to an incredible cave [Batu Caves in Kuala Lumpur]. Was immersive and very, very beautiful. We had to climb up 272 steps to it. It is a religious prayer area. That evening we were provided with an excellent meal and then we were taken to a market. We were stopped and checked for weapons. Soldiers on every corner as this sector of the town was very dangerous. Easily seen and felt. Young guys were walking about in groups obviously waiting for something to happen. Some soldiers were carrying machine guns, most rifles. Frightening. These people fought so long for independence, have and are building a beautiful, modern city and now could screw up the whole works.”
Arrived in Singapore. Dead beat. Flew in MSA, two engine prop. Nice flight. Were taken to the Seaman’s Club, kind of an 18th rate place. I don’t mind poor places, but I hate ants everywhere (beds, floors) & little black bugs on the sheets plus musty smelling sheets.”
July 13, “Game at 5:15. We won 2-0…. My best so far. Awfully humid…. We justly deserved the two goal margin. Their hospitality is bad, rude as a matter of fact. There is no itinerary, they bombed out on our city tour without an explanation, took us to their department store…. We are left wholly on our own devices…. Not a suggestion of what to see, to do. And to top it off our hotel has only cold water & a 12:00 o’clock curfew.”
After its disappointing stay in Singapore, the team was off to Darwin Australia. In Australia and New Zealand the team found itself in more familiar cultural circumstances. The following excerpts touch on some of Lance’s more interesting observations on people and places.
July 15, “The hard hockey road lies ahead. On the whole our tour through the Far East was terrific, particularly Bangkok…. Our welcome to Darwin was terrific. All our billets were there and they had huge banners announcing the game.
July 16, “Up about 9:00. Terrific first Australian breakfast of juice, corn flakes with peach on top, steak & eggs, toast, and coffee. Fantastic.
Went to a reception at Darwin Town Hall at 11:00 where we met the mayor and were given pins and a book of the history of Darwin. All the organizers of our stay in Darwin were there…Our billet’s name was Don Brink. He drove us all over Darwin and out to Yarrawonga Zoo where we saw some snakes, crocodiles, emus, and wallaby … was very hot and dry … houses built on stilts for coolness. Quite a small place (30,000) but growing very rapidly. Construction everywhere. Apparently during WW II it was quite severely bombed by the Japanese. Played the Northern Territory side at 5:15. About 1000 spectators. Was a fast, hard-hitting game… but I think we had accustomed ourselves somewhat to the short pass walking the ball type of game played in the Far East. Took us the whole first half to get our fingers out.
Party later at the Penthouse. Dance and excellent food. Darwinians really extended themselves to give us a terrific time. The Northern Territory Team gave us a beautiful set of buffalo horns.”
After a flight to Geraldton, Western Australia where they lost their only game 2-1 and Lance was injured, they were on to Perth. Australia was at that time something of a leader in world field hockey circles, the caliber of play the Hawks first met in spades in Perth. In a page from a Kerrisdale Cameras notebook affixed to a page in his diary, Lance gave an explanation of how Australian field hockey flourished after World War II.
“The famous Pearce hockey family made a huge impact on the game in Australia. Together with other Anglo Indian players who migrated mostly to Western Australia after Indian Independence in 1947, they revolutionized the game as a result of their wonderful skills developed in the world’s hot-bed of hockey. WA dominated the National Championships for a couple of decades and these players formed the nucleus of Australian teams from 1955 at least until the late 1960’s. Their local Perth Team was the famous Hotspurs.”
July 20, “Game vs Hotspurs. I was scheduled to play but the injury I sustained in Geraldton has ruined me for awhile. We lost 5-2. For older men they’re awfully fast. Beautiful control. Eric Pearce in the centre was fantastic. More Pearces on the half-line. Apparently, there are five of them. Our play improved 100% in the second half. We had had a hard time settling down…. Hotspurs entertained us after the game.”
July 21, “Up about 9:00. Had breakfast then went to a civic reception. Terrific when you consider the size of Perth. Saw the astronauts step out on the moon. Absolutely fantastic. Terrific T.V. coverage. Later on John Wright, referee, took us out for a Cessna flight over Perth. Only cost $2.00 for 30 minutes. Returned to King’s Park for the game against the W.A. team. We played very well I thought…. Score was 2-0 for them. After the game the Hockey Association put on a very nice dinner for us…. [Then we were] taken on a short drive. City very beautiful at night. Miss the mountains though.”
July 23, “Adelaide. In the afternoon we were able to walk downtown + have a boo. Very old town. Girls wear far shorter skirts than ours…. School boys wear beanies. That evening we were entertained by the Sportsman’s Association of Australia. Good dinner, but am eating too much. Must cut down.”
The Hawks then flew via Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane to Marillumbah in Queensland.
July 25, “Marillumbah. Up at 7:45. Had breakfast. Then we all met downtown for a tour of the area. We visited a lookout. Took pics of Mt. Waring (first sighted by Cook) then visited a sugar cane farm. Tasted some. Sort of sweet, pulpy. Then drove into the hills to the banana farms. Are on steep hillsides. Would be hell to pick. Talked to an owner who was packing them. Pack them green. Hard work. Tweed Valley very attractive, green. Sort of mountainous. Went to Kingscliff for lunch. One street beach town. Towns [here] remind me of [those] around 1900 in North America. Lots of sugar cane fields. Sugar refining nearby. Return to our billets to change for game…. We were up 3-0 at the half and eventually won 4-3…. Second half we could do no right…. Best forgotten.”
July 26, ”[At 10:00 a.m.,] we left Murrillumbah for the coast. Taken up to a lookout overlooking the whole area. Saw pelicans. Saw surfers on the Gold Coast. Went up to Surfer’s Paradise, tourist area … were taken to a bird sanctuary. Hundreds of parakeets, fantastic. Feed then bread and honey. Free, run by donations…. Went to Brisbane = to the trots. Were entertained there by the Ipswich people. Trots were great. Lost a buck on Melinda, but it was fun. Nice track, lots of people. Left after the 5th race for Ipswich, an industrial town about 20 miles west of Brisbane.”
July 27, “Play Ipswich today. Apparently a really good side. We defeated Ipswich 2-0 in front of about 400 – 500 people…. The two goal margin was deserved, I think. All the Brisbane officials were up to see the game so it made the victory that much sweeter.”
July 29, “Maryborough: Met by our billets (Alan Locke, son Jim, daughter Joan.) Taken to their home and given lunch. Alan took me around Maryborough, took a few pictures. M. has about 20,000 people. Alan has a telescope and showed how it works. Terrific hobby… went to a barbeque put on by the Hockey Assoc. where we met the mayor… went to an excellent barbeque, steak, burgers & beer. Dance afterward, bad band for us. I returned home with Alan and Joan and viewed the stars through the telescope. Was able to see Mars and take a photo of the moon. Fantastic.”
July 31, “Brisbane: We lost to the Queensland State side 1-0. We were very unfortunate not to win …. We had 11 short corners. The first half was entirely ours. Amazing actually. Got into the grog after the game. Returned home to dinner then to practice. To the pub then home to the sack. Awful lot of drinking lately.”
August 4, “Up at 6:30 and on our way to Canberra … From the airport we were taken on a drive around the city. First up Mount Aislie, then down to the Parliament Buildings via Anzac Parade. Were taken on a tour of the Parliament buildings. Really interesting. We saw the models of Canberra, totally planned city. A very attractive city. The architect is an American, Burly Griffin … [there is] a man-made lake around which the city is built.”
August 5, [After lunch at the Canberra Club] “then off to a tour of the City… viewed the Governor General’s home. Lovely rolling countryside. The forests are planted. Went up Black Mountain. From there to the War Memorial. Would take a week to go through it thoroughly. Big Lancaster in there. A real brute of an airplane. That evening we were entertained at a reception put on by the Minister of the Interior. Met Canadian High Commissioner Mr. Menzies. Fascinating man.”
August 12, “We leave Tasmania and Australia tomorrow for New Zealand. Perth and W.A. my favourite spot in Australia. Melbourne my second favourite city. M. a very British city. Very attractive, lots of parks, nice large downtown area…. They still have trams in Melbourne. Play havoc with the roads. Overall Australia seems around 20 years behind North America but moving up very quickly. It’s a beautiful country, huge terrific variation in topography, climate and vegetation. Desert in the west to rolling hills in the east, with more mountainous terrain in the southeast. Cities cling to the coast and are very spread out. We only got the out of city limits, country flavour in Queensland. Very quiet, slow life. Looking at the people, I get the impression that the climate can be very hard on them. They have a very outdoorsy look about them. Money is not plentiful in Australia, but the people live well. Much more easy-going than Canadians. They seem to enjoy life much more, i.e., sports, pubs. Our stay in Australia has been terrific. Everywhere we have stayed people have put themselves out to make us welcome. I only hope that we can return their hospitality some day.” [The Hawks record in Australia was: won 5, drew 2, lost 10, 26 goals for, 36 goals against.]
August 17, “Christchurch, New Zealand: Game at 3:00 p.m. We lost 6-2. The best side that I have ever played against. [At the Olympics in Montreal in 1976, New Zealand won the gold medal.] Terrific control, pinpoint passing…. I think we played as well as we could, and performed creditably. Sure points up our need of practice on the basic skills: hitting, stopping, passing. I missed a sure goal.”
In his memoir, Lance reflected on how this game made him think of how he needed to develop his skills.
“The game against Canterbury spoke to me on many levels. My description of the steady travel, by bus, train, car, and plane almost daily game play and regular wonderful receptions by our hosts, eventually tested my stamina and ability to focus in a really tough game. For me, I learned that I would have to be much fitter in order to compete with a high level of consistency in a full, daily, demanding tournament. I realized that my basic skills needed much refining and new skills needed to be developed. I also learned I had a solid work ethic, an ability to accept advice …and the willingness to do the work to improve to be able to compete at a higher standard…. This tour opportunity really opened my eyes as to how much more challenging this game was, how much I enjoyed to play and wanted to practice to become a much better player.”
August 18, “Up about 7:45… flight for Wellington. Saw a bit of the Alps on the way up. Wellington very impressive from the air. On arrival met by Canadian Embassy officials and were taken [to a building] where we had a team meeting. Discussed tactics. Hope the meeting brings a more fruitful rapport between our players and our leaders. City streets very narrow. Sharp contrast between the very old and very new. A terrific amount of construction going on, hi-rise type. Wellington reminds me in many ways of Hong Kong. Large harbour area, built on surrounding hillsides…. Went to a reception in the evening. On arriving home was able to watch the last half of the Maoris vs. Tonga (Fiji) Figi won. Was good fast rugby.”
August 27, “I really enjoyed New Zealand. Made a lot of lasting friendships. Met more girls than I had to date. Pip was no. 1. I’d like to see her again. I think I shall. I hope so. New Zealand is much like B.C. Very green, mountainous (South Is.). Never seen so many sheep in my life. As for the cities I enjoyed Auckland the most… built around a sort of isthmus + amongst a group of extinct volcanoes. It has a lovely harbour, marvellous for boating…. Well, we’re almost home now & all that will be left are fond memories.”
In his memoir Lance offered these reflections on the tour.
“I realized what an incredible tour this was. The preparation that had to have taken place was phenomenal. Throughout my journal I have written of travelling and then being met at our destination by welcoming billets. Toured around by these people. Banqueted and honoured after many, many games by the Clubs from Japan, Hong Kong, Southeast Asia, all throughout Australia and now New Zealand. We were treated very specially by leaders of many of these communities. We [were] hosted by Mayors, Australian Ministry officials, Canadian diplomats working abroad, hockey Clubs and their Associations and billets. I can’t imagine the stresses on [our leaders] in addition to the playing of the games. I also became keenly aware of how they set us up to say “Thank you.” We were provided with a personal gift to give to each billet. This was a 4.5.-inch tall totem pole with an engraved silver piece on the base that said Hawks ’69… At the beginning of every game the teams playing lined up and exchanged a special HAWKS 69 Australasian Tour triangular shaped banner. Our attire was: crested sports jacket, Club tie, grey slacks, black leather shoes… We looked smart, presented well, and I realized, showed respect to the people who welcomed and supported this Canadian Field Hockey team. I am so pleased that I took the time to write daily, for memory only works to a degree. And, I am incredibly grateful at having been given the opportunity to participate in this Hawks ’69 Tour.”
Team members dressed in their uniform, likely somewhere overlooking Christchurch, New Zealand, photo taken by Lance Carey. August is wintertime in New Zealand.
Richmond Heritage Trivia Card produced by the Richmond Heritage Commission. This card was distributed to people at the 2025 Family Day event celebrating Heritage Week and features the 1946 Richmond High School Grass/Field Hockey team.
The motivation to try and uncover the Where, the When, the Ebb, the Flow of the development of this wonderful, lifetime sport, field hockey, rose to the fore from the deep gratitude I have for being able to be so involved for most of my life. I have had an amazing playing career, a wonderful teaching career, a lifetime joy of reading widely, lots of personal support and an opportunity to give back over the past half-century as a player, coach, umpire, administrator, builder and now a writer involved with the development of field hockey for men, women, boys, girls living in Richmond, B.C. Now, I am a Member and Director of the Friends of The Richmond Archives. The records consulted at the City of Richmond Archives to research and write this article included: school annuals/yearbooks, school newsletters, oral history recordings, newspapers, my personal Memoir and papers and papers related to the development of the Richmond Field Hockey Club.
As I try and reveal the beginnings of grass/field hockey in Richmond I am going to refer to the game as either ‘grass hockey’ or ‘field hockey’. Early references also describe the game as ‘ground hockey’. We live in Canada, where the word ‘hockey’ is associated immediately with ‘ice hockey,’ but for purposes here the wording will be grass hockey or field hockey.
This article will cover how field hockey grew from Richmond High School’s inter-school sport program and how it developed overtime, among many factors, in response to war, changes within the school system, formation of the Richmond Field Hockey Club and COVID-19.
The article is not a thorough history but it has been an eyeopener for me. My hope is, it helps our community realize that the game of Field Hockey has been a positive part of Richmond’s School and Community life for a long time and it is in an Ebb awaiting a re-start, a Flow of SOMETHING GOOD.
Thank you,
Lance Carey
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Genealogical research often takes you to unexpected places. The twists and turns on the road to discovery are numerous and family historians know this well. So I experienced during my search for LAM Ching Ling, CHEW Gore and their family. They are, of course, synonymous in Richmond’s written record with Hong Wo & Company General Merchants and were the subjects of the first story in this series about the early Chinese Canadian settlers of Richmond. https://richmondarchives.ca/2025/11/06/richmonds-early-chinese-canadian-settlers-lam-ching-ling-and-chew-gore/
LAM family collectionand City of Richmond Archives #2026 5
My close look into their lives began in mid-2024, and uncovered facts previously unknown or forgotten. We now have the dates of their first arrival in Canada, the ships on which they sailed, the addresses of the homes in which they lived, the names and birthdates of the children–all details that add to our knowledge of their history.
Certain discoveries I made along the way however confused the picture. First, while reviewing LAM Ching Ling’s biographical file that is held within the City of Richmond Archives, I came across the 2013 obituary of Samuel Milton LAM. The statement that he was born in Steveston part of the Hong Wo Lam Family made me pause. I knew of Mary, George, Jessie and Dora, and later learned of Fannie and John, all children of LAM Ching Ling and CHEW Gore, but Samuel wasn’t, as far as I could tell, part of this family group. What was going on here?
More puzzle pieces appeared. In recent years, thousands of records related to Chinese immigration to Canada were released by Library and Archives Canada and made available to the public. Chinese Canadian historians – family and professionals alike – rejoiced, despite the dark origins of these records.
For example, under section 18 of the Chinese Immigration Act, 1923, the Canadian government created and maintained a list of Chinese who registered as native born. The LAM Ching Ling children, all born in Steveston, B.C., were included in this list, and for each a Chinese Immigration C.I. 44 certificate was created indicating their status. Also registered was Miss Constance LAMB, born on 12 November 1904, in Steveston, B. C., and on her certificate her parents were identified as LIM Saw and LAUNG Shee.
Was Miss Constance LAMB actually Constance LAM? The LIM and LAM surnames share the same Chinese character. Interesting. Here we had children who were born in the same town, around the same time early in the twentieth century, and were similar in name. I wondered, was there a connection to be made here?
Chinese Immigration C.I.9 travel documents were also the source of valuable information. Any Chinese person travelling outside of Canada, who had an intention to return, were required to apply for these papers. In September 1923, Constance (Connie) prepared for a trip to Hong Kong and on her document was the notation she was
personally known to LAM Ling of Steveston to whom I would refer you for correctness of statements herein made.
I thought, was this the LAM Ching Ling, proprietor of the Hong Wo & Co. store?
Other records revealed that Connie had an older sister, Nellie Lim. Nellie’s C.I.9 certificate from 1932 stated that she was born in Canada and her current place of residence was Steveston, care of the Hong Wo Store! The evidence was mounting. I was now confident in thinking that a link of some kind existed between these two families.
A search into the records of Constance and Nellie’s father, LIM Saw, revealed more clues. I learned that he entered Canada in 1894 under the name LUM Won Saw and that he was known most often in later life as LAM Tuck Yew. Admitted as a labourer, he eventually gained merchant status while operating a general store, but which one? How many general stores were Chinese operated in Richmond during the 1920s? The Hong Wo & Co. store was the best known and had reportedly been in existence since 1895.
The General Register of Chinese Immigration indicated that LIM Saw brought his wife LAUNG Shee over from China in July 1912. From a variety of documents I examined, I concluded that together they had at least ten children, including their eldest son, Samuel Milton, born in 1919 at
Lulu Island (No.3 Road, near London, B.C.)
the man whose obituary I found in LAM Ching Ling’s biographical file!
LAM Ching Ling died in 1939 and in his death notice it was mentioned that among his survivors there was a brother living in Steveston. The brother’s name however was not given. LIM Saw died in 1943. His obituary appeared in the newspapers of the day in September 1943, and he is identified as Tuck Yew LAM,
the proprietor of Hong Wo and Co., Steveston.
Vancouver Daily Province, Tuesday, October 5, 1943 page 5.
Finally, all the bits and pieces had come together. These two men were brothers, and LIM Saw had succeeded LAM Ching Ling in the running of a business. The success of the Hong Wo & Co. general merchant store and farming operation stemmed from the hard work of two families rather than just one!
All this investigative work had taken over a year to complete. I understood the basic connection between the LAM Ching Ling and LAM Tuck Yew families but of course many details were still unknown. I continued my search and in March 2025 and again in August I posted comments about my research in the Facebook page of the Genealogy for Asian Canadians group.https://www.facebook.com/groups/1923544271050858 I was puzzled about apparent disconnects in names within the LAM Ching Ling family and needed help in translation, and various members made comments and suggestions. The responses were much appreciated. What I hadn’t noticed until a few months later was a reply that read in part:
My Grandfather was the brother of Lam Ching Ling. He also helped run the Hong Wo store and farm in Steveston. His name was LAM Tuck Yew.
Good fortune had arrived! A LAM Tuck Yew family member had reached out and could help put the pieces of the Hong Wo & Co. store story I had collected, into their proper place.
So, since November 2025 I have met with Maisie LAM several times to hear her talk about her side of the “Hong Wo family.” Maisie is the daughter of Samuel Milton, granddaughter of LIM Saw, and grandniece of LAM Ching Ling. She expressed surprise that so much material about the LAM Ching Ling family was stored at the City of Richmond Archives and that people were interested in learning about the life and contributions of the LIM Saw family line. Some of the details were even new to her. Thanks to Maisie and her extended family, our knowledge of her grandparents LAM Tuck Yew and LEUNG Yuet Wah, and of their important contribution to the Hong Wo & Co. business, is more complete than ever.
Photograph believed to be of LAM Tuck Yew, taken circa 1905 by R.H. Trueman in Steveston. Steves Family Collection, City of Richmond Archives photograph #2024 9 29
Details about LAM Tuck Yew’s early life in British Columbia, however, are scarce. Seven years after his landing in Victoria, he is recorded as living with LAM Ching Ling and family in the 1901 Census of Canada.
LAM Ching Ling, his wife and their two elder daughters are listed on the first four lines of this excerpt from the census record, while LAM Tuck Yew, recorded as LIM Saw, at the bottom, is described as a lodger rather than a brother. They’re residing in some household in Richmond, B.C., possibly within quarters situated along the Steveston waterfront, amongst many other Chinese people. It may have been the living space above the Hong Wo store – Maisie believes the building was built by LAM Tuck Yew himself, having the skills of a carpenter – and the two brothers may have already been in partnership in the operation of their retail and farming business.
LAM Tuck Yew travelled back to China in 1911 or thereabouts, and returned in the summer of 1912 with his wife, LEUNG Yuet Wah, and according to the General Register of Chinese Immigration records, they were accompanied by a son, Gong Yim, eleven; and two daughters, nine-year-old Nellie and five-year-old Connie. Neither wife nor children were required to pay the $500 head tax as they were family of a Chinese man who had merchant status.
LEUNG Yuet Wah, LAM family collection and City of Richmond Archives photograph #2026 39 2
Gong Yim is absent from the LAM family history records, and Maisie is unsure if he was a son of LAM Tuck Yew and LEUNG Yuet Wah. Perhaps he was LAM Tuck Yew’s nephew or younger brother, or just another member of the LAM clan, and he may simply have gone his own way once he landed, losing contact with the family as the years passed. Gong Yim worked as a clerk, travelled back to China in 1921, and was last known to be living in Steveston in 1924, working as a farmer.
Nellie and Connie were recorded in the General Register of Chinese Immigration as Yong Luig and Hung Jiu. Most people registered in these ledgers were arriving as new immigrants, yet both Nellie and Connie later claimed to have been born in Canada. This was important as Chinese who were native born were permitted to freely travel outside of Canada without any time restrictions. Immigrants from China who settled in Canada could not and risked being denied re-entry if they stayed outside the country beyond the two-year time limit. Extensions to four years were sometimes permitted in times of war.
Life started anew for the family in Steveston, a place that certainly must have felt very alien from their home of Sun Chan village, Sun Woy (Xinhui) county, Kwangtung (Guangdong) province in southern China. The family expanded quickly nevertheless, with the births of May 1912, Rose 1913, Edith 1915, and Alice 1917, followed by Samuel Milton in 1919, taking place in the living quarters above the family store.
LEUNG Yuet Wah and children, circa 1917. LAM family collection
Business of the Hong Wo & Co. store and the Richmond Gardens operation also appeared to be prospering. Growing and selling cucumbers to the companies who used them to make dill pickles was well under way.
Order Book, Hong Wo & Co. Richmond Gardens 1919, City of Richmond Archives accession #2019 60 11
The business shares were divided along a five-ninths to four-ninths line, with the larger portion going to elder brother LAM Ching Ling, who reportedly established the business circa 1895. While LIM Saw may have been the junior partner in the operation, he was more than just a farmer and general store merchant. He practiced Chinese medicine and signs displayed within the store premises advertised the services and products he offered.
LAM family collection
This glass sign announced that LAM Tuck Yew (first three characters, second column from right), was an “expert physician – external medicine/surgery – who trained under a Mr. LI Chung, covering everything from skin diseases and venereal diseases to bone-setting and pediatric ailments.
The metal sign is a companion signboard listing specific medicines and products sold at the clinic: pills, plasters, and powders for pain relief, itchiness, cuts and abscesses. Harold Steves has collected various artefacts from the Hong Wo & Co. store, including bottles, jars, and small tins. Many have labels on which are written Chinese characters, (awaiting translation!). Perhaps some of them held the medicines used by LAM Tuck Yew?
LAM family collectionand City of Richmond Archives accession #2026 5
As for any concern about adapting to life in Canada, Nellie appeared to have had little difficulty. She reportedly completed her high school education locally, but whether it was in Richmond or Vancouver has not yet been confirmed.
LAM family collection
Although work at the store and on the farm was probably life’s major focus, LAM Tuck Yew and LEUNG Yuet Wah came to know other members of the Chinese community living in the region, including other LAM families working in the farming industry. An important connection was made with THOM Tong Chue, also known as T.C. Thom, a missionary working in New Westminster, and one of the earliest Chinese Methodist ministers serving Chinese Canadians in British Columbia. He assisted the family in reporting Connie’s birth to the District Registrar of Births, Deaths, and Marriages. A friendship also developed with WONG Kung Lai, who in 1913, founded Modernize Tailors on Pender Street in Vancouver’s Chinatown.
In early October 1919, the family, with the exception of Connie, returned to China, moving first to a home in Canton (Gwang2 zau1 or Guangzhou) before settling in Hong Kong. LAM Tuck Yew then married for the second time. This was still a common practice amongst traditional Chinese men, to have one legal wife and one or more concubines. The name of this woman has been lost to the family, and much of her time may have been spent caring for LAM Tuck Yew’s grandmother. Three children were born from this relationship, including daughter Bo Kam, in August 1921.
To LEUNG Yuet Wah, a son, Paul, was born in December 1921, but LAM Tuck Yew was absent for this occasion, for he had returned to Steveston the preceding August. It’s likely he did so before his two-year certificate of leave expired. He did travel back to Hong Kong for another two-year period though, from February 1927 to January 1929. Another son, Peter, was born in January 1928. The last son, Tommy, according to Maisie’s father Samuel Milton, died in a childhood drowning accident back in Canada.
The LAM family circa 1928: back row, l. to r.: Rose, Nellie, Mae; middle row, l. to r.: Alice, LEUNG Yuet Wah, Peter, Margaret, LAM Tuck Yew, Edith; front row, l. to r.: Paul, Samuel Milton. LAM family collectionand City of Richmond Archives photograph #2026 39 3
For the next six years, LAM Tuck Yew lived apart from his family. Connie, after a brief stay in Hong Kong, had left Canada for the United States in December 1925. She moved to New York, then pursued studies in Sociology at the Woman’s College of the University of North Carolina. After graduation in 1933, she was awarded a fellowship at the New York School of Social Work. In 1936 she returned to China, living and working in Hong Kong, assisting refugees during the war.
Back in Steveston, LAM Tuck Yew continued working alongside his brother LAM Ching Ling (also known as LAM Duck Hui). The Hong Wo & Co. store and Richmond Gardens were doing a profitable business.
On the farm, LAM Tuck Yew (right) with his son-in-law, Albert Chan. LAM family collectionand City of Richmond Archives photograph #2026 5 8
While work undoubtedly occupied most of his time, LAM Tuck Yew still involved himself in local LAM/LIM clan affairs. He joined the Lim Sai Hor Association, which was based in Vancouver’s Chinatown, but originally established in Victoria in 1908. The current association, the LIM Sai Hor Kow Mock Benevolent Association, has occupied the same building at 531 Carrall Street since 1946.
In December 1935, Samuel Milton, age 16, returned to Canada. Whether he was called back by his father or did so on his own accord, Maisie and her family do not know.
Milton, as he preferred to be called, soon began attending class at Vancouver Technical Secondary School, travelling there by the interurban tram from Steveston. His command of the English language was good enough to enable him to enter straight into the tenth grade. Subjects he enjoyed were many, including English, math, science, literature, history, philosophy and religion. This interest in obtaining a good education reflected his father’s similar outlook, and this road was travelled by several other of LAM Tuck Yew’s children.
Time on the weekends for Milton was often spent helping at the Hong Wo store and farm operations.
Milton (right) with Victor Lam. LAM family collection and City of Richmond Archives photograph #2026 5 9
From another LAM clan family friend, he learned to drive a tractor and a truck, eventually delivering groceries to customers in New Westminster, North Vancouver and Vancouver. Perhaps this was all viewed as preparation for his eventual inheritance of a share in the family business.
Milton learned to drive a tractor from a family friend. LAM family collectionand City of Richmond Archives photograph #2026 5 3
On 20 August 1939, LAM Ching Ling died. His death was noted in the Vancouver press, who remembered him as a prominent merchant of Steveston. LAM Tuck Yew may have then become the senior member of the Hong Wo store staff, but the business arrangements between his family and his brother’s heirs remained unchanged.
Maisie and her family are unaware if LAM Tuck Yew ever returned to Hong Kong and China after 1929. His wife, LEUNG Yuet Wah, had been living there since 1919, and her Canadian immigration certificate of leave had expired in 1923, making her ineligible for automatic re-entry into Canada.
The children were all growing into adulthood and striking out on their own.
Nellie had attended Hackett Medical College in Canton, then did post-graduate studies at the New York Columbia Medical School for one year in 1930. After working at several postings in the United States, she returned to China in January 1933 to serve as a professor of gynecology, obstetrics, and pediatrics at the Kwang Ha Medical College in Canton. Nellie later engaged in private practice in Nanking before settling in Hong Kong.
Mae trained to become a nurse and then worked in real estate after her return to Canada in 1953.
In Hong Kong, Rose, also a nurse, befriended John Davis, a British police officer who led intelligence forces in Japanese-occupied Malaya in 1943. She had spent time there in the late 1930s.
Edith helped her husband operate a ferry service in Hong Kong after the war and then worked as a seamstress in Vancouver.
Alice graduated with a Master of Arts degree in psychology from New York’s Columbia University in 1950. After practicing at a private school for boys in the U.S. she returned to Vancouver for a career in the real estate industry (Family lore also has her involved in some international intrigue, perhaps a subject for a future post!)
Margaret taught music after immigrating to San Francisco.
Paul transferred from school in Hong Kong to UBC and graduated in commerce circa 1946. At some point, he provided bookkeeping help at the Hong Wo & Co. business, tracking sales and orders. He proceeded to Temple University in Philadelphia for graduate studies in business administration and finished his PhD course work at New York University. One of his classmates at Temple was David Lam, who went on to experience great success in business and became the 25th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia. By the mid-1950s, Paul had established his import-export business, Continental Trading Enterprises Ltd. in Vancouver’s Chinatown. He returned to Canada permanently in 1957.
Peter went to McGill University in Montreal in the early 1950s and graduated with a Civil Engineering degree. Some of his early employment included work on dam projects in Quebec and then in B.C. with Alcan and B.C. Hydro.
LAM Tuck Yew did not live to see how his children born after Nellie and Connie prospered later in life. He surely would have been pleased to know about the schools they attended, the training they received and the degrees they earned. He died on 27 September 1943 in Steveston.
LAM Tuck Yew, circa 1940. LAM family collection and City of Richmond Archives photograph #2026 39 1
At the time of his death, his son Milton was the only immediate family member who was living in Canada. Milton had enrolled in engineering at UBC circa 1941, along with Jack and Bill Wong, whose father was operating Modernize Tailors in Chinatown. Maisie remembers her father recalling the times he and the brothers commuted to school together and how he once drove them all to UBC in a farm vehicle. Their mathematics professor was very much amused at the sight. The Wong brothers graduated circa 1946/47. Their degrees however essentially proved worthless, for a Chinese person could not legally enter the engineering profession in BC during these years. To obtain a license required being eligible to vote in the provincial election, which the Chinese were denied until after 1947.
Upon LAM Tuck Yew’s death, Alice volunteered to lead the family in fulfilling their responsibility in the running of the Hong Wo & Co. store and Richmond Gardens. Milton however left his studies at UBC to take on this role.
The farm greenhouse operations. LAM family collectionand City of Richmond Archives photograph #2026 5 15This cheque, dated 13 July 1945, is signed by two people, including Milton Lam. Milton took on an active role in managing the Hong Wo & Co. business. City of Richmond Archives photograph #2026 12
He continued to do so until he married in 1948, at age 28. Milton had met LAU Mo Ying at a party hosted by friends he had made during one of his trips to Hong Kong to visit his mother.
Milton, Mo Ying and LEUNG Yuet Wah in Hong Kong, circa 1948. LAM family collection and City of Richmond Archives photograph #2026 39 7
They returned to Canada soon after and LAU Mo Ying was introduced to life on the farm in Steveston.
Mo Ying (Maureen) working on the farm. LAM family collectionand City of Richmond Archives photograph #2026 5 7
The transition to this new way of living proved to be a challenge however, and so, Milton retired from the Hong Wo & Co. and Richmond Gardens business. In early 1950, the LIM Saw (LAM Tuck Yew) family shares were sold to the LAM Ching Ling family, and Milton’s cousins George, Mary and Jessie Lam took over the operations of the firm.
Agreement document, 1950. LAM family collectionand City of Richmond Archives photograph #2026 5
The doors of the Hong Wo & Co. store closed permanently in 1971, and the building sat vacant for another six years. Demolition occurred in 1977.
Final days of the Hong Wo & Co. store. LAM family collectionand City of Richmond Archives photograph #2026 5 20
Milton had sponsored his mother’s application for immigration to Canada and approval was granted by the Canadian government in November 1949. LEUNG Yuet Wah however passed away in 1950 in Hong Kong. She had lived a full life there, strongly connected to a wide variety of people including those in business and government, who accorded her great respect.
Milton and Mo Ying, who had adopted Maureen as her name, began raising their family. By the early 1960s there were five children: Eunice, Nathan, Michael, Brian, and Maisie. Maureen found employment as a nurse’s aide at Vancouver General Hospital and volunteered her time playing piano at the Christ Church of China in Chinatown and then the Vancouver Chinese Pentecostal Church.
After leaving the Hong Wo & Co. store, Milton worked at the Post Office sorting mail. He later began training as a social worker, taking some classes at UBC and working for a variety of federal, provincial, and local agencies around the province. His job was eventually centred in Vancouver’s Chinatown and Downtown Eastside (often referred to as Skid Road during Milton’s time working there) where he assisted many elderly Chinese with pension and social services applications and language translation services. He was well suited to this work, as Milton was an intelligent, honest, kind, generous and compassionate man.
Maureen died in 1999, and Milton passed away in 2013.
Today, the family of LAM Tuck Yew and LEUNG Yuet Wah has grown to its sixth generation. The key role their elders played in this important chapter of Richmond’s history was remarkable, but knowledge of these events has mostly been confined to LAM family conversations and memories. With Maisie and her brother Michael‘s great help however, the connection between the LAM Ching Ling and LAM Tuck Yew families and their partnership during the first half of the twentieth century have now been revealed.
LAM family gathering circa 1973, l. to r.: Josephine, Eunice, Mary, Pamela Wong, Mae and Jessie.LAM family collection and City of Richmond Archives photograph #2026 5 5
The LAM family records, photographs and artefacts they have donated to the City of Richmond Archives have been received with much gratitude and these will soon be available for research purposes. And though it has been exciting to receive so much new information about the Hong Wo & Co. store, there is more to learn and tell. The City of Richmond Archives looks forward to working with the extended LAM families in this endeavour.
The next instalment in this series of stories about the early Chinese Canadians settlers in Richmond will focus on YUEN Jae Tong and his family. The land they farmed was located at Jacombs Road and Bridgeport Road, the site of present-day Richmond IKEA.
After the end of the Second World War Richmond returned to a semblance of normal life. The Air Raid Precautions Brigades were disbanded, wartime activities were ended and the prospect of further wartime Civil Defence measures seemed unlikely. Then, in September 1949, a routine American Air Force Weather Service flight from Japan to Alaska picked up traces of radioactive debris in its filters, indicating that a nuclear explosion had taken place in the Soviet Union and that the Communist Bloc had tested an atomic weapon. The ensuing build-up of nuclear weapons and fear of a potential “atomic Pearl Harbor” led to the next outbreak of Civil Defense action in Richmond and in the rest of Canada.
Newspaper articles like this front page of the March 17, 1953 Vancouver Province did little to ease concerns about the threat of nuclear war.
By 1951 Ottawa had begun the process of planning for the possibility of a nuclear attack and had declared that Vancouver, New Westminster, North and West Vancouver, Burnaby and Richmond were a “Target Area” for the purpose of Civil Defense. Committees and sub-committees were organized, and a chain of command was set up. At the request of the authorities, maps were prepared by local officials showing details such as population density (day and night), transportation and communications, location of hospitals (including number of beds), schools (number of students and staff), police and fire stations, Government buildings and bridges.
The intent of the planning was to ensure the survival of as many people as possible after an atomic strike. The destruction and casualties resulting from a direct strike on Vancouver would have been massive, but it was felt that with sufficient warning and training of the civilian population, injuries, deaths and sickness from radiation could be halved.
This full-page article by reporter Bill Ryan published in the August 9, 1951 issue of the Vancouver Sun speculates on the effects of an Atom Bomb attack on Vancouver.
Newspaper articles about Civil Defense became common, giving instructions on ways to survive an “Atom Attack.” By early 1953, Civil Defense courses were offered, first a nine-week course for civilians who volunteered to become instructors and then basic general courses for the public. The federal Government sent out a convoy of tractor-trailers with an exposition on civil defense which travelled across the country, arriving at the Seaforth Armouries in late October, 1953. The displays, on loan from the USA, offered the latest information on national readiness and atomic warfare. It was expected that approximately 10% of the population would sign up for civil defense duties and many did.
This article appeared in the May 9, 1951 issue of the Richmond Review, repeating instructions from a U.S. Government publication.
In 1953, the four old A.R.P. sirens mounted at the four fire halls were the only warning devices in Richmond. At the request of the Coordinator of Civil Defense, the Richmond Superintendent of Public works produced a map showing the requirements for a system of sirens to alert all residents of Richmond. The network of sirens used 17 of the same type of units presently mounted at the fire halls, 5 horsepower electric sirens with an audible area of one mile radius. The four existing sirens could be used, but three of them would be moved for better coverage. Four air horns were to be provided for use by the fire departments. The total cost of the installed network was expected to be $12,446.72, divided equally by the Federal, Provincial and Municipal Governments, with the Federal Government supplying the sirens free of charge. New installations were to be mounted on wooden poles, supplied with three phase power, and telephone connections to allow their operation. either locally or from a control centre in Vancouver. Each siren had two signals, an undulating wail (indicating a Red Alert) and a continuous siren (indicating All Clear.) This “wish list” of siren placement never took place and it took until the 1960s for Richmond’s warning system to reach its final configuration.
Notice of the civil defense exercise in the June 17, 1953 Richmond Review. Testing of the warning system evolved into silent tests to check electrical and telephone connections, but occasional glitches caused sirens to sound and caused confusion and alarm around the community.
As more attack warning sirens were installed, they were located in a pattern to accomplish maximum coverage of the municipality. Relocation of sirens, usually because of a planned use of the siren’s original location or for upgrading, could take place provided the relocation was not much more than 100 yards away from the original location.
This siren located on Garden City Road just south of Lansdowne was a replacement for one that was on the roof of the Lansdowne Racetrack clubhouse. City of Richmond Archives photograph 1988 123 578.
By 1955, Richmond had seven air raid sirens installed. They were erected at the River Road pumphouse in Hamilton, on Tucker Avenue near No.1 Road in Terra Nova, at River Road near Duck Island and the cedar mill, the Steveston Firehall, the Municipal Hall, Mitchell School and near the airport at Lancaster Crescent. These sirens were all old style A.R.P. units, leftover from the Second World War and, over the years, most would be removed from civil defense service, replaced by more modern models in nearby locations, although some remained active for local use by the firehalls. In 1957 the siren at the Municipal Hall was moved to the top of the hose tower at the Brighouse Firehall only to be supplanted by a newer unit near the intersection of Moffatt Road and Granville on the Richmond High School grounds in 1962.
This pole-mounted siren at Richmond High School replaced one at the Municipal Hall area. Photographs of Richmond’s air raid sirens are surprisingly hard to find. Installations on or near school grounds seemed to be common with examples like this one, and others at Lord Byng School and Hugh Boyd School. City of Richmond Archives photograph.
A new siren north of Lord Byng School in Steveston took over for the one at the fire hall around 1960. A siren proposed for the intersection of Ferndale and Garden City in 1958 was installed on the roof of the Lansdowne Clubhouse and was later replaced by a modern unit on the Garden City lands. Another new siren proposed for the River Road-Shell Road intersection was installed on the roof of the Dr. Ballard’s dog food plant near River Road and No. 5 Road and was later replaced by a pole-mounted unit.
This siren at Lord Byng School, shown here in 1977, was mounted on a steel pole with a maintenance platform. It replaced the Steveston Fire Hall’s siren for Civil Defence alerts. City of Richmond Archives photograph 1978 26 34.
As sirens were added through the 1960s, coverage of the municipality improved, although there were none east of No. 5 Road until Hamilton. Richmond ended up with a total of 15 sirens in the civil defense system.
This annotated map shows the approximate locations of air raid warning sirens in Richmond. Installed from the 1950s through the 1960s, they gave warning to the most populated areas of the Municipality. City of Richmond Archives map 1987 32 10.
Information on surviving an attack continued to be provided by all levels of government throughout the 1960s. A series of free booklets, “Blueprint for Survival,” were published by the federal government and included titles such as “Fallout on the Farm,” “11 Steps to Survival,” “Survival in Likely Target Areas” and “Your Basement Fallout Shelter” were provided free from local Civil Defense authorities.
A page from the “Blueprint for Survival” booklet No. Four, sets out the eleven steps to survive a nuclear attack. City of Richmond Archives reference files.
At Richmond Municipal Hall plans were drawn up for the modification of a part of the outside of the west side of the hall to create a blast/fallout shelter using sheets of plywood and sandbags. Several building permits were issued to local residents who wanted to build similar types of shelters. Basement shelters were unrealistic in Richmond with its high water tables, so the standard of three feet of packed earth or two feet of concrete were considered sufficient for protection against radiation in an above ground shelter.
Illustrations in “11 Steps to Survival” show the difference between an air burst and a ground burst attack. City of Richmond Archives reference files.
The Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962 saw the world teetering on the edge of nuclear war and raised tensions to their highest point during the Cold War, but as time passed and the threat of mutually assured destruction created a stalemate between the nuclear powers, attitudes began to change and by the mid 1970s local officials were questioning the need for warning sirens in the community.
This clipping from the October 19, 1961 Richmond Review gives details on the modifications made to provide a bomb shelter at the Municipal Hall.
In response, Major W.W. Baldwin of CFB Chilliwack stated, “The current federal government justification on this matter is that, at present, these sirens are the only available warning system that can alert the greatest number of citizens in time to take action that will allow maximum survival or limit the effects of a surprise attack, be it nuclear or conventional in nature.” “If we wish to close our eyes to the possibility of another war then the possibility of a nuclear accident or major industrial accident such as the accidental leakage of toxic substances into the atmosphere should be considered.”
With the end of the Cold war in the early 1990s, a warning system based on 1950s technology, with all of the associated glitches and false alarms, was deemed to be no longer necessary. Between 1994 and 1996 the Department of National Defence removed all the sirens in Canada and destroyed most of them.
This siren at Victoria Park in North Vancouver is one of the few remaining Cold War era sirens. It was preserved as a Municipal Heritage site. Google Maps image.
Today, nearly everyone carries a warning system in their pocket, allowing notifications to reach a much wider part of the population. Smart phones, even with their associated glitches and false alarms, have taken the place of yesterday’s pole-mounted warning sirens.
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