Enjoying 1945

On August 22, 1945, locomotive #374 arrived in Vancouver on its last run. The locomotive pulled the first passenger train to enter Vancouver in 1887. It was retired and placed on display in Kitislano. Now I am pretty sure it is on display at Yaletown where the CPR train yards used to be.

September 1, 1945 was the day that Yvonne DeCarlo celebrated her birthday at the Hotel Vancouver's Panorama Roof. As you may remember, DeCarlo was born in Vancouver and here is the entry I wrote on our homegrown Munster.

On September 5, Igor Gouzenko - a cipher clerk - walked out of the Soviet embassy in Ottawa. He claimed that there was a Soviet spy ring in Canada many feel this was the start of the cold war.

On September 8, 1945, Henry Reifel died at the age of 76. I wrote all about Reifel in this entry from earlier this year.

A news report from Portland, Oregon stated that "Following consultations with Dr. Gerald Wendt, noted scientist, the Pacific Northwest Trade Association . . . approved appointment of a committee to collaborate with its fisheries committee in consulting with University of Washington scientists and others on the advisability of utilization of the atomic bomb to blast out Ripple Rock, navigation hazard on Canada’s route to Alaska."

Fortunately, wiser heads prevailed and conventional explosives were used for this job.

On September 14, three VFD firefighters were killed battling a blaze in the McMaster Building on Homer Street.

It was a sad day on October 28, 1945. That was the day that labour contractor and civil rights activist, Tomekichi Homma died in Slocan, BC. Homma was born June 6, 1865 in Onigoshi-mura, Chiba-ken, Japan. At the age of 18, Homma left his country and came to Canada, settling in nearby Steveston. He fished the Fraser River from 1892. From 1897 to 1899, Homma was chairman of the Japanese Fisherman's Benevolent Society

"This group," says the Steveston Museum, "built the first hospital in Steveston to deal with outbreaks of typhoid amongst the fishermen living in crowded, unsanitary housing along the waterfront." In May 1899, with Tadaichi Nagao, Homma began contracting laborers to the CPR. "Between 1900 and 1902,”the Museum continues, "he fought for voting rights for Japanese-Canadians, winning in the Canadian Supreme Court but losing in the British Privy Council. He died in an internment camp in Slocan in 1945 . . ."

Homma started the first Japanese newspaper in Vancouver and a school in Richmond is named after him. He was 80 years old when he died.

Thanks goes to the History of Metropolitan website for the above information. Friday, I will tell you more. You know, I thought one more entry would finish relating this year to you but it seems a lot happened in 1945.

I hope you find the beauty around you.