'45 Yet Again

On July 20, 1945, A.J.T. Taylor died in New York at the age of 57. Why does that matter to Vancouverites? Because Alfred James Towle Taylor was born August 4, 1887 in Victoria. Taylor founded Taylor Engineering in 1912, which built large projects around the province. In fact, Taylor promoted the development of British Properties and the Lions Gate Bridge.

During World War II, Alfred Taylor worked for the British ministry of aircraft production in London. In West Vancouver, there is a Taylor Way named for A.J.T.

On August 1, UBC's first dean of women, Mary Louise Bollert, died in Vancouver at the age of 61. Bollert was born in Guelph, Ontario in 1884. She got her BA in 1906 from the University of Toronto and her MA in 1908 from Columbia University.

Mary was director of women's education and social welfare programs in Toronto then, from 1914 to 1921, she was dean of women at Regina College. She left Saskatchewan to become the first dean of women. Officially, she was an 'advisor' to the women students and was paid a lot less than male deans.

Bollert was a founder of the B.C. Teachers' Foundation. She was also a delegate to many international women's conferences and one of 12 deans of women to be invited to tour Japan in 1934. From 1929 to 1930, Mary Louise was president of the Confederation of University Women. If you are interested in learning more, read It's Up to You: Women at UBC in the early years by Lee Stewart.

On August 4, 1945, froth on beer glasses served at B.C. beer parlours was limited - by law - to half an inch.

On August 6, the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. The next day, a headline in the Province read CITY MAN SAYS HE DISCOVERED ATOMIC POWER."Convinced," the paper reported, “that an invention of his that ‘draws power out of the air’ is basically the same as the atomic bomb, Louis P. Isaacs, 1184 Nelson street, said today he had written a letter to His Majesty the King appealing for protection of his inventor’s rights. Mr. Isaacs has driven himself on a bicycle chassis powered by a device which, he says, harnesses electricity from the air; he claims to have developed heat with it and to have lit lamps . . ."

August 9, 1945, another atomic bomb was dropped. This time on Nagaski, Japan. On the 14th, Japan surrendered, World War II was over and the citizens of Vancouver - and the rest of the world - celebrated.

I want to apologize for not posting Wednesday and Friday last week. Sometimes, life's hassles get in the way and I was dealing with some family stuff.

I want to thank the History of Metropolitan Vancouver website for the above information.

I hope you find the beauty around you.