BC Heritage Fairs

The 2010 British Columbia Provincial Heritage Fair was held in Barkerville/Wells from June 30th to July 4th. Barkerville is a historic site like no other. Unlike many gold rush towns from this era - which have long disappeared - Barkerville remains a thriving place, rich in history and full of life. The following is a series of daily reports written by BC Provincial Fair Alumni, Evan Fryer.

Day 1 - A Day of Celebration

By Evan Fryer

As the students rose in the early hours of the morning, the halls of the Community School in Wells, BC were full of hubbub and excitement. The student delegates were eager to share their history projects with the many honourable dignitaries, the historic town of Barkerville and each other.

The British Columbia Provincial Heritage Fair is truly a remarkable event. Sixty students from across the province have travelled from all aspects of life, religion and culture to participate in this five-day history camp. The students and their adult chaperones are so privileged to be in Barkerville, Wells and Quesnel for the 3rd Annual Provincial Heritage Fair. Not only do they have the opportunity to indulge in the rich local history of the area but they have the opportunity to discover new things about themselves as they carve their own journey and make their own personal history.

After a long previous day of flights, waiting at airports and sitting on the bus, students were already beginning to make new friends and learn new things. For some, this was their first time flying on an airplane. Jorez from the Northwest Region, “…loved the feeling of being in the air and the feeling of the turbulence for the first time.” Despite their geographical locations, the students were able to unite as one; a cohesive group sharing the same passion for Canadian History. Many long hours have been spent researching and putting together the projects that landed each of the students a spot at this exhibition gala.

As the busses pulled up to Barkerville this morning, you could sense the euphoria in the air. Students were proudly sporting their elaborate costumes and heritage fair t-shirts as they entered the main gates to this 19th century town. You could hear the sound of the blacksmith in his shop and the wheels of the horse-drawn carriage as the students assembled their projects in three of the historic buildings pertinent to that time period. Selena from the Northwest Region wanted nothing more than to “…share her project with the locals and engage in meaningful conversation about Canadian History.”

The Opening Ceremonies was a highlight of the morning as the students, led by piper Judy Campbell, who is also the CEO of Barkervile Historic Town, marched in a procession down the main street followed by many invited guests and members of the public. Everyone’s attention turned to the students as they waved their Canadian Flags to celebrate our nation’s birthday while walking in the footsteps of so many men and women before them. Everyone gathered at the gates of the old Chinatown, as special guests brought greetings from the province, region and surrounding towns. With some final words from Ms. Rosaleen Boardman, President of the BC Heritage Fairs Society, the 3rd Annual Provincial Heritage Fair was officially declared open. Hundreds of locals and tourists spoke with the students and were very impressed with the vast topics and interesting presentations relating to Canadian History. Many people “learned so much from the kids” said a tourist thoroughly impressed with the maturity and enthusiasm of the students.

The exhibition lasted several hours before the gala came to a close. Although the presentations were over, the students left Barkervile with a smile on their face and many new stories to tell. However, the learning had just begun as the students travelled to Cottonwood House for the evening. Cottonwood House is located on the old Caribou Trail and was used by gold miners as they travelled in hopes of striking it rich. At this village, students were able to tour the heritage buildings, participate in a scavenger hunt and enjoy several hours relaxing, enjoying an outdoor barbeque and playing with goats, horses, cows and many other animals. The kids had a relaxing evening after a long day of pouring their hearts and soul into their projects.

Although the day was coming to an end, there was still time for a quick game of soccer back at the school in Wells before the students travelled back to Barkervile to watch the Dominion Day Fireworks Display marking our nation’s birthday; a great finale to a day of celebration. Although the festivities of the day have come to an end, there is still plenty more places to see, friends to make and things to learn.
 

Day 2 - Work Hard, Play Hard

by Evan Fryer

The activities planned for the second day at the BC Provincial Heritage Fair were highly anticipated among the sixty student delegates. Barkerville, the host city for this third annual event, also played host to the mornings activities. Panning for gold and riding a 19th century stagecoach were among the highlights for the students.

All of the student delegates “struck it rich” this morning as everybody found gold in their pans. They were given a lesson by 4-time Gold Panning World Champion, the fastest panner in the world; yes, there is such a thing! Although Jenna from the Alberni Valley found the water “freezing cold”, she found her first attempt at gold panning successful as she collected about $4 worth of gold in her pan. “It’s a hard technique to master, but it was actually really fun!” she told her fellow miners as they headed off to catch the horse-drawn stagecoach. The students had the wonderful opportunity to have a tour of Barkerville from the perspective of a travelling 19th Century merchant, as they boarded the stagecoach and rode up main street and into Chinatown. Many students “couldn’t believe that people travelled like this”, although they now have a new-found appreciation for those people of the 1800’s; “they had to work so hard”.

After the morning in the historic town of Barkerville, it was time to board the busses once again and head for Quesnel. Along the road many students saw wildlife including deer, moose, and even bears! After the hour-long journey, the busses pulled up to the Quesnel Museum where students entered to learn about the Aboriginal and Chinese background of the area. Many students were impressed with the interactive displays and interesting artefacts as they listened to presentations and participated in a scavenger hunt around the museum.

Friday was a day of learning new things, although there was a chance for some down time as well. Students were given the chance to explore the city of Quesnel with their chaperones on a historic walking tour and relax in the sun at the local park. Afterwards, a pizza dinner in a local Japanese Garden was provided along with cake. But not just any cake, the celebrations from yesterday continued on to today as we celebrated two students’ birthdays: Andie from the Okanagan turned 11 while Ian from the Rivers to Sea region turned 13. In the evening, the students had the opportunity to swim at the local recreational centre, rounding out an awesome day. Many students were refreshed by the water and told their friends that it was “just what they needed”.

Although the students found the day extremely rewarding, their favourite part of the whole journey is making new friends. I have never seen such a diverse group come together so well. The students are so respectful of each other and the environment while still having the time of their lives. I love to see their eyes light up at a piece of interesting information and the sounds of laughter echoing throughout the bus as they share past stories from their experiences. There is no question that this is only the beginning of these friendships, the passion for learning new things and the beginning of becoming the best student, leader and person that they can be.

Day 3 - A Lifelong Passion

by Evan Fryer

Today was the final day for the student delegates, and a memorable one at that. They spent the whole day in Historic Barkerville touring the town and listening to the actors portray their 19th Century counterparts before heading back to Wells for the closing ceremonies.

The day started out with a guided historic town tour of Barkerville. The information and humourous actors connected with the students as they found themselves traveling back in time. They felt like they were “living back in the 1800’s” said one excited student and the corny puns “panned” out to be a highlight among the kids. After this interactive walking tour, students participated in a Cornish Waterwheel Demonstration with Mr. Grimley; a hilarious character whom the kids adored, and they also went on a tour of the historic Chinatown. When Chinatown was first established, there were 8,000 Chinese men that stayed in this small portion of the town. Conditions were rough and death at a young age was common. They were kept separate from the rest of the town and treated unfairly due to their culture, religion and race. The tour taught the students about cultural diversity and how our nation has changed into a welcoming, multicultural country.

The students had free time to shop at the local stores, buying old-fashioned candy and Chinese trinkets. The highlight of the day came for many after lunch, where the students went to the Theatre Royal and watched the “Gold Rush Review”. This comedic musical portrayed the gold rush with a modern twist, big group numbers, talented instrument playing, singing and dancing and audience participation. Kyra from Vancouver was that lucky girl. She coincidently did her Heritage Fairs project on Barkerville and was selected from the audience to stand up on stage and dance and sing in front of a hundred people! This show left the students smiling and talking enthusiastically about the history of Barkerville. Later that day, we went on a hike up to the Richfield Courthouse half-an hour up the old Caribou Road. Although, upon our arrival we were met with hundreds of mosquitoes, inside we were met by Judge Begbie, the “hanging judge”. The students were shocked to learn about courthouse procedures while sitting in this famous courtroom.

Our last tour of the trip was of the cemetery. Here, students were able to pay their respects to the people that made Barkerville what it was; a nice ending to the trip. Some students were shocked at some gravestones saying that, “they died so young”. For dinner, we went to the famous Lung Duck Tong Chinese Restaurant for our final group dinner. Students had a great time reflecting on the week while feasting on numerous dishes of delicious food. As the students left the gates of Barkerville for the last time, they couldn’t help but realize just what they had done and what fantastic opportunity they just experienced.

We had departed from Barkerville, but it didn’t mean the trip was over just yet. We went to the Sunset Theatre back in Wells, and listened to “Victorian Street Music” by some of the locals. After this engaging performance, we were able to watch a slideshow of moments from the week and thank everybody who made this event possible. Upon our return to the school, students said their last minute goodbyes, packed their suitcases and went to sleep for the final time as a group.

This was an unforgettable experience. Every single one of these sixty students earned their spot here at the BC Provincial Heritage Fair. I have had such a privilege to get to know each of these wonderful students. Their passion for history, learning and life is inspirational as they grow as individuals. This experience has set the foundation for the rest of their lives and hopefully they will continue to grow as exceptional human beings. The students have had so many great experiences on this trip, the best being the new friends that they have made. Although the students will be leaving the school and each other at 6:00am tomorrow morning to catch flights back to their hometown, they will always have a strong connection with each other knowing that they participated in such a wonderful opportunity. For the rest of their lives, they will cherish the memories and moments that they shared, the new friendships that they made, and their passion for living life to the fullest.

Other Reports from the 2010 Provincial Heritage Fair

Click here to follow Marc Dhillon, Emma Link, James Sapielak, Phoebe Lindenbach, Marianne Kim, and Shayne Oberhoffner on their exciting journey to Barkerville, B.C. for the Provincial Heritage Fair!

The following is a blog created by Michael Gurney a  chaperone for the Richmond-Delta expedition. Michael has posted an amazing series of photographs and a videos of the Richmond-Delta team.