Stanley Park
Stanley Park is a public park in British Columbia, Canada, that makes up the northwestern half of Vancouver's Downtown peninsula, surrounded by waters of Burrard Inlet and English Bay The park borders the neighbourhoods of West End and Coal Harbour to its southeast, and is connected to the North Shore via the Lions Gate Bridge. The historic lighthouse on Brockton Point marks the park's easternmost point. While it is not the largest urban park, Stanley Park is about one-fifth larger than New York City's Central Park and almost half the size of London's Richmond Park.
Stanley Park has a long history The land was originally used by Indigenous peoples for thousands of years before British Columbia was colonized by the British during the 1858 Fraser Canyon Gold Rush and was one of the first areas to be explored in the city. For many years after colonization, the future park, with its abundant resources, would also be home to non-Indigenous settlers. The land was later turned into Vancouver's first park when the city incorporated in 1886. It was named after Lord Stanley 16th Earl of Derby, a British politician who had recently been appointed Governor General of Canada. It was originally known as Coal Peninsula and was set aside for military fortifications to guard the entrance to Vancouver harbour. In 1886, Vancouver City Council successfully sought a lease of the park which was granted for $1 per year. In September 1888, Lord Stanley opened the park in his name.
Unlike other large urban parks, Stanley Park is not the creation of a landscape architect but rather the evolution of a forest and urban space over many years. Most of the manmade structures present in the park were built between 1911 and 1938 under the influence of then-superintendent W.S. Rawlings. Additional attractions, such as a polar bear exhibit, aquarium, and a miniature train, were added in the post–World War II period.
Much of the park remains as densely forested as it was in the late 1800s, with about a half million trees, some of which stand as tall as and are hundreds of years old. Thousands of trees were lost after three major windstorms that took place in the past 100 years, the last in 2006.
Significant effort was put into constructing the near-century-old Vancouver Seawall, which can draw thousands of people to the park in the summer. The park also features forest trails, beaches, lakes, children's play areas, and the Vancouver Aquarium, among many other attractions. On June 18, 2014, Stanley Park was named "top park in the entire world" by Tripadvisor, based on reviews submitted.
History
Coast Salish land
Archaeological evidence suggests a human presence in the park dating back more than 3,000 years. The area is the traditional territory of multiple coastal Indigenous peoples. From the Burrard Inlet and Howe Sound regions, Squamish Nation had a large village in the park. From the lower Fraser River area, Musqueam Nation used its natural resources.Where Lumberman's Arch is now, there once was a large village called Whoi Whoi, or X̱wáýx̱way, roughly meaning 'place of masks'. One longhouse, built from cedar poles and slabs, was measured at long by wide. These houses were occupied by large extended families living in different quadrants of the house. The larger houses were used for ceremonial potlatches where a host would invite guests to witness and participate in ceremonies and the giving away of property.
Another settlement was further west along the same shore. This place was called Chaythoos, meaning 'high bank'. The site of Chaythoos is noted on a brass plaque placed on the lowlands east of Prospect Point commemorating the park's centennial.
Both sites were occupied in 1888, when some residents were forcefully removed to allow a road to be constructed around the park, and their midden was used for construction material.
The popular landmark Siwash Rock, located near present-day Third Beach, was once called Slhx̱i7lsh, meaning 'he is standing up'. In the oral history, a fisherman was transformed into this rock by three powerful brothers as punishment for his immorality.
In 2010, the chief of the Squamish Nation proposed renaming Stanley Park as Xwayxway Park after the large village once located in the area.
European exploration
The first European explorations of the peninsula were made by expeditions commanded by Spanish captain José María Narváez and British captain George Vancouver.In A Voyage of Discovery, Vancouver describes the area as "an island ... with a smaller island Deadman's Island lying before it", suggesting that it was originally surrounded by water, at least at high tide.
Vancouver also wrote about meeting the people living there:
According to historians, the Indigenous peoples probably first saw Vancouver's ship from Chaythoos, a location in the future park that in today's terms lay just east of the Lions Gate Bridge. Speaking about this event later in a conversation with archivist Major Matthews, Andy Paull, whose family lived in the area, confirms the account given by Vancouver:
No significant contact with inhabitants in the area was recorded for decades, until around the time of the Crimean War. British admirals arranged with Chief Joe Capilano that if there were an invasion, the British would defend the south shore of Burrard Inlet and the Squamish would defend the north. The British gave him and his men 60 muskets. Although the attack anticipated by the British never came, the guns were used by the Squamish to repel an attack by an indigenous raid from the Euclataws. Stanley Park was not attacked, but this was when it started to be thought of as a strategic military position.
Early uses of park land
The peninsula was a popular place for gathering traditional food and materials in the 1800s, but it started to see even more activity after the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush in 1858, going through a succession of uses when non-Indigenous settlers moved into the area.The shallow waters around the First Narrows and Coal Harbour were popular fishing spots for clams, salmon, and other fish. August Jack Khatsahlano, a celebrated dual chief of the Squamish and Musqueam who once lived at Chaythoos, remembered how he used to fish-rake in Coal Harbour and catch many herrings. They would also hunt grouse, ducks, and deer on the peninsula.
Second Beach was a source of "clay... which, when rolled into loaves, as did it, and heated or roasted before a fire, turned into a white like chalk" that was used to make wool blankets.
Indigenous inhabitants also cut down large cedar trees in the area for a variety of traditional purposes, such as making dugout canoes.
File:Canoes and a boathouse at Brockton Point 1897.jpg|thumb|An 1897 settlement in Stanley Park. The centre house is the traditional longhouse style of the Squamish people.
By 1860, non-Indigenous settlers had started building homes on the peninsula, first at Brockton Point and later on Deadman Island. "Portuguese Joe" Silvey was the first European to settle in the future park. A Chinese settlement also grew in a cleared area at Anderson Point.
The peninsula was surveyed and made a military reserve in an 1863 survey completed by the Royal Engineers. Despite the houses and cabins on the land, it was again considered a strategic point in case Americans attempted an invasion and launched an attack on New Westminster via Burrard Inlet.
In 1865, Edward Stamp decided that Brockton Point would be an ideal site for a lumber mill. He cleared close to with the permission of colonial officials, but the site proved too impractical and he moved his operation east, eventually becoming Hastings Mill. The land cleared by Stamp later became the Brockton sports fields.
The future park was selectively logged by six different companies between the 1860s and 1880s, but its military status saved the land from further development. Most of today's trails in Stanley Park got their start as old skid roads.
Near the end of the 1800s, the city's principal reservoir was built in the area south of Prospect Point that is now a playing field and picnic area. Despite the reservoir's demolition in 1948, there is still a Reservoir Trail at that location.
From the 1860s to 1880s, settlers in Burrard Inlet used Brockton Point, Anderson Point, and nearby Deadman Island as burial grounds. This practice stopped when the Mountain View Cemetery opened in 1887. Deadman Island had already had a long history as a burial site. In 1865, unsuspecting newcomer John Morton found old cedar boxes in the trees. They turned out to be coffins that had been placed there to keep the remains of important Indigenous persons out of reach of wild animals.
Leasing the land
In 1886, as its first order of business, Vancouver City Council voted to petition the British government to lease the military reserve for use as a park. To manage their new acquisition, city council appointed a six-person park committee, which in 1890 was replaced with an elected body, the Vancouver Park Board.In 1908, 20 years after the first lease, the federal government renewed the lease for 99 more years.
In 2006, a letter from Parks Canada stated that "the Stanley Park lease is perpetually renewable and no action is required by the Park Board in relation to the renewal".
Opening and dedication
On September 27, 1888, the park was officially opened. The park was named after Lord Stanley, who had recently become Canada's sixth governor general. Mayor David Oppenheimer gave a formal speech opening the park to the public and delivering authority for its management to the park committee.The following year, Lord Stanley became the first governor general to visit Vancouver when he officially dedicated the park. Mayor Oppenheimer led a procession of vehicles around Brockton Point along the newly completed Park Road to the clearing at Prospect Point. An observer at the event wrote: