Category Archives: Adult Memories

Supplies for Cape Scott Lighthouse 1975

Adult Memories, Boats, Coast Guard, Construction, Equipment, Groceries & Mail, Incidents, Lighthouses, Old Website, On The Job, Ships, Workboats, , , , , , , , ,
CCGS Sir James Douglas - photo F&O Canada

 In 1975 we (myself, my wife Karen and our two young children, our dog, cats, and all our furnishings) were on our way clockwise around Vancouver Island from Quatsino lighthouse to Pachena Point on board the CCGS Sir James Douglas with acting Captain Tom Hull. This was a grocery run so the trip was already pre-planned and we were just passengers. 

The seas were not high but as we rounded Cape Scott, the northern-most tip of Vancouver Island, we began to roll in the southwest swell. As we motored around into quieter waters on the inside of Vancouver Island, we were still being tossed around by occasional large ocean swells.  Continue reading Supplies for Cape Scott Lighthouse 1975 →

The Wise Raven

Adult Memories, First Nations, Lighthouses, Weather, Wildlife, , , , , , , ,

The following video came in an email today and it brought back memories of the ravens that lived near my old lighthouse at McInnes Island. Ravens are very intelligent!

 

Orion constellation (south)

I was on the early morning shift for most of my time there. I loved it! Every morning very early (about 03:00) I walked from the house up through the trees in the dark with coffee cup in hand for the first weather report of the morning. It was such a delight if the sky was clear to see the constellations I recognized. One could almost tell the time by their position in the sky, especially with Orion, the hunter. Continue reading The Wise Raven →

Groceries at Green Island c.1975

Adult Memories, Beachcombing, Coast Guard, Equipment, Groceries & Mail, Incidents, Lighthouses, Old Website, Ships, , , , , , , , , ,
Cloo-Stung - photo Barry Duggan

The Cloo-Stung was a catamaran of the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) used for delivery of personnel and supplies to Prince Rupert area lighthouses in protected waters. The groceries were delivered to the Coast Guard base in Prince Rupert from the local stores. These were then packed in slings (large canvas or net circles with ropes attached to allow them to be attached to a hook) and loaded onto the Cloo-Stung. Continue reading Groceries at Green Island c.1975 →

Lighthouse Photos by Cyril R. Littlebury c. 1922-1932

Adult Memories, Advertisement, Books, Cruise Ship, History, Hobbies, Lighthouses, Old Website, Photos, Photos, Seaplanes, Ships, Ships & Shipping, Stories, , , , , , , , , , ,

Photos of British Columbia lighthouses by Cyril R. Littlebury in the years 1922 to 1932 with thanks to Dudley R. Booth for permission to publish – please visit Dudley’s new website at Historic Photos. There are many more photos there besides lighthouses.

When Dudley Booth developed some old negatives his father gave him he found a treasure trove of scenes from 1920s and 1930s Vancouver. 

[nggallery id=43]

  Continue reading Lighthouse Photos by Cyril R. Littlebury c. 1922-1932 →

Groceries and Mail on a Lighthouse

Adult Memories, Coast Guard, Fishing, Groceries & Mail, Helicopters, Lighthouses, Old Website, On The Job, Ships, , , , , , , , , ,
Groceries being loaded at Coast Guard Base - photo John Coldwell

Some of you may wonder why the number of stories about re-supplying the lighthouses exceeds the others on this site by a large margin (lots more coming!). Next to the family and job, the arrival of the mail and groceries was the most important event in the life of the lightkeeping family. 

Imagine no telephone, no television, no two-way radio, possibly no AM radio, and no contact with the outside world except what you saw going by your window. The post was and still is the most important contact to the real world.  Continue reading Groceries and Mail on a Lighthouse →

Surviving on Fiddle Reef Lighthouse c. 1950s

Adult Memories, Childhood Memories, Children, Equipment, Groceries & Mail, Keepers, Light, Lighthouses, Recreation, Rowboat, School, Weather, Women, , , , , ,


View Larger Map

On January 21, 2012 I wrote about a family that lived on the lighthouses in the 1950s up to the 1960s, all in the days of no electricity – only kerosene lamps. I now have another installment from Ms. Juanita (Swanson) DuLong. She was only four years old at the time on Fiddle Reef, but memories are hard to erase – especially Lighthouse Memories!

List of Lights #215 - Fiddle Reef Sector

The map above shows the location of Fiddle Reef (1898 – 1978) just off Oak Bay, Victoria, BC. The lighthouse was on the rock under the green arrow. The lighthouse is long gone and is replaced with a white cylindrical tower with a white light and a red sector. Continue reading Surviving on Fiddle Reef Lighthouse c. 1950s →

Day of Departure – Going on Leave c.1970s

Adult Memories, Childhood Memories, Children, Coast Guard, Communication, Helicopters, Lighthouses, Old Website, On The Job, Radio, Ships, Transportation, Travel, Weather, , , , ,
MBB-105 - photo J. Coldwell

In the days before portable radios and instant communications, we were always apprehensive about the day we headed out for holidays. 

First there was the weather which as everone knows on the West Coast of Canada is always unpredictable even with modern weather forecasting. We observed the weather but rarely got any weather forecasts. 

Next came the Coast Guard. Our long-awaited flight could be diverted for search and rescue, maintenance, or any of a hundred other reasons.  Continue reading Day of Departure – Going on Leave c.1970s →

Fairbanks Morse Type “N” Gasoline Engine c. 1900s

Adult Memories, Automation, Equipment, Foghorns, History, Information, Lighthouses, Old Website, On The Job, , , , , , , ,

– With thanks to Harry F. Mathews and his Harry’s Old Engine website for permission to reprint this old information on how to fire-up the old Fairbanks Morse gasoline engines of the 1900s. 

Photo Harry Mathews & Railroading Online website


The following text is borrowed with permission from Harry’s Old Engine website. I never had the chance to work with these monstrous engines and found this information very interesting and wanted to pass it on here. Remember, he is referring to a farm engine, but I imagine the lighthouse engines were also close to 32 Hp.  Continue reading Fairbanks Morse Type “N” Gasoline Engine c. 1900s →

I Remember . . . c. early 1960s

Adult Memories, Boats, Books, Childhood Memories, Children, Equipment, Groceries & Mail, Hobbies, Lighthouses, Travel, Weather, , , , , , , ,
Langara Point

 

– from Jeannie (Hartt) Nielsen (daughter of Ed Hartt, Senior Keeper on Langara 1957 – 1963) 

 

 

Smells
Growing up on a total of five different west coast lighthouses I remember certain things that were common to them all. The best day was always supply day (see also the Groceries & Mail Categories). When we were on Langara lighthouse in the early years (1957 – 1963) we received supplies every three months. I can remember the first thing I listened for in the early morning of landing day was the clicking sound of the damper in the chimney of the kitchen’s oil stove. When I heard that I knew that there would be no supplies landed that day as the wind was too high.

One December I heard that dreaded sound twenty (20) days in a row, and each day the ship tried to bring our groceries. We would watch as it would come into view just off Langara Rocks. They would assess the landing conditions, then we would watch with growing dispair as it turned back to the safety of a nearby harbour. Finally on the 21st day, the supply tender (itself running out of provisions) was able to deliver our supplies.  Continue reading I Remember . . . c. early 1960s →

Mise Tales One

Adult Memories, Childhood Memories, Humour, Lighthouses, On The Job, Videos, , , , , ,

No, it’s not a misprint, but what is a Mise?

When I was a teenager I always had stuff to repair, and my Father had drawers of spare stuff  that I needed for the repairing.

In the wall of small drawers was one labelled Mise. These were very small drawers and the hand-written label on meical adhesive tape was also small and very hard to read.

In the Mise drawer were small nails. In my naivety I assumed that Mise was a special designation of Mice, and these small nails then became Mice Nails to me.

It was not until I was out and working did I discover they were actually called finishing nails, and the drawer label actually read Misc, which naturally stood for Miscellaneous!

So I will dedicate these pages to my Father, Alec F. Coldwell. This is Mise Tales One and I will post here miscellaneous things I find that are too short to make a full story. I do hope there will be many more Mise Tales later.

********************************** Continue reading Mise Tales One →