I received the following email the other day promoting an article on a friend’s website:
The freighter Vanlene ran up on the rocks on Austin Island in the Broken Group islands on March 14, 1972. She was carrying 300 Dodge Colt automobiles while enroute to Vancouver BC from Japan. The crew was rescued and taken to Port Alberni. How she ended up on the rocks is still a matter of conjecture but it appears that the Master simply did not know where he was at the time of impact (he thought he was off of the coast of Washington) and his navigational aids were inoperable. See the article at Nauticapedia.
Risking it All – Oil on our Coast is a short film that outlines the plans for the pipeline and tanker route and what it means for our beautiful coast. It is produced by Twyla Roscovich in association with Hartley Bay & Gitga’at Nation, Oil on our Coast is meant to inspire, empower and help fuel the battle to save what sustains us. – Twyla Roscovitch
CALLING OUR CANADIAN FRIENDS – What do the Georgian Bay lighthouses at Killarney, Bustard Rocks, Gereaux Island, Pointe au Baril, Red Rock, Snug Harbour, Jones Island and Christian Island have in common? They are all timber frame structures and the Canadian Coast Guard has ignored the spirit of the Heritage Lighthouse Protection Act, and declared them to be surplus. Unless they are nominated for heritage status by May 29, 2012 and stewards identified who are willing to take on the prohibitively expensive task of maintaining them in accordance with heritage standards, the Canadian Coast Guard may demolish them and replace them with skeletal galvanized towers. The Heritage Canada Foundation is organizing a petition to the Federal government to provide funds to local groups to help them save these lighthouses for future generations, If you are a Canadian, visit the following website, sign the petition, and let your voice be heard. http://www.heartofstonephoto.com/photos/save-georgian-bay-lighthouses
– Narrated by Sharlene Macintosh with help from her cousin Zellie Chamberlin Sale (granddaughters of Howard Frazer Chamberlin, lighthouse keeper c. 1930 – 1941)
Nootka Light -photo - Bill Maximick of Maximick Originals
My grandfather was Howard Frazer Chamberlin who was lightkeeper at a few lighthouses around Vancouver Island – Nootka , Pine Island , Quatsino , Trial Island come to mind – my Mom knows them all. His brother, Charles Benjamin Chamberlin was also assistant at Nootka.
My Mom, Mina Peet (née Chamberlin) was born in Oct 1933 while her Dad was a lightkeeper. He originally did various jobs such as farming, prospecting, trapping, and logging with horses. He had a sawmill at Coombs, BC and he was injured while logging with horses on Vancouver Island. He was put into hospital where he met my grandmother Dora Anna Wordsell who was a nurse.
They married December 12, 1928 in Nanaimo, BC. They had three daughters: Connie (who died in 1985), Pearl, and Mina. The first child, a son, died up near Prince Rupert, BC right after birth, so my grandmother was sent the next time to New Westminster, BC to give birth (at a real hospital) where her parents lived, and the second two times to Victoria, BC. Continue reading Howard Frazer Chamberlin Family Adventures c.1930s→
page 1 of H. F. Chamberlin letter letter courtesy of Zellie Chamberlin Sale
Howard Frazer Chamberlin was on Nootka lighthouse in 1942 according to the interview by the Naval Reserve (see letters at left). But there is a problem here.
When I received a copy of this letter I thought it was referring to the attack on Estevan Point which supposedly helped introduce conscription in Canada during the Second World War. But if you check the dates, this seems to have occured almost a month later to the day that the Estevan Point shelling happened. According to all records, the shelling of Estevan Point took place nightfall of June 20, 1942.
page 2 of H. F. Chamberlin letter letter courtesy of Zellie Chamberlin Sale
This letter seems to show that there was another attack at Nootka lighthouse about a month later on the evening of July 18, 1942. In fact the lightkeeper states that he phoned Estevan Point Wireless station to see if they were being plastered again! (my emphasis – JC) But Estevan returned the call and said that they had heard nothing so it must have been nearer Nootka. From working with explosives in mining and prospecting, Howard Chamberlin knew the difference between industrial explosives and high-explosives.
The only thing that appears to be at odds here is that he feels the vibration from the explosions as from underwater. I wonder if he was hearing depth charges going off? This is just one month later than the Estevan incident. I will bet that the Navy and the Naval Reserve were on high alert during this time and expecting the worse. Perhaps a floating log triggered the release of a few depth charges.
A transcript of the original letter(s) follows:
From H.M.C.S. “Pryer” To COAV Esquimalt BC Nootka Lighthouse 2200 / 19 / 7 / 42 Subject Interview With Mr. H. F. Chamberlin, Lightkeeper
I was sitting in the kitchen of the Light house, overlooking the sea, and having a cup of Tea at 1902 hours July 18/42, when I both felt and heard an explosion from a southerly direction. (out to sea) and this was followed by six other shocks at intervals of about one (1) minute between shocks. I was naturally surprised and could see the vibrations from the shocks in the cup of Tea. As an old Miner and Prospector I can easily tell the difference between “blasting” and “submarine” shocks, and the shock I both heard and felt were definitely from seaward, and from the “feel” of the vibration I would say from underwater. The first shock occured at 1902 and the last shock at 1911, as I noted the time of last shock. I phoned the wireless station at Estevan Point and asked them if they had been “plastered” again, and they informed me that they had felt or heard nothing. It was at 1915 when I phoned Estevan Pt. Wireless.
Page 2 (same as Page 1 but with signature at bottom)
Witness Chief Skipper J. D. McPhee, R.C.N.R. Commanding Officer H.M.C.S. “Pryer”
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– Howard F. Chamberlin (Lightkeeper on Nootka 1936 – 1941)
One of the arguments for destaffing the lighthouses in British Columbia (BC), Canada is that they are no longer needed because all vessels have the Global Positioning System (GPS). Canadian mariners must move into the 21st Century they say!
Have you ever looked at British Columbia? The size of British Columbia?
Note the three roads to Vancouver, Bella Bella, and Prince Rupert
British Columbia is the westernmost province of Canada, bordered by the Pacific Ocean. With an area of 944,735 square kilometers (364,764 sq mi) it is Canada’s third-largest province. The province itself is eleven times the size of Austria, where I live; nearly four times the size of Great Britain, two and one-half times larger than Japan and larger than every U.S. state except Alaska. 1 Continue reading Why We Need MORE Lighthouses in British Columbia→
Harper will need to watch his backbench, by Stephen Maher
Read the above article from the National Post online – September 16, 2011 – my condensed version below. – JAC
Is this the future?
On May 2, 2011, Harper’s Conservative Party won a majority government in the May 2011 federal election, by winning 166 seats.
With this majority the Prime Minister (PM) can plan long term. With a minority government the PM handed out money as if it were his own, trying to entice the public to support his party. Now that he has the much-coveted majority seats, he can relax a little, and begin to tighten the purse strings. Now the public will have to beg for funds, instead of having them freely given.
How will this affect lighthouses? We do not know, but if the past has been any clue, we may be in for another fight to keep our remaining lighthouses manned..
I think we need to keep the matter of automation in the public’s eye until it is definitely settled that the Canadian government will not automate any more lighthouse in Canada. Let me know what you think. – JAC
