About Steveston: A Village and Its History

In 1880, Manoah's son, William Herbert Steves, bought land and began to develop the townsite known as "Steves," in hope of creating a seaport to rival Vancouver. He enlisted aid from the British Army Engineers to lay out the townsite. By 1890, Steves was know as Steveston with an opera house, church, hotels, retail stores, a wharf to accommodate steamboats and Lulu Island's first newspaper and hospital.

Originally a farming community, it wasn't long, with the opening of the first cannery on the waterfront in 1882, that the commercial fishery was firmly established as the economic engine that would power Steveston for the next century. By 1890, Steveston was a full-blown boom town, with 15 canneries along its waterfront and record catches of salmon, herring and other species. Steveston canneries were shipping salmon overseas, setting a record of 16-million pounds in 1901. This natural bounty supported many hotels, an opera house, saloons and bawdy houses, as well as gambling tables and opium dens to service the fishing-season population of 10,000. However, by 1912, the fish processing lines had become automated, reducing the town's population by nearly half.

In 1879, the Township of Richmond was incorporated and empowered to undertake those public works necessary to support increased settlement. In the 1880s, fish processing technology changed—salting gave way to canning—and this technology benefited greatly from the catch being as fresh as possible. Accordingly, new processing and canning plants located in Steveston to be close to the fishing grounds. In 1918, after a string of bad fishing seasons and several disastrous fires, several of the canneries merged or closed.

Video Credit © Darrell Patton—Short video on Steveston's history.

On December 7, 1941, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, with Canada declaring war on Japan soon thereafter. Responding to fears that people of Japanese decent in coastal communities like Steveston, would help Japan invade BC, the federal government arrested Japanese-Canadian community leaders and confiscated Japanese-owned fishing boats. In 1942, the federal government ordered the evacuation of all Japanese males over the age of 18, which was later expanded to include women and children. A total of 2,600 men, women and children of Japanese decent from Steveston were moved by train to the BC interior and interned during war. It wasn't until 1949—4 years after the end of hostilities—that a law was passed allowing them to return to the coast.

Despite devastating floods, the 1918 fire that razed the Chinese and Japanese sections of the village and the strike in 1900 over the price of fish, which found the strikers facing a Vancouver militia company, and WWII internment of Japanese-Canadians, Steveston has survived. No longer home to a single working cannery, the last succumbing to fewer fish and development pressures, Steveston is, nevertheless, home port to Canada's largest fishing fleet of over 600 vessels. B.C. Packers, the last cannery in Steveston, canned more salmon in 1985 (24-million pounds, with a further 12-million pounds frozen) than all Steveston canneries together in the boom year of 1901 (16-million pounds).

Steveston continued on after the war as it always had, with fishers fishing and shops catering to their needs and those of surrounding residents. The one bright spot was the launching of the first Steveston Salmon Festival in 1946, an annual event that delights individuals and families to this day. Unfortunately, on February 28, 1958, the famed Interurban tramlines had their final run on the Marpole-Steveston run, the region's last remaining route. In 1972, the first purpose-built Martial Arts Centre, or dojo, outside Japan opened in Steveston. In 1979, the Steveston Museum opened in a 1905 building, which had been Steveston's first bank, then a doctor's office. The Steveston Historical Society operates the museum and post office, which are often featured in major Hollywood movies. Garry Point Park opened June 3, 1989 on the southwestern-most corner of Lulu Island and is a popular spot for strolling, watching ships go by, picnics, kite flying and more.

Steveston is still very much a fishing village, with tourism quickly catching up. The village still maintains a laid back village atmosphere, even with thousands of visitors pouring on to its streets on sunny days. Steveston is home to two National Historic Sites of Canada, the Gulf of Georgia Cannery, once nicknamed the "Monster Cannery," and Britannia Heritage Shipyard Park. Steveston is a popular location for many movie and TV productions, as well as fund raising and other special events year round. Though constantly evolving, Steveston still maintains a special atmosphere and residents are determined to keep it that way.

Publish Your Steveston
History or Photos Here

Do YOU have Steveston history and photographs to share? Share them now! We would all love to hear about YOUR Steveston experience, or that of a friend or family member. Got a historic anecdote on Steveston? How about sharing a loved one's story and historic photographs on life in early Steveston. So, don't be shy and send YOUR story, pictures or historical snippets and be part of the Steveston iVillage family. Thank you!

Reader Feedback

What Other Visitors Have Said

Click below to see contributions from other visitors to this page...