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Interview with Cornelius Lapadat
https://search.bvmuseum.org/link/descriptions12258
- Date Range
- October 14 1993
- Collection
- BVM Oral History collection
- Description Level
- File
- GMD
- sound recording
- electronic record
- Scope and Content
- Interview with Cornelius 'Neil' Lapadat, recorded on October 14th 1993 by Tom Leach. Includes raw and edited .WAV files and an .MP3 access file.
- Collection
- BVM Oral History collection
- Description Level
- File
- Creator
- Tom Leach
- Fonds No.
- C5
- Item No.
- 2021.21.51
- Accession No.
- 2021.21
- Physical Description
- 643 MB of digital records
- Date Range
- October 14 1993
- Scope and Content
- Interview with Cornelius 'Neil' Lapadat, recorded on October 14th 1993 by Tom Leach. Includes raw and edited .WAV files and an .MP3 access file.
- Type of Record
- Archival Description
Audio Tracks
Interview with Cornelius 'Neil' Lapadat - October 14 1993
Interview with Cornelius 'Neil' Lapadat - October 14 1993
https://search.bvmuseum.org/media/Digital%20Fonds%20and%20Collections/C5%20BVM%20Oral%20History%20collection/2021.21.51_Lapadat,%20Cornelius%20'Neil'/Lapadat,%20Cornelius%20'Neil'.ACCESS.mp3
Lapadat describes moving from Victoria to Smithers with his family as a young child, mentioning where they lived in town before taking a homestead out in Glentanna. He also explains why he got the nickname 'Neil.'
Bannister's boarding house; Eli Urdie; George Lapadat; Glentanna; hauling; horses; hotel bar; Prince Rupert; railroad; roundhouse; tent; Third Avenue; Victoria
arrival; housing; Lapadat family; Smithers
Lapadat discusses his parents' immigration from Romania to the United States and their subsequent moves throughout the U.S. and Canada, eventually ending up in the Bulkley Valley. He also gives a story of how he was mistaken about his birthdate for many years until obtaining a copy of his birth certificate.
advertisements; bricklayer; farming; Pennsylvania; Portland, Oregon; pre-emption; rooming house; steel mills
Anna Lapadat Sr.; birth certificate; birthday; family history; immigration; jobs; John Lapadat Sr.; moving; occupations; parents; Romania
Lapadat discusses how his family lived on various different properties in and around the Glentanna area, attempting to make a living by farming. (Note: spelling of names in this section was verified where possible but may not be 100% accurate).
1920s; bricklaying; cream; crown grant; Danny Moore; Driftwood; freight; ice cream parlour; Jack Mainey; Jim Miller; John O'Harren; Montgomery place; payment; Pete Skuba; pre-emption; roundhouse; shipping produce; Snake Hill; Soldier Settlement Board
farming; farms; Glentanna; properties
Lapadat describes hauling wood, hay, and other resources for his family's trucking business. Topics include: the stiff competition they faced in the Valley; how all the profits from the business went back into the farm; why he eventually chose to leave Smithers and make a life for himself; hauling 13 tons of hay as a teenager; an offer by Liberal politician Olof Hanson to buy wood from local suppliers; and how the family survived by relying on credit from the stores.
'Dad' Arnold; Bill Leach; competition; credit; deliveries; Great Depression; Henry Motors; Jack Henry; jack pine wood; logging; Olof Hanson; orders; Oswald Hoskins; raising prices; Tom Priest; trading; Watson's Store
family business; hauling; trucking; trucking business; wood; work; working
Lapadat discusses raising and training racehorses on the family farm, including the story of how he was the only one who was able to ride a certain horse.
beef; Fall Fair; grain; hay; Jack Gray; pork; races
farm; farming; horse breaking; horse training; horseback riding; horses; racehorses
Lapadat explains that he left Smithers in 1934 after the Depression ended the family's trucking business. (Note: interview ends abruptly without a proper conclusion).
farm; leaving home; trucking business
Great Depression
Interview with Frank Dockrill Jr.
https://search.bvmuseum.org/link/descriptions12243
- Date Range
- August 1991
- Collection
- BVM Oral History collection
- Description Level
- File
- GMD
- sound recording
- electronic record
- Scope and Content
- Interview with Frank Dockrill Jr., recorded in August 1991 by Tom Leach. Includes raw and edited .WAV files and an MP3 access file.
- Collection
- BVM Oral History collection
- Description Level
- File
- Creator
- Tom Leach
- Fonds No.
- C5
- Item No.
- 2021.21.36
- Accession No.
- 2021.21
- Physical Description
- 0.97 GB of digital records
- Date Range
- August 1991
- History / Biographical
- Frank Dockrill Jr. (c. 1910-1999) was born to Frank Sr. and Elizabeth Dockrill and grew up on the family farm near Telkwa. His father founded the Bulkley Valley Collieries, where Frank worked as a young man. He married May Caldwell in 1939 and had two daughters, Beverley and Heather. Dockrill moved to Kitimat in 1957 to work as an electrician.
- Scope and Content
- Interview with Frank Dockrill Jr., recorded in August 1991 by Tom Leach. Includes raw and edited .WAV files and an MP3 access file.
- Type of Record
- Archival Description
Audio Tracks
Interview with Frank Dockrill Jr. - August 1991
Interview with Frank Dockrill Jr. - August 1991
https://search.bvmuseum.org/media/Digital%20Fonds%20and%20Collections/C5%20BVM%20Oral%20History%20collection/2021.21.36_Dockrill,%20Frank%20Jr/Dockrill,%20Frank%20ACCESS.MP3
Frank Dockrill recounts his father's early mining career and how it brought his family to the Bulkley Valley. Note: start of interview appears to have been cut off.
Boer War; scrip; Skeena River; South African scrip; South African War; Telkwa; Vancouver; veterans; Woodmere Road; Yukon
Bulkley Valley; Dockrill family; Frank Dockrill Sr.; mining; prospecting
Dockrill discusses how his father would work on the family farm near Telkwa in the summer. One of the fields was used as an
A.E. Richards; crops; Frank Dockrill Sr.; grain; illustration station; inspector; potatoes; vegetables
agriculture; farming; farms; Summerland Experimental Farm
Dockrill discusses his father's winter job at the Santa Maria copper mine, as well as a brief foray into gold prospecting.
Atlin District; Frank Dockrill Sr.; gold; ore; sleighs; Tacoma
copper mining; mining; Santa Maria mine
Dockrill describes the creation and early days of the Bulkley Valley Collieries, which was founded by his father.
auger; blacksmiths; bunkhouse; coal drill; cookhouse; farmers; Frank Dockrill Sr.; Leach; Lejac Residential School; roads; safety lamps; shaft; Smithers Hospital; tunnel; winter employment
Bulkley Valley Collieries; coal mine; coal mining; Goat Creek; Telkwa Collieries
Continuation of the story of the Bulkley Valley Collieries. Dockrill describes how additional pits (and a strip mine) were dug when the first one became unusable, how changes in technology and regulations affected the work of the miners, and how the coal was marketed and sold.
army; BC Hydro; Charles Melville Hays; Coal Mines Regulations Act; coal pits; electricity; equipment; Frank Dockrill Sr.; generator; Grand Trunk Pacific Railway; Great Depression; machinery; marketing; railroads; strip mine; World War II
Bulkley Valley Collieries; coal mine; coal mining; Goat Creek; Telkwa Collieries
Brief discussion of Dockrill's lifelong fascination with electricity and how this interest overlapped with some of the jobs he worked as a young adult, both in the Bulkley Valley Collieries and while living in Vancouver.
electrician; Great Depression; May Dockrill; radio; Vancouver
electricity; employment; jobs; occupations; work
Dockrill discusses his father's hands-on approach to the running of the Bulkley Valley Collieries and how the family's shares in the company were eventually sold. Also a brief mention of how Dockrill Jr. moved to Kitimat to work as an electrician (begins at 33:15).
coal mining; death; electrician; wages; work
Bulkey Valley Collieries; coal mine; Frank Dockrill Sr.; Kitimat; Telkwa Collieries
Dockrill discusses what his daily routine was like while working at the Bulkley Valley Collieries.
coffee breaks; fans; inspector; shifts; silicosis; smoking; ventilation; working conditions
Bulkley Valley Collieries; coal mining; work
Frank and his wife May Dockrill describe their married life in Telkwa during the 1940s, with a focus on their first houses and how they eventually received modern amenities. Note: interview ends without a proper conclusion.
amenities; electricity; family life; generator; government agent; modern conveniences; Mrs. Goodwill; social life; teas; water pump
homes; houses; Telkwa
Interview with Lloyd Gething
https://search.bvmuseum.org/link/descriptions12246
- Date Range
- September 11 1991
- Collection
- BVM Oral History collection
- Description Level
- File
- GMD
- sound recording
- electronic record
- Scope and Content
- Interview with Lloyd Gething, recorded on September 11th 1991 by Tom Leach. Includes raw and edited .WAV files and MP3 access files.
- Collection
- BVM Oral History collection
- Description Level
- File
- Creator
- Tom Leach
- Fonds No.
- C5
- Item No.
- 2021.21.39
- Accession No.
- 2021.21
- Physical Description
- 1.56 GB of digital records
- Date Range
- September 11 1991
- History / Biographical
- Lloyd Gething (1912-1992) grew up in northeastern BC, where his family was involved in the coal mining business. In 1951 he stopped in the Bulkley Valley on the way to Kitimat and ended up working at the Telkwa Coal Mine for many years.
- Scope and Content
- Interview with Lloyd Gething, recorded on September 11th 1991 by Tom Leach. Includes raw and edited .WAV files and MP3 access files.
- Type of Record
- Archival Description
Audio Tracks
Interview with Lloyd Gething - September 11 1991
Interview with Lloyd Gething - September 11 1991
https://search.bvmuseum.org/media/Digital%20Fonds%20and%20Collections/C5%20BVM%20Oral%20History%20collection/2021.21.39_Gething,%20Lloyd/Gething,%20Lloyd%20ACCESS.MP3
Interview begins with an overview of the Gething family's early involvement in mining throughout the Pacific Northwest in the late 19th/early 20th centuries. They were closely connected in this venture with the Aylard and Green families, with whom they owned land at Hudson Hope and in the Kootenay District.
Ann Arbor; Babine Trail; coal mines; coal mining; Dockrill family; geology; George Aylard; George Henderson; hard rock; Hudson Hope; Hunter Basin; Jim Cronin; Kootenay District; Peace River District; Robert Green; silver; Spokane; Victoria; WAC Bennett Dam
family history; Gething family; mining
Shortly after Lloyd Gething's birth in 1912, the family moved from Vancouver to Prince George. They operated a farm at Vanderhoof for four years and later moved to Hudson Hope to develop a coal mine.
British Navy; coal fields; D.A. Thomas (Lord Rhondda); Fawcett farm; Geological Survey of Canada; Grand Trunk Pacific Railway; Groundhog mine claims; Lady Jane; Prince George; railway; steamboats; tie camps; Vancouver; Wales; World War I
coal mining; farming; Hudson Hope; northern BC; Peace River District; Vanderhoof
Gething recalls how his family ran an unsuccessful coal mine at Hudson Hope during the 1920s. When the popularity of coal declined in the early 1930s, Gething and his brothers sought other employment. He worked as a teacher, helped build an airport at Fort Nelson, attempted to join the army during WWII, and ran a trucking service along the Alaska Highway.
airport; Alaska Highway; barge; Canadian Pacific Railway; coal; correspondence courses; Edmonton, Dungevan and British Columbia Railway; Fort Nelson; Gething brothers; Great Depression; high school; mail service; Normal School; Peace River Crossing; river transport system; Rolla; sawmills; teacher training; teaching; test shipment; trucking; Upper Finlay River; Vancouver; World War II
coal mine; employment; Hudson Hope; jobs; occupations
When the coal market began to improve, Gething and his brothers returned to mining on their old family property at Hudson Hope.
Dawson Creek; drilling; farmers; Gething brothers; natural gas
coal mining; Hudson Hope
In 1951, Gething left Hudson Hope with the intention of moving to Kitimat, but ended up working at the Telkwa Coal Mine instead.
aluminum smelter; Art Dockrill; fire boss; Kitimat; Larry Gething; mining; niece; scenery; Terrace
Telkwa; Telkwa Coal Mine
Gething tells the story of how, as a young man, he spent a summer working for paleontologist Charles M. Sternberg, who discovered dinosaur tracks and ichthyosaur fossils in the Peace River area. This experience sparked Gething's interest in rocks and geology.
assistant packer; cook; dinosaur tracks; fossils; geology; ichthyosaur; paleontology; Peace River
Charles Sternberg; fossil hunting
Gething discusses work at the Telkwa Coal Mine, particularly the different equipment and technologies used by the miners.
air drills; air hoist; augers; blasting; Canadian Cellulose; compressor; drilling; electricity; equipment; explosives; hand drills; mine carts; mine tracks; pulp mill; punching machine; shafts; shifts; stumping powder; timbers; tunnels; work hours; workdays
coal mining; Telkwa Coal Mine
Gething explains the process necessary to become a certified miner.
inspectors; mining permit; oral examination
examinations; mining; qualifications
Continuation of discussion of the Telkwa Coal Mine and the specific processes carried out therein.
blasting; chain conveyors; coal sorting; cutting machine; drilling; duckbill loading; electric drills; hand loading; helpers; miners; routines; timbering
coal mining; Telkwa Coal Mine
Gething discusses the wages received by the miners, and his unsuccessful attempts to introduce bonuses to the system.
bonus basis; Dockrills; helpers; shift basis
payment; Telkwa Coal Mine; wages
Gething discusses what sort of people were employed at the Telkwa Coal Mine and how long they typically stayed.
employees; experienced miners; farmers; Germany; helpers; locals; Nanaimo; Scotland; seasonal work; turnover rates
coal mining; employment; miners; Telkwa Coal Mine
Gething gives an overview of the history of Telkwa Coal Mine prior to his arrival in 1951. He discusses its founding in 1922 by Jack McNeil and Asa 'Ace' Robinson, and how the first real operations started under the Dockrills later in the decade. Robinson later tried to open his own mine, which was taken over by Alexander Richmond during WWII. Gething further discusses Robinson's personality, mining experience, hobbies, and endeavours, as well as other small coal operations in the Bulkley Valley.
air hoist; Alexander Richmond; Davy lamp; Dockrills; fire boss; fire boss papers; Gillespie; Goat Creek; Hudson Bay Mountain; Porcher Island; prospecting; railway; Seaton; steam-operated equipment; Tom Atrill; tunnels; Twin Falls
Asa Robinson; coal mines; Jack McNeil; Telkwa Coal Mine