Ogden Point - Our Working Harbour
Before: image I-20616 courtesy of Royal BC Museum and Archives
After
By Doreen Marion Gee
The history of Ogden Point reads like an epic Hollywood movie with twists and turns, rise to glory, fall into obscurity and eventual triumph. It has had many colourful faces and bustling industries over the years and been a place where dreams are made and lost. Success, loss and tragedy speckle its past. But I remember red skies and a long stone path covered in mist. I recall my first crush. And childhood memories of a beautiful getaway with ocean waves and endless horizons.
Ogden Point is named after a notorious figure. Peter Skene Ogden was a violent man with a trigger finger and volatile temper. In May 1816, Ogden served with the North West Company in Green Lake, Northern Saskatchewan. According to the federal government's Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online, "Ogden and a small group of men forced the Hudson Bay Company clerk to hand over to them a local Indian who had persisted in trading with the British company" and "the Indian was butchered in a most cruel manner just a short distance from the fort." A charge of murder was laid against Ogden so his superiors quickly transferred him down south to Oregon. He was eventually hired as a chief trader in the new HBC/NWC coalition and gained trapping rights over a huge territory. The introduction to his own 1825 journal states that Ogden travelled and explored more widely and brought in more furs than anyone else in his time.
In this issue...
Celebrate Summer in the City: Summertime Events in James Bay
Honouring Our Neighbour: Dr. Mary-Lou Florian
MP Report: Raising the Level of Debate in Parliament
MLA Report: Serving the Community
JB Co-op Community Health Centre Initiates Rapid Access Visits
Greater Victoria Harbour Authority's Many Roles
James Bay Community Project: New Board Members and New Executive Director
James Bay Community Centre: A Student's Perspective
Warm and Sunny all the Time at New Horizons
TAPS Thanks the James Bay Community
Preparation, the Key to Successful Breastfeeding
The Victoria Genealogical Society
Calcium Supplements - Yes or No?
Letters to the Editor
Recipes by Conni Atwell
Spinach Salad with Orange Poppyseed Dressing
This Month's Mystery House
Last month's mystery house was 36 Menzies Street.
The 2011 cruise ship schedule is available here.