There are a number of artifacts in the local museum that are special due to the broad scope of the story connected to them. One of these is a large red canoe that has been on display in various locations in New Westminster over the years, and today can be seen at the Fraser River Discovery Centre at Westminster Quay.
For many years, this striking 20-foot, v-stern freight Chestnut canoe was a featured exhibit at the New Westminster Museum on Royal Avenue, where visitors marvelled at its size and stout construction. They read the captions and wondered at the extensive expedition of which it had been a major component.
To emphasize this great canoe’s connection to the Fraser River, it was put it on display at the Westminster Quay Public Market where it again became a real focus of attention along with the information panels outlining its story. And now, through cooperation between the city’s museum and the Fraser River Discovery Centre, this canoe is a prominent exhibit at the Discovery Centre, an institution that strives to highlight the importance of the Fraser River. This large bright red boat is right at home as part of the river’s story.
But what makes this canoe important? In 1967, when Canada was celebrating the 100th anniversary of Confederation, four men were part of an innovative and educational project that would take courage and tremendous effort, while drawing on an array of historical links. These men, paddling the canoe and assisted by a land crew, would follow the routes of explorers and First Nations travellers across the continent from New Westminster to Montreal.
The expedition was known at the Eastward Ho Canoe Expedition, and those involved did what they set out to do. They travelled across Canada by rivers, streams, lakes, and portages and in so doing they honoured the early explorers who sought out the routes in centuries past, the First Nations who in most cases had sought out routes for themselves and then shared that information, and of course their country, Canada, in its 100th year.
And now in Canada’s 150th year, this adventurous expedition has once again been remembered through its incredible story and the legacies of those who made up the team that travelled from B.C. to Quebec. The Eastward Ho team in 1967 was Ralph Brine, Dave Chisholm, Don MacNaughton, and Jim Reid, along with the land party of Bill Gifford and Lorna and Edo Hemmes.
As you take in the exhibits at the Fraser River Discovery Centre at Westminster Quay, be sure to take a moment to look at the Eastward Ho canoe. Search references online for articles about this expedition, seek out the local community TV presentation from 1992 on the event’s 25th anniversary, and read the story in Canada’s Forgotten Highway by Ralph Brine. This is a great Canadian account with strong Fraser River and New Westminster connections.
