In one month, the ancient and honourable Hyack Anvil Battery will fire its traditional annual salute to the reigning monarch and to the memory of Queen Victoria on Victoria Day.
Once again this salute will take place in the stadium at Queen's Park, with the difference this year being that the event is coordinated by the Battery itself in cooperation with the City of New Westminster instead of being part of the Hyack Festival's organization.
The salute has occurred during the overall May festival for a few decades, but prior to that, the event took place at many different local venues. City permission was always needed since the group uses gunpowder and anvils to create a very loud boom.
There were several times when the salute was fired downtown by the CPR station, or down river a little more, near the foot of 10th St., close to the Gilley Brothers' dock and the railroad tracks.
Before that, the Battery would have been found saluting the sovereign in front of a blacksmith shop on Eighth Street, about midway between Columbia and Carnarvon streets. Blacksmith shop, anvils, forge, all were prerequisites for such a “shoot.”
One very interesting and rare photo shows the Battery setting up for a salute behind that same blacksmith shop but on Alexander Street, a street now gone, at the site of new Anvil Centre.
Other early salutes occurred at another blacksmith shop on Royal Avenue between Eighth and 10th streets, in the city hall parking lot, on the road in front of city hall, and in Queen's Park in the open area between the arena and the stadium.
Many people are interested in the Anvil Battery's history. Some because they remember the noise after attending the salute as a child, others because a family member was involved, and still others from memories of some of the special salutes the group has fired.
One lady commented that she was at the opening of the Centennial Lodge in 1960 and that the Anvil Battery shots rang out wonderfully in the trees of the park.
Folks are often surprised to see photos of the Battery firing at the opening of the Alex Fraser Bridge and yes, they fired up on the span itself.
That same year, 1986, they were part of a salute to the replica of Sir Francis Drake's ship, Golden Hinde, when the vessel visited the Fraser River after her part in Expo ’86.
There was a great deal of colour that day on our waterfront.
There is so much to the story of the Anvil Battery and the search continues for stories, photos and other family connections. The list of group members over the long life of the Battery is quite amazing - a tremendous Who's Who in the heritage of the Royal City.
Got something to add to the Battery's research quest? Contact anvilbattery@senseofhistory.com.
