Tuesday, May 12, 2020

Coquitlam Archives and Nursing

The hospital museum society, donated most of their hospital, nursing historical materials to the City of Coquitlam, where they are kept by the Coquitlam Archives. The Archives have created a short online presentation:    An emerging Profession: Psychiatric Nursing at Esondale, 1913-1973.

          And another more recent article:
        “An Ode to A Nurse in Training”: School Life for a Student Psychiatric Nurse.

      Also the City of Coquitlam has created a few documents that list the many items ( many related to nursing ), all available on a dedicated web page Riverview Hospital Artifact Collection

Saturday, January 19, 2019

Betty-Claire Fenby

Spotted this photograph at the Vancouver Archives:

CVA 586-9606 - Miss B.C. Fenby, Nurses Home #1, Essondale B.C. 

  Photograph taken Nov. 28, 1946 .
After a little searching found out that she is,  Betty-Claire Fenby. She shows up only once in the 1947 directory, as working at Essondale.
 The 1948 directory lists her as an employee at Canadian Forest Products, and rooming at 1107 7th Av., New Westminster.

Betty Claire Christiansen, was born on the 4th of August 1925 at Edmonton, Alberta; her parents were Grover Ashton Fenby (1888 - 1962) who worked as an engineer for the CNR; and her mother Ethel Alma Sparrow (1895 - 1965), Betty-Claire Christiansen died of lung cancer on the 29th of June 1990 at the age of 64, at St. Mary's hospital, New Westminster. Death Certificate ( One -- Two

Betty was listed as a manager of a bakery on her death certificate, and lived in trailer #42,  in the Wildwood Trailer Park, at 201 Cayer Street, in Coquitlam.
Listing of her siblings:
1 .Keith Bernard Fenby 1916
2. Kenneth Ashton Fenby 1918-1984
3. Glen Henry Fenby 1919-1996
4. Jack Dalton Fenby 1920-1922
5. Margaret Arleen Fenby 1923
6. Betty Claire Fenby "Christiansen" 1925 - 1990

The 1952 Directory lists her husband Roy Christiansen as working as a clerk for the CNR Express, and they lived at 1731 - 11th Avenue in Burnaby.
The next year Roy was a grader at J.R. Murray, which was a plywood and door manufacturer, and the couple had moved to 503 - 13th Avenue, in Burnaby, the next year Roy was listed as being a sander at J.R. Murray.  Which is where my current access to directories ends.

No idea what she was doing at Essondale, but I assume from the photograph being taken in Nurses Home #1, that she was undergoing nurses training at Essondale.




Saturday, February 22, 2014

Condition Assessment reports

        Recently after continual pressure was applied, the powers that be released some of the Condition Assessment Reports, created in 2013 on the buildings.
Most of the Nurses quarters were released.

Nurses No. 1 /  Administration    PDF
Nurses No.2 /  Fernwood Lodge  PDF
Nurses No.3 /  Cottage 107  PDF
Nurses No.4 /  Cottage 106  PDF
Nurses No.5 /  Cottage 109  PDF
Nurses No.6 /   Roadside  PDF
Nurses No.7 /   Leeside  PDF
Nurses No.8 /  Brookside  PDF
Nurses No. 9 /  Valleyview Lodge / BISCO Administration (Upper floor)
Nurses No.10 / Male Nurses "Apartments"   has been demolished
Nurses No.11 /  Henry Esson Young building  PDF

It is obvious from reading these reports that the buildings are suffering from gross neglect in maintenance.
Other building reports can be found by clicking on the individual buildings in my Riverview Map.

Sunday, December 8, 2013

Administration building / Nurses Home #1

Essondale Nurses Home #1 (B21741)  Riverview Hospital Administration building
        Henry Whittaker, Supervising Architect, Public Works Department 1928-1930

        The Nurses' Home was opened in 1930, and the first class of nurses graduated two years later. It is an interesting adaptation of the English Arts & Crafts vernacular, as popularized by C.F.A. Voysey, and illustrates the conscious design of the Riverview site in the manner of an English country estate. The building has 1,714.72 Sq. M. of usable space.
      There have been several alterations to the exterior,(sometime in the 60's).  The wide cedar cladding has been covered in stucco, and the arched arcade to the south has been partially infilled to accommodate an additional staircase from the second floor.
The Nurses' Home #1 is now used as the Riverview Hospital Administration Building.

      The interior of the Nurses' Home #1 is substantially intact; and the fir woodwork has not been painted.  One room has been carefully restored, the original Living Room, which is now used as a Reception Room.
 ( Unknown where the furniture from this room went. )
     It was designed in the Tudor Revival style, with fir panelling, a stenciled beamed ceiling with hammerbeam supports, oak floors, coloured glass in the windows, and a grand fireplace with inglenook seats.  There is also a small ancillary room that leads to the southern arcade.  The room is in pristine condition, and is used for displays of nursing school memorabilia.  Some original furnishings, marked with the 'MH' logo, are located in this room.

 An example of the furniture made at Essondale and marked with the MH logo



 You can clearly see the MH logo on the top rail of this chair.
Also common is to see the P.M.H. logo, ( Provincial Mental Hospital )
also the D.P.W.. logo, ( Department of Public Works ),
and the R.V.H., logo,( RiverView Hospital) among many other acronyms and logos.

     Sadly I was not able to get some decent pictures of the  restored nurses living room,
it was always in use, when I went to visit.


From what I understand this building is not being used at all at this time. :(

The contractor was Ernest Harold Shockley, who built at least five building at Essondale, possibly more.


                         Nurses Home #1 under construction March 14, 1929
Note:  in the left background is Cottage 113. And  Cottage 112 to the right.
To view or download a larger version of this image go to Van. Arch.  A23179

Nurses Home #1 under construction  April 23, 1929
To view or download a larger version of this image go to Van. Arch.  A23181

Nurses Home #1 under construction April 23, 1929
 Note: The home, was built beside the previous site of  John Davidsons botanical garden,
which continued to be used for growing plants, the gardeners struggled to remove the existing plants,
and in this photo we can clearly see that some large shrubs were left behind.
Also note in the far left, another building, now long gone, that appears to be
where todays,  Henry Esson Young, (HEY) building is.
To view or download a larger version of this image go to Van. Arch. A23180

Nurses Home #1 completed  September 25, 1929
To view or download a larger version of this image go to Van. Arch. A23178

Occupational Therapy,(O.T.) Patients working in the now
converted to a garden, site of the Botanical Garden.
( image:  Riverview Museum )
Patients working in the garden, ca.1949
( image: Riverview Museum )
Nurses Home #1 in 1958, photo taken from the Henry Esson Young building, parking lot.
Note: the washing on the line; also the fire escape, now removed, later replaced with a metal fire escape.
( image: George Diack, PNG )

Looks slightly different today

The northerly end of the Nurses Home #1, covered walkway
connects the building to Fernwood Lodge/ Nurses Home #2

Northerly, rear side of Nurses Home #1

Southerly, rear side of Nurse Home #1

Note: the chimney has been shortened considerably, obviously not in use anymore.

The entrance to Nurses Home #1
Come on in.

 Sign near the entrance

Looks nice in winter, too.


Saturday, December 7, 2013

Fernwood Lodge / Nurses home #2

Essondale Nurses Home #2, later renamed Fernwood Lodge (B21766)  1,552.04 Sq. M.

I recently found out that Fernwood was also nicknamed "Cinder Hill" because just slightly downhill from the building there is a conserable amount of cinders, through which a trail led down the steep bank, leading to Pitt River road, and many nurses would have walked along this short-cut to visit Port Coquitlam, and beyond.    ( Thanks for the info.,  Anna ! )

Henry Whittaker, Supervising Architect, Public Works Department, designed the building.

     The second Nurses' Home was opened in 1937, and was designed to complement the adjacent first Nurses' Home.  Together the two blocks create a consistent complex, horizontal and residential in feeling, oriented towards the view of the Fraser River.  This building is more utilitarian in appearance than the first Home, and its simple rectangular massing and regular fenestration reflect the economic hardships of the 1930s.  Visual interest is provided by the undulating rhythm of a regular series of projecting bays.

     The original wide wooden cladding has been covered with a coat of stucco, and the entry canopy has been removed, but the form of the building, and much of its interior, is intact.  It is now known as the Fernwood Lodge. Unknown who the contractor was, I will find out one day.

The local newpaper documented the official opening: The Coquitlam Herald. March 31,1938:  Officially opened April,6,1938 by Mrs.Frank MacPherson, wife of the Minister of Public Works, she received the keys from the contractor.  Other guests were; Mr.& Mrs.Byron Johnson; alderman & Mrs. J.A.Courtenay; Mayor R.C.Galer; Alderman & Mrs. Lewis Sangster; Mr. K.K.Reid; Reeve & Mrs. R.C.MacDonald; Reeve Mussalem, and ex-mayor Annandale.  The building cost $60,000, and will accommodate 72 nurses.

Sadly I have no old pictures of the lodge at this time, so pictures from more recent times will have to do.

At the present time, ArtsConnect (Tri-Cities Arts Council ) has an office in the building.
Tri-City  PLEA  Youth Services
       Tri Cities - Youth Services (Fernwood Lodge) - HDG
                PoCoMo Youth Services Society
                        Society for Community Development
List is probably not complete..


 Fernwood Lodge / Nurses Home #2 on the left. Administration/ Nurses Home #1 on the right.



 Entrance to Fernwood Lodge



 Fernwood Lodge, from Holly Drive.


 Looking at the rear of Fernwood Lodge, from Holly Drive.

 Portion of the front of Fernwood Lodge.


End of Ferwood Lodge; covered walkway leads to Administration building / Nurses Home #1

Southerly end of the rear portion of Fernwood Lodge.

Male Nurses #10 / Apartment

          This building, demolished rather quickly near the end to last century, was the exclusive domain of the male nurses at Essondale/ Riverview Hospital.
 Today where it once stood proudly is an area used as a green waste pile, by the grounds maintenance crews, who at the present time are severely lacking :( .  The apartment was located above and between West Lawn and Pennington Hall.  Nothing remains to remind anybody that it was there at all.


Apartment House, Essondale, B.C.   E.H. Shockley "contractor", March 14, 1929.
West Lawn in the left background
photo: Charles Edgar Stride, The Stride Studios, New Westminster. 
    View or download the original image at:  Van. Arch. A23175



 Apartment House, Essondale, B.C.   E.H. Shockley "contractor", April 23, 1929
photo: Charles Edgar Stride, The Stride Studios, New Westminster 1843-A
View or download the original image at Van. Arch. A23176



Apartment House, Essondale, B.C.    E.H. Shockley "contractor", April 23, 1929
photo: Charles Edgar Stride, The Stride Studios, New Westminster 1843-B
View or download the original image at Van. Arch. A23177


Apartment House, Essondale, B.C.   E.H. Shockley "contractor", Sept. 25, 1929
photo: Charles Edgar Stride, The Stride Studios, New Westminster  2041
View or download the original image at Van. Arch. A23174



date unknown,(ca.1940-50's) from the Riverview museum, (now closed )

    I will tell the story of the illustrious contractor, Ernest Harold Shockley, at a later date.
Unknown what the building cost to build at this time, but I know that the government of the day was going to defer many construction projects at the time, because of the Depression, but with the Depression came lower costs for labor, materials, etc, so they went ahead with it and a few more buildings on the property.