Special Features - Route 3 - April

P E O P L E A RTS H O M E S F O O D C U LT U R E R E C R E AT I O N H I S TO RY SPRING 2015

Life in the West Kootenay/Boundary Region

OLD-SCHOOL STYLE

Quality food and great service keep Star Grocery at the top of the grocery list

MEETING NATURE’S GAZE

Jim Lawrence hopes his photos will change viewers’ perspectives

THE BOUNTIFUL BOUNDARY

The Grand Forks region is home to several nurseries providing trees to Canada and the U.S.

Pretty Peonies Floral enthusiasts introduce the Kootenays’ first peony show in Castlegar

Hydropower in the West Kootenay The Arrow Lakes Generating Station and the Brilliant Dam & Expansion, both located near Castlegar, B.C., are owned by Columbia Power and Columbia Basin Trust.

Through our commitment to the community we have created informative viewing areas at each of these facilities, including interpretive signage. We encourage you to visit our viewing areas and learn more about hydroelectric generation in the West Kootenay.

Arrow Lakes Generating Station

Reclamation Area

Arrow Lakes Generating Station

Viewing Area

Hugh Keenleyside Dam

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Brilliant Dam

Waneta Dam

250.304.6060 columbiapower.org @columbiapower

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Highway 3A Broadwater Road

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Viewing Area

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Highway 22A

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Picnic Area & F i s h e r m a n ’s Hut

Brilliant Expansion

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contents Old-School Style by Sheri Regnier Quality food choices and great service keep Star Grocery at the top of the grocery list, page 5

Meeting Nature’s Gaze by Will Johnson Wildlife photographer Jim Lawrence hopes his photos will change viewers’ perspectives about our wild neighbours, page 8

For the Love of Peonies Floral enthusiasts introduce the Kootenays’ first peony show in Castlegar, page 13

The Bountiful Boundary by Craig Lindsay

The Grand Forks region is home to serveral nurseries providing beautiful trees to Canada and the U.S., page 17

Black Pioneers of the West Kootenay

PUBLISHER Karen Bennett publisher@nelsonstar.com EDITOR & ART DIRECTOR Shelley Ackerman sackerman@telus.net

ROUTE 3 is published by Black Press 250-442-2191 or 1-877-443-2191 Box 700, 7330 2nd Street Grand Forks, B.C. V0H 1H0 Printed in Canada on recyclable paper.

Copyright 2015 by Black Press. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any article, photograph, or artwork without written permission of the publisher is strictly forbidden. The publisher can assume no responsibility for unsolicited material.

Cover photo courtesy Dutch Girl Peonies: Gardenia peonies are just one of the many, many gorgeous peonies you'll see at the B.C./Yukon Peony Show in Castlegar this June.

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by Greg Nesteroff, page 22

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Spring 2015 ROUTE 3

Page 3

TIDBITS – a taste of what’s happening in the West Kootenay/Boundary Friendly. Healthy. Community owned.

organic produce hundreds of bulk items prepared foods fresh meat & seafood grocery vitamins & supplements healthy bodycare products

Kootenay Co-op 295 Baker St, Nelson t: 250 354 4077 info@kootenay.coop

www.kootenay.coop

May 6 – 10 Five days and nights of fun, food and entertainment.

West Coast Amusements brings in their carnival rides, food vendors and games to create a fun-filled family oriented event. www.trail.ca/ en/play/silver-citydays.asp PERMACULTURE: THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF ABUNDANCE

Open every day 7:30am - 9pm vis it us on line :

TRAIL SILVER CITY DAYS

f

Rossland May 8 – 10 Three days of intense, in-depth, insitu learning of core tenets in permaculture design. With Andrew Bennett, Moon Gravity Farm, and guest speakers. monasheeinstitute. org/events/ GRAND FORKS FARMER'S MARKET

Fridays and Tuesdays, May 9 to Oct. 31 Gyro Park.

Locally grown fruit and veggies, bedding plants, flowers, trees and shrubs, locally raised meat and eggs, handmade prepared foods, handmade crafts and so much more!

NELSON GARDEN FESTIVAL

Saturday, May 9 The 14th Annual fes-

CORRECTION

tival takes place on Mother's Day Weekend and will feature 60 booths of veggies, flowers, perennials and annuals, shrubs and bulbs. www.ecosociety.ca

May Pole Dance performed by the 1st graders of Kaslo, Logger Sports Competition, Sk8Park Demonstration, and more. www.kaslochamber.com

SS MOYIE OPEN HOUSE

6TH ANNUAL CASTLEGAR GARDEN & NATURE FEST

Kaslo Sunday, May 10 Step back in time, on-board the SS Moyie. Meet staff, volunteers and board members and tour the site. www.klhs.bc.ca ROSSLAND MOUNTAIN MARKET

Downtown Rossland Thursday May 14 The Garden Festival Thursday June 4 First Summer Farmer's Market COTTONWOOD COMMUNITY MARKET

Weekly on Saturday May 16 to Oct. 31 Everything from bedding plants to locally grown produce, delicious ready to eat foods to organic meat and eggs, handmade artisan gifts to locally made body care products. www.ecosociety.ca KASLO MAY DAYS CELEBRATION

Downtown Kaslo May 16 –18 Celebrating 121 continuous years!

Saturday, May 23 Castlegar Community & Recreation Complex.

Plants and gardens will be featured, as well as farming, food production, organic growing and more www.castlegar gardenfest.com CASTLEGAR SUNFEST

June 5 – 7 Kinsmen Park.

The weekend begins with a fundraising BBQ on Friday at noon. Dozens of food and merchandise vendors and a variety of activities and entertainment all weekend. www.castlegar culture.com NELSON'S DOWNTOWN LOCAL MARKET

Starting June 10 Wednesdays from 9:30 am to 3:00 pm until September 23.

An amazing mix of 50 local vendors offering fresh produce, plants, prepared foods and more.

A story in the Winter 2014/15 edition about the Robson zoo contained two errors. According to Tina Crantz, who grew up there, the talking mynah was named Jo-Jo, while the cougar with the gold tooth was Nikki, not Herman.

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ROUTE 3 Spring 2015

FOOD & DRINK

OLDSCHOOL STYLE Quality food choices and great service keep Star Grocery at the top of the grocery list STORY BY

Sheri Regnier

PHOTO SHERI REGNIER

W

hile a food revolution is sweeping North America, nestled in the City of Trail’s historic Gulch is a very special market that has been serving up nothing but the real deal since 1972.

Forget processed foods like cellophaned cheese slices, mystery deli meats, or steaks wrapped in plastic on a styrofoam tray — that’s something shoppers will never find at Star Grocery.

Instead, store owner Pasquale Amantea will grind hamburger while you wait, or cut Sunday night’s sirloin to order before he wraps it the traditional way, which is in brown butcher paper he secures with a quick one-two off a spool of string.

It’s that old-school style that weaves Star Grocery into the cultural fabric of Trail. ➤

Juanita Lankhaar has learned a lot about authentic foods working behind Star Grocery's front counter, but says the best part of her day is greeting regular customers.

Spring 2015 ROUTE 3

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ROUTE 3 Spring 2015

PHOTO: TRAIL TIMES

Born in Calabria, Italy, Pasquale’s first language is Italian, though his English is fluent having lived in Trail since he was a child.

He’s witnessed first hand how Trail’s culture has changed in both home and community, especially in relation to food and wine preparation.

“Back in the day, we used to bring in sides of beef and pack them in from the sidewalk,” recalled Pasquale. “There was a huge demand for that, and it was a family thing. The husband and wife would come down in the evening or on the weekend while my brother and I cut the beef — we did it right in front of them and cut it the way they wanted.”

In today’s 24/7 world, Amantea says that his customers drop in at the end of their work day, asking for something fast and easy, like a couple of steaks, pork chops or sausages.

“Years ago, housewives would ask me for the less expensive, tougher cuts of beef, and stay in the kitchen for hours to cook a meal.

That’s changed now that more women are working.”

Pasquale was in high school when he began working for a downtown Trail grocery chain. When the opportunity to work for himself rose, with encouragement from his family, the young man took a leap of faith and bought the already established Star Grocery.

“We were good customers of the family business,” he explained, referencing Star Grocery’s previous owners, the Bertoias, who ran the business since the late 1940s from another Gulch location. “They were moving to Vancouver. So he was talking to my dad and they kind of made the decision for me, the owner and my dad,” he laughed. “But I was working at Over“...he knows waitea and it was also shutting down. So that was it, I jumped right in.” every family Pasquale recalls the challenge in those days, being the competition between momand everyone and-pop grocers that were scattered throughout west Trail and Annable. who goes in “Back then it was all small stores on Nelson Avenue and up on Binns Street,” he said. “And there and he there was a good half dozen grocery stores and butcher shops along Rossland Avenue.” tries to please The small-business climate ended as store owners neared retirement and big box stores us all.” arrived. “When the mall (Waneta Plaza) came in the late 70s, a big store went in,” he added.

—Mary Zanier “It all changed after that.”

The doors closed on all the neighbourhood shops over the past few decades, as Star Grocery continued to serve a steady stream of the city’s Italian speaking pioneers while drawing in younger foodies from both near and far.

So, what is Amantea’s secret to success?

“I think it’s probably good service and good product, those are the two key things,” said the husband and father of three.

Mary Zanier will attest to that and more. She was one of the first customers to step through Star Grocery’s front door all those years ago. Zanier continues to shop there at least once a day and says the store has always been a blessing in disguise.

“I still remember my first time I went in,” recalled Zanier, a Gulch resident since 1951. “We just talked about this a few days ago,” she chuckled. “I went in the first day and said, ‘Pasquale, I want to order a steak.’

Pasquale Amantea brings in grapes from California every September, for customers who prefer to make their own wine the old-fashioned way.

“So he brought me one that was like this,” Mary said, holding her hands out in the shape of a small oval.

“I said, ‘What’s this? I wanted a steak, and this looks like it’s for a four-year old,’” laughed the diminutive lady, now an octogenarian. “I wanted a big steak. So now, every time I go in and order a steak, I joke and say to Mark, (the other butcher)‘I want your steak not Pasquale’s’.

We laugh every time.”

She became earnest, however, when talking about the integral role Star Grocery has played in the Greater Trail community.

“It was a blessing when he opened up the store because all the older generation of people, Italian especially, didn’t know any English,” explained Mary. “So when we went in there we could speak Italian and it was fine. And he is very good, because he knows every family and everyone who goes in there and he tries to please us all. You can depend on him for whatever you ask.”

Zanier said her brother-in-law who lives in Castlegar, for example, loves homemade sausages but cannot have pepper of any kind.

“So Pasquale makes him 30 pounds of sausage without pepper all at one time, then he freezes the packages for him.

“When the sausages get low, he lets us know and we order more. So you see, he tries to please you if he can, and treats everybody so well.”

Juanita Lankhaar is a Kootenay girl, working behind Star Grocery’s front (deli) counter. She says greeting customers is the best part of every shift.

“What I most enjoy is talking with the traditional Italian folks who come in,” said Lankhaar. “And putting a smile on their face,” she con-

Illustrator Mal Gagnon created this classic pencil drawing of Star Grocery and the Gulch.

tinued. “I’ve never been keen on packaged foods, so I am absolutely learning more about authentic foods and getting recipes for products I’ve never tried.”

She said customers from across Canada, the States and all over the world come into the store when they are visiting in the area, and pick up everything from deli items and cheeses to fresh cuts of beef.

“We have a man from Denmark who comes to the ski hill, checks in,

then heads down here for steaks,” she added. “Just the other day, we enjoyed chit chatting with a customer from South Africa.”

While the store still harkens back to a simpler time, Amantea does keep up with certain food trends. With EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) now a household word, he’s expanded the traditional staple to meet the present-day consumer thirst for pure olive oil.

Enticing rows of bottled gold that hails from Italy, Greece, Portugal, Spain, Australia and California line the top of Star Grocery’s deli case, packed with authentic cured meats and imported cheeses.

“That’s really grown over the years,” he said. “We had a fellow in the other day from Colville (Wash.) who bought a selection of oils, because he said he couldn’t find good ones in the Spokane area.”

Another link between Star Grocery and Trail’s unique European heritage is the store’s place within the winemaking community.

Traditionally, customers would line up bright and early, ready to pack home wooden boxes full of grapes Amantea imports from California every September.

While many in the Trail community continue to make their own vintage, he says there has been a major shift in the winemaking market.

“We still order grapes in from California, but that has really slowed down,” said Pasquale. “The new generation doesn’t want to do all the fuss and muss so they buy the juice instead. Or they buy the kits year round because you only need a little space to make the wine. That’s the beauty of it, but you’d be surprised because we still have customers who want the grapes.”

It’s that generational connection, linking past and present, that continues to make Star Grocery and unique and cherished part of the Greater Trail community.

Photo by Jason Mannings, Marketfest

Surprise Yourself Come to the Nelson Kootenay Lake area for a magical experience: fresh air, stunning views along Kootenay Lake, heritage buildings, places to stay, dining, boutique shopping, live performances, rafting, galleries, hot springs, museums, hiking, biking, movies, skateboard parks, yoga, spas, and more. Check out our many Travel Deals, and if you’re not sure what to see & do visit our Trip Ideas and Events Calendar on our new website.

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Spring 2015 ROUTE 3

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THE GREAT OUTDOORS

Meeting Nature’s ➤

Wildlife photographer Jim Lawrence hopes his photos will change viewers’ perspectives about our wild neighbours Page 8

ROUTE 3 Spring 2015

PHOTO: JIM LAWRENCE

STORY BY

Will Johnson

PHOTO: JIM LAWRENCE

Gaze

E

arly each morning Kootenay wildlife photographer Jim Lawrence leaves his isolated Cooper Creek cottage north of Kaslo and climbs into his truck with a few key tools: a camera, a chainsaw and a pair of binoculars.

Every now and then his wife will leave him a yellow sticky note taped to the dashboard — a form of communication necessitated by his long, solitary hours spent outside cell phone range — and he’ll take a sip of his French-pressed coffee, turn his keys in the ignition and head out searching for an animal who might meet his gaze.

Over the course of his multi-decade career as both a photographer and a teacher, Lawrence has found himself looking into the eyes of a seemingly endless variety of animals.

In the photo on the cover of Miriam Neeboda’s 12-minute documentary Eyes in the Forest: The Portraiture of Jim Lawrence, a great horned owl glares straight at the camera with startling, amber-hued intensity. In another successful shot a doe winks at him, its tongue lolling playfully from its mouth.

And then there’s Apple, a hefty-looking female grizzly that Lawrence has photographed exhaustively and considers a friend. In one of his favourite pieces, “Resting Place,” she gazes benevolently in his direction.

This technique is something Lawrence picked up from studying the work of famed Armenian-Canadian Yousuf Karsh, who was best known for portraits of ➤ Left: This shaggy, five-year-old grizzly was captured gazing through Jim Lawrence's camera lens in an image that went viral on Facebook in early November, garnering the Kootenay wildlife photographer media attention country-wide.

Above: Lawrence is well-known for his portraits of owls, such as this handsome barred owl.

PHOTO: WILL JOHNSON

Kootenay wildlife photographer Jim Lawrence has been spent decades behind the lens of a camera, waiting patiently to capture moments of rare natural beauty.

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ROUTE 3 Spring 2015

celebrities such as Albert Einstein and Ernest Hemingway. Following Karsh’s eye-centric example, he waits patiently until the animal’s gaze swings in his direction before pressing the shutter.

This may sound easier than it really is, though. Lawrence estimates that nine times out of 10, his day-trip wildlife expeditions end with nary a single usable print. Even locating the animal — let alone making eye contact with it — can often be a struggle. But he’s so in love with his subjects and the rare moments he shares with them, that the time commitment doesn’t bother him.

And after years of practice, he’s gotten pretty patient.

Back in his studio is the other half of Lawrence’s job, where prints are piled on top of each other as he prepares them for framing and shipping. Lately his best-selling image has been of a young grizzly looking through his tripod, an image that made a social media splash in November, earning him media attention country-wide.

He’s also made a second version available, taken only a few seconds earlier, in which the bear is tentatively approaching the viewfinder with one exploratory paw outstretched.

On every wall Lawrence has examples of his work, from macro shots of flowers to sweeping, grandiose mountain vistas. One of his most popular images shows an eagle and a crow sitting alongside a bloody carcass, looking suspiciously at one another. Beside that an elk thumps at the ground with its hoof, giving a warning signal to steer clear. Lawrence has a unique ability to capture his subject’s personalities, whether he’s shooting a bear cub swinging from a branch or a noble-looking bald eagle giving him the evil eye.

But Lawrence’s affection for these animals is manifested in more than just photos. He is also passionate about protecting endangered wildlife and encouraging those around him to pay more attention to their plight. A long-time critic of trophy hunting, he also routinely speaks out against local issues such as the ongoing wolf cull, which is intended to protect caribou populations.

“It’s become more important to make people aware of the strife our other species are going through. A recent report from the London Zoological Society shows that we’ve lost 52 per cent of our wildlife species in 40 years. It’s sobering. That’s a big number. And it’s even worse for fresh water fish and reptiles, frogs,” he said.

ALL PHOTOS: JIM LAWRENCE

Lawrence wants the government to stop allowing foreign hunters to travel to B.C. to kill the bears he loves.

And because bear-viewing and bear photography is now worth between five and ten times more to the province than trophy hunting, he thinks a shift in priorities is badly needed. He has immersed himself in the issue, researching and liaising with other wildlife enthusiasts to figure out the best way to engage with the problem.

During his down-time, Lawrence is currently working his way through The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert, a book that details to the ongoing effects of human habitation on ecosystems and animal populations.

This is a topic he’s spent a lot of time thinking about, and one that fills him with dread and grief. He believes that a properly composed photo can inspire a cathartic empathy in the viewer, capable of changing their perspective. His hope is that the images he shares with the world will remind people of their responsibility to their biological neighbours. Because once you’ve looked another animal in the eyes, it makes it harder to lift up a gun and shoot it.

Lawrence’s photos are currently on display at: Kootenay Gallery in Castlegar, Craft Connection in Nelson, Sunnyside Naturals in Kaslo, Dragonfly Cafe in Salmo, Willow Home Gallery in Kaslo, Village Arts in Invermere, Live Arts in Kaslo, Art Gallery of Golden in Golden, Kokanee Gallery in Nelson, and Rossland Art Gallery in Rossland.

For more information on Jim Lawrence and his work, visit kootenayreflections.com.

These stunning portraits of wildlife, including Apple (bottom) a hefty-looking female grizzly Lawrence has shot exhaustively, were all captured in and around the Kootenays.

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FOR THE LOVE OF

PEONIES Page 12

ROUTE 3 Spring 2015

PHOTO: WILL JOHNSON

GARDENING

Floral enthusiasts introduce the Kootenays’ first peony show in Castlegar

T

PHOTOS COURTESY DUTCH GIRL PEONIES

The Kootenay’s first ever peony showcase is coming to Castlegar this June, and organizers are hoping this will become an annual event. They are inviting floral enthusiasts of all stripes to participate in the B.C./Yukon Peony Show, which runs from June 27 to 28.

Darlene Kalawsky, Holly Pender-Love and Adriana Work are three of the organizers responsible for bringing the Kootenays’ first ever B.C./Yukon Peony Show.

“This event is the first of its kind out here,” said organizer Holly Pender-Love. She told Route 3 that amateur and professionals alike are welcome to participate in the competition, which will give them an opportunity to have their flowers judged.

David Maltby, president of the Canadian Peony Society, expressed his enthusiasm for the Castlegar show.

“The Canadian Peony Society is devoted to the promotion of the exiting new advances of peonies available for home gardeners. The new brilliant colours of the hybrid peonies, the reliably cold-hardy tree peonies and the stunning new Itoh cultivars. The first annual (hopefully annual) show in Castlegar is a reflection of this new surge of interest of gardeners in acquiring and growing the new wave of peonies available to gardeners now,” he said. ➤

Spring 2015 ROUTE 3

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PHOTO COURTESY DUTCH GIRL PEONIES

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ROUTE 3 Spring 2015

there for your grandkids.”

“Now we have a dedicated group in Castlegar who have organized their first show.

This is an opportunity for the community of Castlegar first to promote peonies but also to develop an ongoing attraction for the City and region. Other cities have taken advantage of the resurgence of interest in gardening and peonies to draw visitors and guests to their city. One has only to look to the Oshawa peony festival to see the potential.”

Recently the society donated a rare Adrienne Clarkson peony to the Castlegar Museum Garden to help promote the upcoming show.

“This special peony was developed by Maurice Menard of Laval, Quebec, in recognition of Governor General Adrienne Clarkson. This peony may be seen in the gardens at Rideau Hall in Ottawa,” said Pender-Love.

“There are so many different types, and they all have names. Some people call them flowers, but we have endless names,” she said, noting that five of her favourite types of peony are called White Wings, Fern Leaf, Sword Dance, Barrington Belle and Scarlet O’Hara.

Together with Adriana Work, owner of Dutch Girl Peonies, Pender-Love is hoping to educate residents about these floral delights.

“I thought when I moved to my little place in Warfield I’d have room for 14 peonies but I now have 32. Peonies are

low-maintenance, and really good for lazy gardeners,” said Pender-Love.

They also have incredible longevity.

“They last for 50 to 100 years, if they’re planted right and have 6 hours of sunshine a day, they’ll be there for your grandkids.”

Work said she fell in love with the flowers while she was working full-time on her farm in Beasley.

“I didn’t have time for a flower garden but there were already peonies and they bloomed every year. I found out what they were and I thought ‘this is the flower for me’,” said Work.

She eventually retired, and now she grows and sells peonies for a living.

She currently has over 90 varieties. And though she’s involved in the event, you don’t have to be a professional like her to participate.

“Some people, when they see peony show, they might think it’s for somebody else, somebody who knows a lot about horticulture. But it’s not. We want just your everyday gardener who loves their peony to bring it in and show it to us. We want to make it a real regional event,” she said.

The B.C./Yukon Peony show is pleased to have engaged Carol and Jim Adelman as judges. The Adelmans are well known in both the Canadian and American peony societies.

“They have been successful growers in the field and winners in competition, thereby establishing the quality of their peony products,” said Holly Pender-Love.

She originally met the Adelmans at a 2011 show in Calgary, where they were all preparing buds for the show.

“When it came time to select a judge for our show, it was great to be able to ask someone we knew,” said Pender-Love.

Carol will be speaking at the Castlegar Community Complex on June 27. Tickets will be available locally and online.

There general public will not be admitted to the peony show until Sunday. That day’s events will run in tandem with the Castlegar Garden Tour from 9 a.m to 4 p.m. on June 28. The peony show is grateful for the support of the Castlegar Communities in Bloom program and the Castlegar Garden Club.

Tickets are available at Kalawsky GM in Castlegar, Otter Books in Nelson and The Doorway in Trail, BC.

GARDEN TOURS IN THE REGION The Castlegar Garden Club is hosting their annual garden tour on June 28. Approximately 10 gardens in Castlegar and the surrounding communities are featured in this self-guided tour. During the tour, music by the Wind River Flute Quartet wafts through the gardens, which will bring reminiscences of a bygone era. Local artists and art will be featured in one of the gardens. Admission is by donation. For more information visit castlegarculture.com.

The Gallery 2 Garden Tour 2015 takes place July 4 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tickets are available at Gallery 2 in Grand Forks for $15. Bus Tour tickets are $25. The tour starts at Gallery 2, where you can pick up your program and map. The tour will visit several amazing Grand Forks gardens, as well as head up to the North Forks area this year.

Trail in Bloom Garden Contest and Tour: Each year, Trail gardeners compete in a variety of categories for the Best Residential Garden award, sponsored by Teck Metals Ltd. The public is welcome to share in the awards night, an evening of Wine & Cheese, July 8 at the Piazza Colombo. The Garden Tour (July 11) highlights the winners — usually a dozen or more gardens spread all over town. For luncheon tickets and for full contest details, contact Annette Gallatin at 364-1806.

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Carved through majestic pines

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Columbia Basin Culture Tour Aug 8 - 9, 2015

10:00am - 5:00pm

Explore artists’ studios, museums, art galleries and heritage sites through this free, self-guided tour within the Columbia Basin.

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Meet the artists, shop for fine art and craft, view demonstrations, special exhibitions, interpretive displays or chat with local10:00 historians during this am-5:00 pm cultural celebration!

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ROUTE 3 Spring 2015

24th KASLO JAZZ ETC. SUMMER MUSIC FESTIVAL

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FARMING & AGRICULTURE

The Grand Forks region is home to several nurseries providing beautiful trees to Canada and the United States

W

ith all the sunshine and lush land in the Boundary area, it’s not surprising to see several flourishing tree nurseries in the area.

Grand Forks has a rich background of large growers, like Riverside Nurseries which supplied thousands of fruit trees to the Okanagan and the valley west of Kamloops in the early 20th century. During World War II, Grand Forks became a major force world wide in the development of flower seeds until Holland and Belgium recovered.

These days three major nurseries, Advance Orchard, Bron & Sons, and StewSTORY BY art Brothers, are doing very well in the Grand Forks and Boundary area. Each has its own different products and markets and employ many people in the region.

Situated between Grand Forks and Christina Lake is Advance Nursery, a wholesale producer of prairie hardy deciduous fruit, shade and ornamental trees grown for colder regions of Canada and the

Craig Lindsay

United States.

Advance is owned by Fred and Christine Elsaesser, who bought the nursery in 2007 from original owners Garfield and Monika Marshall.

The nursery began in 1980 as a grower of commercial fruit trees for the Okanagan tree fruit industry and hardy deciduous trees for the Canadian prairies. In 1993, it was decided to expand the line of hardy deciduous fruit, shade and ornamental trees for the colder regions of Canada and the northern U.S. and make the move away from growing commercial fruit trees.

“I worked in the forestry industry for a number of years,” said Fred.

“The previous owners were looking for an exit strategy and we were looking for a business opportunity.”

The Elsaessers came from Kamloops to operate the business, which sits on 140 hectares.

“We’re a wholesale nursery of what’s called liner stock,” said Fred.

“It’s a bare-root, field-grown product. It’s all focusing on growing for colder regions in Canada and the U.S. We’re not typically growing for the Okanagan, so it’s Kamloops north, the Rocky Mountain trench, ➤

Spring 2015 ROUTE 3

Page 17

PHOTO COURTESY ADVANCE NURSERY

The Bountiful Boundary

PHOTO COURTESY STEWART BROTHERS

PHOTO: CRAIG LINDSAY PHOTO COURTESY BRON & SONS

from the Stewart family and have been operating it since.

“I started working for Stewart Brothers back in 1979 and my brother started in 1972,” said Kal Jhaj.

“During peak season we have six people working in Midway and six in Grand Forks,” he said. “We grow prairie-hardy caliper trees right from seed and ship them mostly to Western Canada and the United States.

Everything is grown outside.

“Their family ran it for over 100 years and we bought it now and are running it the same way,” he said. “We added fruit trees to our production recently. We focus on providing high-quality products and pride ourselves on customer service.”

The nursery continues to provide shade trees for retail nurseries, garden centres, wholesale nurseries, commercial and residential landscapers, and many more wholesalers.

Rows of Big River flowering crabapples trees bloom at Advance Nursery.

Clockwise from bottom left: An aerial view of Bron & Sons Nursery; Ed. Hans and Vince Bron with acres of new plants behind them; A semi-load of Stewart Brothers trees, ready to be shipped.

the prairies and the northern United States.”

Fred says that as a wholesale nursery, Advance sells to growers such as Stewart Bros. who will then put them in the ground and grow them into bigger caliper (larger trunk diameter) trees.

“A lot of our customers are caliper growers,” he said. “They line them out in their fields and grow them, or we will sell them to operations that will stick them in a pot and sell them as retail items.”

Fred adds that Grand Forks has an ideal climate for growing.

“Good summer heat; typical early summers,” he said. “It’s much more difficult to do what we’re doing if it’s a wetter climate. You would get more disease problem.”

Advance employs five full-time year-round employees and another 30 seasonal employees.

S

tewart Brothers Nurseries is a wholesale tree nursery specializing in growing prairie-hardy deciduous and coniferous trees.

Stewart Brothers Nurseries started in 1911 in Kelowna when two brothers, William and Richard Stewart, saved up enough money working at various orchards in the Okanagan to be able to buy their own.

Although the head office and original nurseries are still located in Kelowna, the nursery operates growing fields in Grand Forks (105 hectares) and Midway (90 hectares).

Brothers Kal and Avtar Jhaj bought the nursery about a year ago

Page 18

ROUTE 3 Spring 2015

A

nother family-run nursery in the Boundary is Bron & Sons Nursery, which is owned and operated by brothers Ed and Vince Bron.

Bron & Sons began in Grand Forks in 1988 as Greenview Nurseries on eight hectares of land and has grown to approximately 40 hectares. They started with 20 employees and are now at 110.

They are a wholesale-exclusive company, specializing in cold-hardy, container-grown nursery stock.

“The company was actually started by our father (Hans) back in 1967,” said Ed Bron. “When we moved out here we ended up selling the Calgary operation and we had to do a name change. We changed it to Bron & Sons Nursery in 1996.”

As soon as the boys could stand, they were working in the nursery, recalls Ed. “Both my brother and myself had always worked as long as I can remember,” he said. “We were moving pipes in the field, or weeding, or transplanting annuals.”

Ed said the company mainly targets colder markets as well as higher elevation areas where plants struggle.

“Our niche and our client base is colder climates,” he said. “We ship to Alaska and across to the prairies and to states like Idaho, Washington, Colorado, New Mexico, and Wyoming.”

The companies’ plants run the gamut from perennials to shrubs to vines to roses to trees. “It’s a pretty diverse product mix,” he said. “We have about 950 different kinds of plants.”

Ed said Grand Forks ended up being the ideal location for the nursery.

“Back then when we purchased it in 1988, land was cheap here,” he said.

“Water is good; nice sunshine; very little wind. It’s a very reliable climate.”

Ed credits the growth and success of the business to the loyalty of their customers. “It’s grown by leaps and bounds,” he said. “We can attribute it to our customers being loyal and we put out a good product and serve our customers very well.”

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HISTORY BY

Greg Nesteroff

BLACK PIONEERS OF THE WEST KOOTENAY

N

PHOTO COURTESY TOUCHSTONES NELSON.

ot much has been written about early black citizens of this area. Although hundreds of blacks emigrated to B.C. from the United States beginning in the late 1850s, few ended up in West Kootenay, and scant attention has been paid to those who did.

In the unofficial Eurocentric caste system of the late 19th and early 20th century, blacks were clearly assigned a lower social status, but not as poorly regarded as Asians.

Newspapers usually only mentioned them if they were in trouble with the law — making sure to note their skin colour, as though somehow relevant to the crime — but some were widely respected.

THE MIDNIGHT NURSE

Best-remembered is Alice Foster, a midwife and laundress in Nelson, once described as “a big-hearted old soul known throughout the whole district as Mother Foster.”

Reportedly a chambermaid on steamboats that sailed the upper Missouri river, she came from Fort Benton, Montana to the Northwest Territories during construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway in the 1880s. She followed the railway’s progress into B.C. and lived at Illecillewaet, Revelstoke, and Golden where she ran a laundry.

According to the late Earle Dickey of Revelstoke, her husband was a barber whose chair was broken by a train conductor named Flyn as it was transported to Golden. When Flyn came in for a shave, Mr. Foster threatened to cut his throat. Flyn responded by shooting and killing him.

He was arrested and apparently tried in Kamloops, but the outcome is unknown, as is the source of Dickey’s information — he wasn’t alive when it happened and no newspaper accounts survive.

There is, however, something to the story, for a death registration exists for a black man named William Foster who was shot at Revelstoke on Sept. 29, 1889, age 40.

After her husband’s death, Alice Foster allegedly opened a brothel in Golden, where she was one of several black madams. Soon after, however, she moved to Nelson, becoming one of the first women to settle there. She established a laundry and bathhouse on Baker Street whose ads promised “All work turned out promptly and in first-class style” and ironically, “None but white help employed.” That was a dig

Above: Porcupine Billy (left) and Boss Smith were described as inseparable in the 1890s.

Below: This ad for Alice Foster’s laundry in The Miner on July 5, 1890 ironically touted its all-white help.

at the Chinese laundries, presumably in the hope one racial prejudice might be trumped by an even deeper-held prejudice.

According to one story, when Alice arrived at Sproat’s Landing (near presentday Robson) en route to Nelson, liveryman Paddy Sheran charged her exorbitantly for a horse. But she got even with him by charging extra when she took in his laundry.

One anonymous old-timer recalled her bathhouse was the only one in town “and it was kept pretty busy, for the boys were not given to a plunge in the lake. The laundry was a great Godsend to us, too, for when it comes to a fellow washing his own shirt he is likely to put off the job for too long for health or comfort sake.”

Alice was also said to have a small private hospital at the corner of Victoria and Stanley streets, where the Royal Canadian Legion is today.

The old-timer said: “Many a poor fellow she nursed through. ➤

Spring 2015 ROUTE 3

Page 21

BOSS SMITH

Boss Smith was a familiar figure around Nelson in the 1890s, described in one account as the “inseparable companion” of prospector and hotel porter William Cowgill, better known as Porcupine Billy. The Touchstones Nelson archives has a studio portrait of the pair.

In 1898, Smith was sick and destitute in his shack on Victoria St. when his friend, alderman Charles Hillyer, tried to have him admitted to Kootenay Lake general hospital. However, director A.H. Clements refused because of Smith’s skin.

Hillyer wrote: “Old Smith is a British subject and bears a good character, and now that he is stricken down in a community in which he has spent so many years, it seems to me anything but charitable in the management of an hospital subsidized by government and contributed to by the citizens of Nelson, that this poor fellow should be debarred because of colour.”

The decision aroused public indignation. The hospital’s medical director and other board members repudiated Clement’s stance while the Nelson Tribune — not otherwise known for progressive views on race — thundered: “The director who lays down the proposition that no coloured man shall be admitted into a hospital supported by public funds should be fired.”

Smith’s friends made alternate arrangements and his health soon improved. What became of him is unknown.

PHOTO COURTESY TOUCHSTONES NELSON.

OLD ZIEG

Wesley Ziegler (1847?-1919), reputedly the first black man in Rossland, was born into slavery. He later worked as a porter at the Hume Hotel in Nelson.

I have often seen her in the depth of winter riding up to the Silver King [mine] — not side saddle either — or off towards Ymir to attend to some urgent case.”

It’s unclear how many births she presided over, but in early 1891, she was referred to as “Nelson’s only midwife” and reported to be making a “professional visit to Trail Creek,” presumably to see Mary Jane Hanna, who gave birth to twins a few months later.

In 1892, she delivered John William Frederick (Fred) Morice on Toad Mountain, where his parents ran an hotel. And she was reportedly also present when Edith Maud McDonald was born at midnight in 1894 — supposedly this resulted in Alice’s other nickname, the Midnight Nurse.

On July 28, 1894, Alice was found dead in bed, aged either 48 or 60 depending on the source. Her death registration said she “Suffered the alcoholism.”

The old-timer wrote that “everyone for miles around attended the funeral. We lost a good friend when we lost her. There was $70 subscribed in as many minutes to give the old woman a decent burial.”

Page 22

ROUTE 3 Spring 2015

Another portrait in the Touchstones Nelson archives, taken by Campbell Studio in the 1910s, shows a black man dressed in white, holding a bucket. The caption says “Wesley Liegler. First in Rossland.

Born in slavery.”

Actually, he was Wesley Ziegler (or Zeigler), otherwise known as Old Zieg. He was born in Montgomery, Alabama in 1847 or 1855 depending on the source. By 1892, he was a janitor at a Spokane bank and the following year a porter at the Howard hotel.

He went to Rossland around 1896 and ran the Kohinoor bathhouse at the corner of 1st Ave. and Washington St. By 1903, he’d moved to Nelson, where he lived at 720 Baker St. and worked as a poultryman as well as a bootblack and porter at the Hume Hotel.

Ziegler died in Nelson on Jan. 3, 1919. About 40 people attended his funeral. According to his obituary, he was “a well-known figure in Nelson and Rossland” and “became famous for his annual ‘possum suppers.”

GREEN COUCH

The extraordinarily-named Green Couch was prominent in Nelson, Trail, and Rossland.

He was born in Virginia about 1861, and like Wesley Ziegler, worked as a Spokane hotel porter before coming to the West Kootenay. He had a shoe shine stand in Walter Shackleton’s barber shop in Nelson, and in the 1920s, another in mayor A.J. Martin’s barber shop on Bay Ave. in Trail.

He was described as an “ardent fisherman” and angled along Trail’s riverbanks for years. Couch was regarded as a “cheerful character” and a good citizen. He was also distinguished by his height — he stood 6'4" (193 cm).

He was said to be an “enthusiastic” ten-pin bowler who consistently scored in the 200s and continued to play until a year before his death in Nelson on Aug. 15, 1933.

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