Fonds consists of material that was gathered by Thompson as she researched island history for museum exhibits and local history albums. It includes land title information about Cortes Island properties going back to the original Crown Grants, correspondence and notes about Cortes Island history, photographs, maps and ephemera.
Fonds is arranged in five series: Land Titles Research; Historical Information; Maps; Photographs; and Ephemera.
30 cm of textual records
40 photographs
12 maps
2 CDs
History / Biographical
Doreen (Huck) Thompson, 1944-2006:
Doreen’s grandparents, William Edward Huck and Mabel Wells Huck, arrived on Cortes Island in 1915. Widowed in WWI, Mabel and her four children left Cortes for Vancouver in 1923. Her son Harry, Doreen’s father, returned to Cortes in the 1930s. He married Edith Launchbury in 1937 and had two children, Doreen (b.1944) and Ed (b.1945, d.1993). Doreen and Ed were raised in Whaletown and attended school there and at Manson’s Landing.
Doreen graduated from Vic High in Victoria before marrying Bob Thompson in 1962. From 1961 to 1963, Doreen lived in Teakerne Arm in a floathouse Bob had built on the shore of the Whaletown Lagoon and then moved to the shores of Heriot Bay on Quadra Island. Her children were born in 1964 (Janny) and 1965 (Debby). In 1970 the family and the house moved to Cortes Island where both daughters attended school to Grade 10.
Doreen spent a few years living in Alberta and Victoria in the early 1980s and then returned to Cortes Island. Doreen developed a deep knowledge of the history of the island and she devoted considerable time to preserving, gathering and sharing her own and others knowledge of the island through her volunteer work at the Cortes Island Museum and Archives.
Doreen was one of the founders of the Cortes Island Museum. She curated four exhibits at the Museum, including “Windows on Whaletown” in 1999, “Von Donop Inlet”, the commercial fishing portion of “Celebrating Wild Salmon”, and “Memories of Manson’s Landing”. She researched and created albums which combine photographs, reminiscences and clippings to document the history of various island areas, such as Green Valley and Whaletown. The Doreen Thompson Exhibit Gallery at the Museum commemorates her contributions.
Doreen was making a fourth cross-Canada road trip from Cortes to Newfoundland when she was killed in a car accident near Fort McLeod, Alberta on August 1, 2006.
Custodial History
Material was stored at the museum or collected from Doreen Thomas' house.
Scope and Content
Fonds consists of material that was gathered by Thompson as she researched island history for museum exhibits and local history albums. It includes land title information about Cortes Island properties going back to the original Crown Grants, correspondence and notes about Cortes Island history, photographs, maps and ephemera.
Fonds is arranged in five series: Land Titles Research; Historical Information; Maps; Photographs; and Ephemera.
File contains a photocopied section map of the northern part of Cortes Island (from just south of Gorge Harbour), coloured to indicate areas for which a Crown Grant was located and areas of ungranted Crown land which still appear to be owned by the government. Scale is 1 mile to 1 inch.
File contains a photocopied section map of the northern part of Cortes Island (from just south of Gorge Harbour), coloured to indicate areas for which a Crown Grant was located and areas of ungranted Crown land which still appear to be owned by the government. Scale is 1 mile to 1 inch.
File contains a photocopied part of a map showing the locations of researched property in the Whaletown Lagoon and Whaletown Harbour area. The map is glued to an envelope which has a list of Crown grants and other conveyances on the back.
It contains photocopies of original land grants and other conveyances for the following:
Moses Ireland: 1893, Crown Grant for the W 1/2 of SW 1/4 of Sec 35 and W 1/2 of the SW 1/4 of Section 34
Joseph Youart: 1900, Crown Grant for Fractional NE 1/4 of Sec 35 (sold to Alice Robertson in 1908; "Burnside" is still in the Robertson family).
Nicholas Thompson: 1920, Crown Grant for the Fractional SW 1/4 of Sec 35
Charles Strange: 1914, Crown Grant for the NW 1/4 of Sec 35
File contains a photocopied part of a map showing the locations of researched property in the Whaletown Lagoon and Whaletown Harbour area. The map is glued to an envelope which has a list of Crown grants and other conveyances on the back.
It contains photocopies of original land grants and other conveyances for the following:
Moses Ireland: 1893, Crown Grant for the W 1/2 of SW 1/4 of Sec 35 and W 1/2 of the SW 1/4 of Section 34
Joseph Youart: 1900, Crown Grant for Fractional NE 1/4 of Sec 35 (sold to Alice Robertson in 1908; "Burnside" is still in the Robertson family).
Nicholas Thompson: 1920, Crown Grant for the Fractional SW 1/4 of Sec 35
Charles Strange: 1914, Crown Grant for the NW 1/4 of Sec 35
File contains a map key to the areas of Sections 17, 18, 19, 22 and 34 (south of Gorge Harbour) which were researched (Information in Files 3-7).
It contains photocopies of original land grants and subsequent conveyances for the following:
Reginald James Smith: 1946, Crown Grant 165414I for fractional SE 1/4 of Sec 23, 1946 (the Thunder Road subdivision at the eastern end of Gorge Harbour).
(Files 3 through 7 are from the same envelope.)
File contains a map key to the areas of Sections 17, 18, 19, 22 and 34 (south of Gorge Harbour) which were researched (Information in Files 3-7).
It contains photocopies of original land grants and subsequent conveyances for the following:
Reginald James Smith: 1946, Crown Grant 165414I for fractional SE 1/4 of Sec 23, 1946 (the Thunder Road subdivision at the eastern end of Gorge Harbour).
(Files 3 through 7 are from the same envelope.)
File contains title information and photocopies of land grants and subsequent conveyances for the following:
John Williams: 1914, Crown Grant for the fractional SW 1/4 of Sec 22 and fractional NW 1/4 of Sec 22 (east of Gorge Harbour entrance)
John Williams: 1914, Crown Grant for the fractional SW 1/4 of Sec 22 and frac. NW 1/4 of Sec 18 (west of the Gorge Harbour entrance)
File contains three oversize maps which are stored in the map cabinet: Map of Section 22, Plan VIP52378, Lots A,B,C (blueprint map; 85 cm x 54 cm, 1985); map of Plan 27966 (blueprint map; 55 cm x 43 cm, 1974); photocopy of map of fractional NW 1/4 Sec 17 (55 cm x 43 cm, 1973)
(Files 3 through 7 are from the same envelope.)
File contains title information and photocopies of land grants and subsequent conveyances for the following:
John Williams: 1914, Crown Grant for the fractional SW 1/4 of Sec 22 and fractional NW 1/4 of Sec 22 (east of Gorge Harbour entrance)
John Williams: 1914, Crown Grant for the fractional SW 1/4 of Sec 22 and frac. NW 1/4 of Sec 18 (west of the Gorge Harbour entrance)
File contains three oversize maps which are stored in the map cabinet: Map of Section 22, Plan VIP52378, Lots A,B,C (blueprint map; 85 cm x 54 cm, 1985); map of Plan 27966 (blueprint map; 55 cm x 43 cm, 1974); photocopy of map of fractional NW 1/4 Sec 17 (55 cm x 43 cm, 1973)
(Files 3 through 7 are from the same envelope.)
File contains a coloured map with researched properties coloured in, and title information and photocopies of land grants and subsequent conveyances for the following:
Edward James Breeze: 1931, Crown Grant for District Lot 1373 (parts of Section 23 and Section 17, at the southeast end of Gorge Harbour by Anvil Lake)
Frank Harper: 1913, Crown Grant for the NE 96 acres of Section 23 (at the northeast end of Gorge Harbour)
(Files 3 through 7 are from the same envelope.)
File contains a coloured map with researched properties coloured in, and title information and photocopies of land grants and subsequent conveyances for the following:
Edward James Breeze: 1931, Crown Grant for District Lot 1373 (parts of Section 23 and Section 17, at the southeast end of Gorge Harbour by Anvil Lake)
Frank Harper: 1913, Crown Grant for the NE 96 acres of Section 23 (at the northeast end of Gorge Harbour)
(Files 3 through 7 are from the same envelope.)
Fonds consists of material generated by the Cortes Island Seniors' Building Society and includes meeting minutes, administrative records, research materials, correspondence, ephemera, maps, plans, and publications of the Cortes Island Seniors' Building Society, as well as some records of the Cortes Island Old Age Pensioners' Organization. Fonds is arranged into twelve series, following the original order of the records.
An accrual in 2023, described as Series 12, contains meeting minutes, correspondence, etc; arranged in chronological order (original order).
In 1987, members of the Cortes Island Old Age Pensioners' Organization incorporated the Cortes Island Seniors' Building Society (currently known as the Cortes Island Senior's Society) with the following stated purposes:
(a) to operate a facility where persons aged 65 years or older, or persons between 55 and 65 years of age who are in need, can improve their health through physical and other acitivity;
(b) to operate a residential housing facility for such persons;
(c) to carry on social activities incidental to the above purposes, but not to own, operate or manage a social club.
The records of the Cortes Island Seniors' Building Society provide useful insight into their process of envisioning the future of seniors' housing on Cortes Island.
Custodial History
Donated by Ruth Zwickel on behalf of the Cortes Island Senior's Society in 2013. An accrual was donated by Elinor Harwood on behalf of the Cortes Island Seniors' Society in 2021.
Scope and Content
Fonds consists of material generated by the Cortes Island Seniors' Building Society and includes meeting minutes, administrative records, research materials, correspondence, ephemera, maps, plans, and publications of the Cortes Island Seniors' Building Society, as well as some records of the Cortes Island Old Age Pensioners' Organization. Fonds is arranged into twelve series, following the original order of the records.
An accrual in 2023, described as Series 12, contains meeting minutes, correspondence, etc; arranged in chronological order (original order).
