Cortes Island Museum maintains informational files on subjects of local interest as a research resource. Contents of files may contain clippings or photocopied newspaper and magazine articles, correspondence (including printed email correspondence) and other non-archival material. This is a dynamic file, with changes made on an on-going basis.
Cortes Island Museum maintains informational files on subjects of local interest as a research resource. Contents of files may contain clippings or photocopied newspaper and magazine articles, correspondence (including printed email correspondence) and other non-archival material. This is a dynamic file, with changes made on an on-going basis.
File contains a Cortes Island Visitor's Information hand-out with a map of the island and lists of businesses and services, published by the Whaletown Community Club; and a set of ticket book backs for the Cortes-Quadra and Quadra-Campbell River ferries.
File contains a Cortes Island Visitor's Information hand-out with a map of the island and lists of businesses and services, published by the Whaletown Community Club; and a set of ticket book backs for the Cortes-Quadra and Quadra-Campbell River ferries.
File contains a self-published booklet containing illustrations and notes about Whaletown, "a collection of facts, poems, short stories and drawings to enhance your visit."
File contains a self-published booklet containing illustrations and notes about Whaletown, "a collection of facts, poems, short stories and drawings to enhance your visit."
File contains postcards showing views of Whaletown.
#1: Photograph of St. John the Baptist Church, b&w, 1952; 1 copy
#2: Photograph of a Union Steamship at the Whaletown wharf; b&w; 1952; 1 copy
#3: Aerial photograph of the Salt Lagoon; b&w; likely 1952; 1 copy
#4: A drawing of the wharf and buildings of Whaletown, from the water; b&w, [195-]; 4 copies Verso says "Sketch by Canadian Artist, Mrs. R. A. Borland". Mrs. Borland was the sister of Mary Weiler, and lived in Manson's Landing.
#5: Church of St. John the Baptist; colour; 1952; 2 copies. Printed by George Frost, owner of the Whaletown General Store. See #2013.001.006
#6: The Whaletown Trading Post; colour; 2 copies. Printed by George Frost, owner of the Whaletown General Store. See #2013.001.005
File contains postcards showing views of Whaletown.
#1: Photograph of St. John the Baptist Church, b&w, 1952; 1 copy
#2: Photograph of a Union Steamship at the Whaletown wharf; b&w; 1952; 1 copy
#3: Aerial photograph of the Salt Lagoon; b&w; likely 1952; 1 copy
#4: A drawing of the wharf and buildings of Whaletown, from the water; b&w, [195-]; 4 copies Verso says "Sketch by Canadian Artist, Mrs. R. A. Borland". Mrs. Borland was the sister of Mary Weiler, and lived in Manson's Landing.
#5: Church of St. John the Baptist; colour; 1952; 2 copies. Printed by George Frost, owner of the Whaletown General Store. See #2013.001.006
#6: The Whaletown Trading Post; colour; 2 copies. Printed by George Frost, owner of the Whaletown General Store. See #2013.001.005
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.
Series contains information on historic Crown Grants and subsequent title changes compiled by Doreen Thompson during her research for the CIMAS Windows on Whaletown exhibit in 1999. The area covered includes the northern part of Cortes Island, from just south of Gorge Harbour. Material includes maps, photocopies of original Crown Grants and other title documents, lists of subdivisions, and notes on changes of title.
Records were organized by Section or Plan number in large envelopes with a cover map and notes about the properties researched on the envelope back. They trace the ownership of parcels of land from the first grant or purchase from the Crown to 1999. Original order has been maintained.
Series contains information on historic Crown Grants and subsequent title changes compiled by Doreen Thompson during her research for the CIMAS Windows on Whaletown exhibit in 1999. The area covered includes the northern part of Cortes Island, from just south of Gorge Harbour. Material includes maps, photocopies of original Crown Grants and other title documents, lists of subdivisions, and notes on changes of title.
Records were organized by Section or Plan number in large envelopes with a cover map and notes about the properties researched on the envelope back. They trace the ownership of parcels of land from the first grant or purchase from the Crown to 1999. Original order has been maintained.
File contains title information to 1991 and a photocopy of the original Crown Grant to:
Nicholas Thompson: 1920, Crown Grant of Fractional SW 1/4 of Section 35; 54 acres on the southwest of Whaletown Bay
File contains a small explanatory map if a 5.5 acre portion of fractional SW 1/4 of Sec. 35, 1949, and a Subdivision Plan map of part of fractional SW 1/4 of Sec. 35, 1957 (stored in the Map Cabinet).
(Files 9 and 10 are from the same envelope.)
File contains title information to 1991 and a photocopy of the original Crown Grant to:
Nicholas Thompson: 1920, Crown Grant of Fractional SW 1/4 of Section 35; 54 acres on the southwest of Whaletown Bay
File contains a small explanatory map if a 5.5 acre portion of fractional SW 1/4 of Sec. 35, 1949, and a Subdivision Plan map of part of fractional SW 1/4 of Sec. 35, 1957 (stored in the Map Cabinet).
(Files 9 and 10 are from the same envelope.)
File contains photocopies of the original Crown Grants and subsequent title changes with plan maps.
To Moses Ireland: 1893, Crown Grant for the W 1/2 of the SW 1/4 of Section 35 and the fractional SE 1/4 of Section 35 (161 acres around Whaletown Bay
To George Alderson: 1961, Crown Grant for Lot 3 of Section 34
File contains photocopies of the original Crown Grants and subsequent title changes with plan maps.
To Moses Ireland: 1893, Crown Grant for the W 1/2 of the SW 1/4 of Section 35 and the fractional SE 1/4 of Section 35 (161 acres around Whaletown Bay
To George Alderson: 1961, Crown Grant for Lot 3 of Section 34
File contains a key map which was pasted on the front of the envelope indicating the areas researched for Files 12-16; notes on the titles; photocopies of Crown Grants and subsequent title information for:
BC Buildings Corp: 1982, Crown Grant for Block A of SW 1/4 of Sec. 25 (Highways Maintenance Yard)
District Lot 871 (40 acres between Carrington and Coulter Bays): to James Frederick McManus, 1919
To Ernest Henry Vaughn: 1922, Crown Grant for NE 1/4 and NW 1/4 of NE 1/4 of Sec. 24; SE 1/4 of SW 1/4 and SW 1/4 of SE 1/4 of Sec 31
Herbert Proctor: 1928 for fractional SW 1/4 of Sec. 41, bordering Tork Reserve; 159 acres for $159.00 (orig. Crown Grant to Herbert Proctor in 1922)
To William Cowan: 1937, E 1/2 of SE 1/4 of Sec. 26, 89 acres
(Files 12 through 16 are from the same envelope.)
File contains a key map which was pasted on the front of the envelope indicating the areas researched for Files 12-16; notes on the titles; photocopies of Crown Grants and subsequent title information for:
BC Buildings Corp: 1982, Crown Grant for Block A of SW 1/4 of Sec. 25 (Highways Maintenance Yard)
District Lot 871 (40 acres between Carrington and Coulter Bays): to James Frederick McManus, 1919
To Ernest Henry Vaughn: 1922, Crown Grant for NE 1/4 and NW 1/4 of NE 1/4 of Sec. 24; SE 1/4 of SW 1/4 and SW 1/4 of SE 1/4 of Sec 31
Herbert Proctor: 1928 for fractional SW 1/4 of Sec. 41, bordering Tork Reserve; 159 acres for $159.00 (orig. Crown Grant to Herbert Proctor in 1922)
To William Cowan: 1937, E 1/2 of SE 1/4 of Sec. 26, 89 acres
(Files 12 through 16 are from the same envelope.)
File contains photocopies of original Crown Grants, subsequent title changes and maps for:
To Joseph Gregson: 1926, Crown Grant for fractional W 1/2 of Lot 899 and Lot 901 (between Coulter and Carrington Bays), with a water easement for Wailes
To John Nugent McIllree: 1957, Crown Grant of mineral rights to lots at Coulter Bay surveyed as the "Arrow" and "Bullseye" mineral claims
To Hilda Peterson: 1919, Crown Grant for Lot 878, Carrington Bay, 55 acres
(Files 12 through 16 are from the same envelope.)
File contains photocopies of original Crown Grants, subsequent title changes and maps for:
To Joseph Gregson: 1926, Crown Grant for fractional W 1/2 of Lot 899 and Lot 901 (between Coulter and Carrington Bays), with a water easement for Wailes
To John Nugent McIllree: 1957, Crown Grant of mineral rights to lots at Coulter Bay surveyed as the "Arrow" and "Bullseye" mineral claims
To Hilda Peterson: 1919, Crown Grant for Lot 878, Carrington Bay, 55 acres
(Files 12 through 16 are from the same envelope.)
File contains a page of notes, and photocopies of a tax sale notice (1938) and list of properties forfeited for non-payment of taxes, Crown Grants and other title information for the following:
William Walter James: 1926, Crown Grant for NW 1/4 of Sec. 38; 156 acres for $1.00; forfeited to Crown in 1939
Tom Albinson: 1919, Crown Grant for Lot 867; forfeited in 1927
Sadie McMurray: 1917, NE 1/4 of Sec. 39; 160 acres for $160
Peter Police: 1925, fractional NW 1/4 of Sec. 39; 103 acres for $1.00
(Files 12 through 16 are from the same envelope.)
File contains a page of notes, and photocopies of a tax sale notice (1938) and list of properties forfeited for non-payment of taxes, Crown Grants and other title information for the following:
William Walter James: 1926, Crown Grant for NW 1/4 of Sec. 38; 156 acres for $1.00; forfeited to Crown in 1939
Tom Albinson: 1919, Crown Grant for Lot 867; forfeited in 1927
Sadie McMurray: 1917, NE 1/4 of Sec. 39; 160 acres for $160
Peter Police: 1925, fractional NW 1/4 of Sec. 39; 103 acres for $1.00
(Files 12 through 16 are from the same envelope.)
File contains notes, photocopies of Crown Grants and subsequent title changes for:
William John Sheepwash: 1916, Crown Grant for fractional NE 1/4 of Sec. 45; 153 acres for $153
For Block A of District Lot 744:
-to Gwynn Henry Meredith: 1918, Crown Grant for 59 acres for $1
-to Alfred Edward Layton: 1970, Crown Grant for 59 acres for $460
William Carr Smith: 19??, Crown Grant for District Lot 1170 at Von Donop Creek Lagoon; 155 acres for $1.00
Royal Wells Borden: 1937, Crown Grant for NW 1/4 of Sec 38
(Files 12 through 16 are from the same envelope.)
File contains notes, photocopies of Crown Grants and subsequent title changes for:
William John Sheepwash: 1916, Crown Grant for fractional NE 1/4 of Sec. 45; 153 acres for $153
For Block A of District Lot 744:
-to Gwynn Henry Meredith: 1918, Crown Grant for 59 acres for $1
-to Alfred Edward Layton: 1970, Crown Grant for 59 acres for $460
William Carr Smith: 19??, Crown Grant for District Lot 1170 at Von Donop Creek Lagoon; 155 acres for $1.00
Royal Wells Borden: 1937, Crown Grant for NW 1/4 of Sec 38
(Files 12 through 16 are from the same envelope.)
