Cumberland Museum & Archives Executive Director Rosslyn (Rozz) Shipp and longtime museum sponsor Raymond Heung were discussing ongoing projects in October 2022 when the idea of creating a new book about the history of Cumberland came up. A working group was formed, consisting of Rozz, Kim Bannerman, Lynne Bowne, and myself. We went into the project determined to include points of view from many different people with a connection to Cumberland. There was no script, just a suggested word count.
History is more than fixed dates and facts
History is funny. When I was taught history in school, it was a fixed thing: dates and facts. Outcomes were unchanging and absolute. I never questioned it. Now that I’ve researched events from the past myself, it turns out history is much more bendy. When you look at the same event from different points of view, the history changes. No two people see the same thing. The “Big Strike” in Cumberland, which lasted almost two years between 1912 and 1914, is one example in this collection of essays. Five different authors mention the event. We see it from a labour perspective, of course, but also as part of the story of the Italian strikebreakers, in relation to a hanging, from a place of privilege, and mentioned in a modern-day screenwriting pitch. Perception is everything.
Twelve authors were invited to participate—some already well known, some being published for the first time. The essays are a snapshot of Cumberland through its history, from the Trent River train derailment in 1897 to the raising of the Guardian poles in the Cumberland Peace Park in 2023.
There are definitely common threads. The stories are about loneliness, feeling like an outsider, racism, heartbreak, determination, and violent death, but the very same stories are also about resilience, grit, and just getting on with it – very much describing the ongoing character of Cumberland. Editor Rhonda Bailey wrangled all the disparate stories into one cohesive whole.
Tom Wong’s unique perspective on Cumberland’s Chinatown
Tom Wong—at 93, the oldest contributor to the collection—hasn’t lived in Cumberland since 1947. But since the first Cumberland Chinatown Reunion Picnic at Stanley Park in Vancouver in the early 1970s, Tom has regaled friends and family with his memories of growing up in Cumberland’s Chinatown. It was his son, Davidicus, who persuaded him to participate and share the history of his life with a wider audience.
Andrew Findlay’s story “Tales from the Trail” paints a vivid picture of a more contemporary event that is still unfolding in real time. In 2003 Jeremy Grasby, a former forester, opened a mountain-bike friendly hostel in Cumberland. It was a leap of faith. “Back then there was a small but well-established trail-building and riding scene. It was a rogue enterprise—carving out trails on private forest land. The ethic of the day was ‘build first and ask for permission later,’” notes Andrew. A very Cumberland way of doing things.
Twelve stories. Memoirs, biographies, and nonfiction essays. Twelve opportunities to engage in the history of this wonderful place called Cumberland.
“In this collection of riveting historical accounts, touching personal memoirs, and engaging creative nonfiction essays—complemented by more than two dozen historical and contemporary photos—writers with ties to Cumberland and the Comox Valley reveal lesser-known aspects of the region’s colourful past.”
Pick up your books at the Cumberland Museum, local independent bookshops, the ROAM Store + Studio in Comox, and other select retailers throughout the Valley.
