Home
Namely Vancouver (Arsenal $15.95)
Worried that 10-year-old Tom might get lost walking home, Tom Snyders' parents once asked him to prepare a map of his own neighborhood to cure him of his blithe disregard for street names.
It worked, sort of. Snyders says he still prefers to navigate with landmarks rather than look at street signs, but his orientation with avenues, streets, crescents, boulevards and wynds has nonetheless wrought a 'hidden history' called Namely Vancouver (Arsenal $15.95).
In Vancouver, dead white guys obviously dominate; women, Chinese and Native peoples get short shrift. No news there. But whereas Ian Chunn's contribution to The Greater Vancouver Book edited by Chuck Davis has an encyclopedic approach to street name origins, Snyders offers critical perceptions that belie his background as a poet.
"As many wordsmiths have pointed out, the act of naming things is inherently tied to the act of owning them,"; says Snyders. "Whether considering Biblical examples such as Adam giving names to the animals, or more recent examples of overt corporate investment, such as General Motors Place, those who give names are often those who tell the stories, the histories.";
Balaclava was named after the British headquarters during the Crimean War. Beatty Street is named after a former CPR president, Graveley Street for a financier, Keefer for a contractor. Bute Street owes its origins to the Marquis of Bute, a friend of King George III. Blanca Street, absurdly enough, was named after a Spanish foreign minister. Adanac is Canada spelled backwards. Norquay Street recalls a Manitoba premier. And archivist Major J.S. Matthews once dismissed Atlantic Street as 'a thoughtless appellation without historic meaning or significance'.
"Names can tell us as much about the character of a city as that of a person,"; says Snyders, "which is to say, not much, or quite a bit."; Snyders concentrates on specific locales, such as 142 East Hastings, home to the last surviving member of the once-famous Pantages theatre chain. Opened as one of the city's first vaudeville houses, the still-standing but vacant building was last used commercially as the Sing Sing Theatre. There's a heritage plaque on the wall, but few passers-by appreciate its links to a pioneering Greek family.
Alexander Pantages rose from Skid Road in Seattle to extreme wealth as a theatre tycoon with 74 locations in North America. He sold his chain to RKO in 1929 just prior to the stock market crash. His nephew was Peter Pantages (1901-1971) who was a founder of the Polar Bear Swim Club in 1921. With three brothers, Peter Pantages operated the once-renowned Peter Pan restaurant on Granville near Helmcken. The Pantages family name endures with Tony Pantages, a director of videos for Michelle Wright and Sarah McLachlan who has appeared in X-Files as an actor.
"Some names hold dubious claim to the positions as place markers,"; says Snyders, "others have every right to be marking our lives, and many more never make the official list, and their stories have been forgotten."; 1-55152-077-X
[BCBW SPRING 2000]
It worked, sort of. Snyders says he still prefers to navigate with landmarks rather than look at street signs, but his orientation with avenues, streets, crescents, boulevards and wynds has nonetheless wrought a 'hidden history' called Namely Vancouver (Arsenal $15.95).
In Vancouver, dead white guys obviously dominate; women, Chinese and Native peoples get short shrift. No news there. But whereas Ian Chunn's contribution to The Greater Vancouver Book edited by Chuck Davis has an encyclopedic approach to street name origins, Snyders offers critical perceptions that belie his background as a poet.
"As many wordsmiths have pointed out, the act of naming things is inherently tied to the act of owning them,"; says Snyders. "Whether considering Biblical examples such as Adam giving names to the animals, or more recent examples of overt corporate investment, such as General Motors Place, those who give names are often those who tell the stories, the histories.";
Balaclava was named after the British headquarters during the Crimean War. Beatty Street is named after a former CPR president, Graveley Street for a financier, Keefer for a contractor. Bute Street owes its origins to the Marquis of Bute, a friend of King George III. Blanca Street, absurdly enough, was named after a Spanish foreign minister. Adanac is Canada spelled backwards. Norquay Street recalls a Manitoba premier. And archivist Major J.S. Matthews once dismissed Atlantic Street as 'a thoughtless appellation without historic meaning or significance'.
"Names can tell us as much about the character of a city as that of a person,"; says Snyders, "which is to say, not much, or quite a bit."; Snyders concentrates on specific locales, such as 142 East Hastings, home to the last surviving member of the once-famous Pantages theatre chain. Opened as one of the city's first vaudeville houses, the still-standing but vacant building was last used commercially as the Sing Sing Theatre. There's a heritage plaque on the wall, but few passers-by appreciate its links to a pioneering Greek family.
Alexander Pantages rose from Skid Road in Seattle to extreme wealth as a theatre tycoon with 74 locations in North America. He sold his chain to RKO in 1929 just prior to the stock market crash. His nephew was Peter Pantages (1901-1971) who was a founder of the Polar Bear Swim Club in 1921. With three brothers, Peter Pantages operated the once-renowned Peter Pan restaurant on Granville near Helmcken. The Pantages family name endures with Tony Pantages, a director of videos for Michelle Wright and Sarah McLachlan who has appeared in X-Files as an actor.
"Some names hold dubious claim to the positions as place markers,"; says Snyders, "others have every right to be marking our lives, and many more never make the official list, and their stories have been forgotten."; 1-55152-077-X
[BCBW SPRING 2000]
Submitted on July 10, 2003 in By David.
