Now operated by the Sto:lo Nation as the Coqualeetza Education Training Centre, the Coqualeetza Methodist School was opened in Chilliwack by minister Charles M. Tate and his wife in 1888. A residential school arose when the Church added a large building to the grounds in 1894. Following his postings at Kitimat in 1893 and Port Simpson in 1906, Reverend George H. Raley took charge in 1914 and remained as Principal at Coqualeetza until his retirement in 1934. In comparison with most other residential schools in the province, the Methodist-run school at Chilliwack has sometimes been considered exemplary--in relative terms. In 1937, the year the school closed, Raley produced A Monograph of the Totem-Poles in Stanley Park, Vancouver in which he described the Thunderbird pole at Prospect Point carved by Chief Mathias Joe Capilano and a Nhe-is-bik pole carved by See-wit of Blunden Harbour in 1892, as well as the Wakius, Sisakaulus, Dsoo-kwa-dsi and Skedans poles near Lumberman's Arch. Raley's substantial private collection of Aboriginal artefacts was eventually donated to the public archives.

Ebenezer Robson and his wife opened an Indian day school at their parsonage at Hope in 1859. A year later they opened an Indian school in Nanaimo where Thomas Crosby first taught in 1862. Other residential schools in B.C. were at Ahousaht (opened 1901, closed 1950), Alberni (opened 1920, closed 1973); Alert Bay (opened 1929; closed 1975), Chilliwack Roman Catholic (opened 1890, closed 1941), Chilliwack Presbyterian (opened 1861, closed 1940), Cowichan (opened 1963, closing date unknown), Cranbrook (opened 1898, closed 1970), Fraser Lake (opened 1910, closed 1976), Kamloops (opened 1890; closed 1978), Kitamaat (opened 1883, closing date unknown), Kuper Island (opened 1890, closed 1975), Lower Post (opened 1940, closed 1975), Lytton (1901-1979), Metlakatla (opened 1891, closed 1962), Mission (opened 1861; closed 1984), Nass River (opened 1863, closing date unknown), Port Simpson (opened 1879, closed 1950), Sechelt (opened 1912, closed 1975), Squamish & North Vancouver (opened 1898, closed 1959), Tofino & Meares Island (opened 1973, closed 1983), Victoria (opened 1863, closing date unknown), Williams Lake (opened 1890, closed 1981), Yale (opened 1884, closed 1920), Yuquot (opened 1930, closed 1964). Source: Aboriginal Healing Foundation

BOOKS:

Raley, G.H. A Monograph of the Totem-Poles in Stanley Park, Vancouver (Vancouver, 1937; 1943; 1948). 24 p.

[BCBW 2005] "First Nations" "Missionaries" "Stanley Park"