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Online Heritage Inventory

South Dyke Fishing Community

General Information
Thumbnail photograph of South Dyke Fishing Community
Click to see full image
Type of Resource: Heritage Area
Common Name: Queensborough
Address:
Neighbourhood (Planning Area Name): Hamilton
Construction Date: 1880-1945
Current Owner:
Designated: No

Statement of Significance
Description of Site
The South Dyke Fishing Community is a linear riverfront heritage area in southeast Richmond. It fronts the Annacis Channel of the Fraser River, where Lulu Island is at its narrowest. The area contains a number of industrial and utilitarian built resources related to the fishing industry. These elements, with the river to the south and agricultural landscapes to the north, create a significant historic presence in this area.

 Statement of Values
The South Dyke Fishing Community has been included on the heritage inventory because of its historical association with the fishing industry that evolved on the Fraser River in the late 1800’s. This industrial fishery produced huge salmon catches which supported communities and employed thousands of workers as fishermen and in the canneries. The location and development of the South Dyke community was influenced by its historical relationship to Queensborough on the eastern tip of Lulu Island, part of New Westminster. Various industries combined these two communities into a continuous strip along the Annacis Channel.
Set along the river foreshore, outside the dyke, South Dyke is an area in which the distinctive pattern of development, the result of fishery related activities, can still be perceived. The area also demonstrates the relationship between agriculture and the fishery in this part of Richmond by making a connection between…. The use of functional and local building materials, the linear form created by the need for accessibility to the river, and the relationship of the individual components to each other and the setting also give this area heritage value.
Social and cultural values reside in its continuity of use and evolution over a period of time, and in the traditions and history of the closely-knit fishing community.
The Nelson Brothers Shipyard and many of the original dwellings, wharves and net sheds are still intact and in use, while newer industries and uses such as floating homes, boatbuilding, and vessel repair continue the historical pattern and help to maintain the sense of place.

 Character Defining Elements
Key elements that define the heritage character of this site include:
· The presence of the Nelson Brothers Shipyard, a prominent building complex on the riverfront
· A variety of buildings along the dyke including sheds, shacks, scowhouses, garages, boathouses, net lofts and a Japanese church
· The sense of cohesion produced by the siting of the various structures along the riverfront, their similar massing, scale and materials
· The close relationship between the smaller structures, the river and the dyke
· The presence of river, the fishing fleet and fishing equipment
· The natural vegetation of the foreshore combined with domestic planted species and naturalized plant material
· Small scale elements such as wharves, pilings, bridges and the remains of a wooden bulkhead and boardwalk along the foreshore, equipment associated with the fishing industry, drainage equipment such as pumphouses and floodboxes, and domestic details such as fences, railings and fruit trees
· Views and accessibility to the water
· Perceptual elements such as the sounds and smells of the river and foreshore
· The historical association of the homes located on the dyke on the south side of the ditch with the farm buildings and fields on the north side
· The continuation of the development pattern across Boundary Road into Queensborough, showing continuity between the physical and historical patterns of the two areas.

 History
The South Dyke Fishing Community is a linear riverfront heritage area in southeast Richmond. It fronts the Annacis Channel of the Fraser River, where Lulu Island is at its narrowest. The area contains a number of industrial and utilitarian built resources related to the fishing industry. These elements, with the river to the south and agricultural landscapes to the north, create a significant historic presence in this area.

 Architectural Significance
Design Features
Significant buildings:
The most significant remaining structure in the area is the Nelson Brothers Shipyard complex. This building was constructed in 1938, and added on to over the years. It is a complex of wood frame buildings with horizontal wood cladding and gable roofs of corrugated metal or asphalt shingle. The shipyard is sited immediately on Dyke Road, and has associated wharves and pilings that extend out into the river. It is apparent that it was used for shipbuilding and related activities.
Other extant buildings in this area include a number of small vernacular wood frame dwellings and sheds. These are generally sited on the south slope of the dyke, supported on stilts, and are currently below the grade of Dyke road. On the north side of Dyke Road there are farm buildings and associated sheds and greenhouses. There is no consistent documentation found at this time to precisely date the construction of these structures.
Overall built form:
There is a strong historic relationship between the smaller structures, the river and the dyke. In some areas there are the remains of a wooden boardwalk, small wooden bridges and a bulkhead that runs along the foreshore which could possibly have acted as the ‘sidewalk’ for the community. The wharves create an extension of the land out into the river. The major built structure in the area is the Annacis crossing which disrupts the integrity and feel of the place.
Aesthetic qualities:
The area maintains a sense of cohesion because of the siting of the remaining residential structures along the riverfront, their similar massing, scale and materials. The punctuation of larger structures such as the shipyard, docks and wharves, and even the new floating residences do not detract from the rhythm of the riverfront development.

 Landscape Significance
Design Attributes
Natural features:
The Fraser River, the riverbank and the foreshore environment are the most significant physical features in the area. The river edge has influenced the development of the South Dyke, and in some areas the mud flats and natural slope of the riverbank is clearly evident.
Cultural traditions:
None noted.
Circulation and open space:
The major circulation routes include Dyke Road, which is narrow, and provides access to the farms and to the structures on the dyke, as well as the river, which creates an important access route by boat. A wooden structure, possibly a boardwalk and footbridge are still visible along the foreshore; these would have provided internal circulation. The open space in the area is mainly the road, the river, the dyke, and the remains of agricultural fields. To a lesser degree, the small gardens and yards create open space, as do the wharves and decks associated with the floating homes. As much of the area is private property, the site is not easily accessible.
Vegetation:
The vegetation on the site is an interesting mix of natural foreshore vegetation, domestic planted species, and invasive naturalized plant material such as blackberry. Some of the larger tree species, such as the weeping willows, fruit trees and conifers, and smaller decorative shrubs have been planted as part of domestic gardens and yards.
Views, vistas, perceptual qualities:
Views from the South Dyke area encompass the river channel to the east and west, and Annacis Island with its industrial yet vegetation character to the south. Views into the site from Dyke Road are restricted because of vegetation and buildings, although there are several areas which open up and afford a view of the river. The best views of the site are from the water, as here the historic pattern, feeling and relationship to the river can be appreciated. The sounds and smells of the river and foreshore with the fishing boats and wharves are also important qualities which reflect the character of the place.
Water bodies or features:
The Fraser River and components of the drainage system, such as pumpstations and ditches, are the most significant water features in the area. They describe both the development of the riverfront in response to the fishery, and the necessity for the drainage of land for settlement and farming.
Small-scale elements:
It is the many small-scale elements which help to give the South Dyke its heterogeneity and the impression of an area that has developed over a period of time. Elements such as the wharves, pilings, boats and equipment associated with the fishing industry, drainage equipment such as pumphouses and floodboxes, and domestic details such as fences, railings and fruit trees all add layers of complexity and interest to the area.

 Integrity
Condition
Location:
Most of the fishing and farming activities that have shaped this area took place along the river channel or on adjacent agricultural land. Although there have been disruptions in the pattern, the remaining historic elements, and new ones, maintain the same relationship to the river.
Design:
Integrity of design has been compromised. Significant change in land use, the removal of many extant features and the infill of new development has greatly affected the original design elements of the South Dyke Fishing Community and its environment.
Setting:
The physical environment of the river and the land has not been altered significantly over time. The wharves, boats and equipment related to the fishing industry, and the agricultural fields and outbuildings also help to maintain an integrity of setting.
Materials:
Integrity of materials is somewhat compromised. Although new residential and commercial developments are constructed of incompatible building and landscape materials, some traditional building materials are still evident on the site. There is also evidence of original foreshore vegetation, although much of the plant material has been introduced.
Workmanship:
Integrity of workmanship in the built environment has been compromised as the resources have disappeared. However, the active fishing industry in this area continues to retain some of the traditional practices and uses for the buildings and structures that remain.
Feeling:
Although there has been the loss of much of the original built fabric which lessens the overall continuity of the South Dyke area as a linear area or feature, there is still a very strong sense of place here. It is created by the pattern of remaining buildings along the dyke and oriented toward the water, the farm fields with their associated buildings, and the presence of the fishing boats and fishing related activities in the area.
Association:
Integrity of association has been maintained. This area has strong visual, physical, and associational links to the fishing and agricultural industries, and with the people involved in them. It is an important reminder of the everyday lives and way of life of the people who lived and worked here.

 Lost
No

 Documentation
Evaluated By
Denise Cook BLA PBD

 Date
Monday, October 1, 2001

 Documentation
Documents:
Mr. Dick Nelson, owner, Nelson Brothers Shipyard, personal communication, October 2001.
Mr. Vern Whitter, manager, Nelson Brothers Shipyard, personal communication, October 2001.
City Directories, Richmond Archives/Special Collections UBC.
City of Richmond Official Community Plan: Hamilton Area Plan, amended 1992, Richmond Public Library.
Council Minutes Index Reports, Richmond Archives.
Fraser Sewerage Area East Richmond Facilities servicing Hamilton/Queensborough, 1980. Location #4613, Municipal Records.
Jackson, Brian J. East Richmond: A Proposal for the Conservation of a Rural Landscape, 1980, Richmond Archives.
Meggs, Geoff and Stacey, Duncan. Cork Lines and Canning Lines: The Glory Years of Fishing on the West Coast, Douglas and McIntyre, Vancouver, 1992.
National Park Service. “Defining Boundaries for National Register Properties”, US Department of the Interior, 1999.
Parsons, Marlene R. Fraser River Estuary Heritage Resource Inventory, 1981, Richmond Public Library.
Pullem, Hellen C. Queensborough, Part 1, New Westminster B.C. 1975, Special Collections, New Westminster Public Library.
Reid, David J. The Development of the Fraser River Salmon Canning Industry, 1885 to 1913, Federal Department of the Environment, 1973. Location #6159, Richmond Archives.
Richmond Heritage Inventory Phase I, 1984.
Ross, Leslie J. Richmond, Child of the Fraser, Richmond Centennial Society, Richmond, B.C., 1979.
Schaefer, Valentin et al. Queensborough: A Case Study, Douglas College Institute of Urban Ecology, 1993, New Westminster Public Library.
Historical Photographs:
Photograph No. 1983 6 85, c.1960. Richmond Fire Department Local 1286 fonds, Richmond Archives.
Location and Type of Plans Found:
Fraser River Canneries, British Columbia. Chas. E. Goad, Civil Engineer, July 1897. UBC Special Collections.
Municipality of Richmond 1909. Misc. Planning Department Maps, Richmond Archives.
Municipality Sheets of Richmond 1925. Misc. Planning Department Maps, 1987 32 5, MR SE 520, Richmond Archives.
Township of Richmond 1962-1965. Misc. Planning Department Maps, Richmond Archives.
Waterworks Atlas Map, 1936. Municipal Records, Item #1991 40 41, Location #Maps 20, Richmond Archives

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