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42-798: The Consolidated Electric Railway Company was forced into receivership by the disaster and emerged reorganized as the British Columbia Electric Railway on April 15, 1897. On May 26, 1896, just before 2:00 pm the Consolidated Electric Railway Company's No. 16 street car passed over the Point Ellice Bridge. It was overburdened with 143 passengers on their way to view the naval battles that were occurring in Esquimalt in celebration of Queen Victoria's birthday. Due to lacking safety standards, poor bridge maintenance, and

84-633: A BCER Streetcar train collided with a flatbed truck carrying lumber at Lakeview Train Station, 14 people were killed and 9 people were injured. Edward Ellice (merchant) Edward Ellice the Elder (27 September 1783 – 17 September 1863), known in his time as the " Bear ", was a British merchant and politician. He was a Director of the Hudson's Bay Company and a prime mover behind the Reform Bill of 1832 . Ellice

126-622: A statutory right-of-way to use this section of the corridor in perpetuity, but put agreements in place to retain partial running rights for passenger service, which were renewed in 2009. While there has been a number proposals regarding the restart of a commuter passenger rail service along the line, a review was conducted by the British Columbia Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure in 2010. The review noted issues around high cost per ride and low projected ridership relative to bus alternatives. Subsequently, TransLink conducted

168-658: A study as part of the 2010–2012 Surrey Rapid Transit Study to explore merits of utilizing the Interurban corridor for fast, frequent, and reliable rapid transit service. The interurban corridor was not selected, nor recommended for further consideration because the corridor does not directly connect relevant regional destinations of Surrey Central and Langley City, resulted in less attractive travel times between key destinations, and would require significant capital investments to meet safety requirements and reliability objectives compared to alternatives. In particular, TransLink noted that

210-545: A whip in Lord Grey 's government , 1830–1832. He was Secretary at War from 1832 to 1834, during which time he proposed that appointments in the army should be made directly from his office. He founded the Reform Club in 1836 and supported Palmerston as premier. He was appointed a Privy Counsellor in 1833. He was awarded a DCL by St Andrews University . He privately urged French government to send troops into Spain in 1836. He

252-661: Is double that of a possible bus rapid transit line or a Skytrain route along the Fraser Highway. Finally, TransLink has indicated that freight traffic along the line is expected to increase along the corridor, due to increased traffic at the Port of Metro Vancouver , in particular the Roberts Bank Superport . After the decommission of the BCER streetcar and interurban system, most of the cars were either scrapped or burned underneath

294-500: The Burrard Bridge , but some cars were sold for various other uses such as becoming bunkhouses, storage sheds and in some cases decor. A handful of cars were also donated to various museums mostly in the U.S. Since then however, many preservation societies have bought back the cars and begun restoring them. The following is a list of the known BCER cars in existence and their current locations (as of January 2016). On November 10, 1909,

336-699: The Canadian Pacific Railway station at Ruskin . The route of the Stave Falls Branch along Hayward Lake is also now a walking trail managed by BC Hydro and the District of Mission, with sections of it south of Ruskin Dam used as local powerline and neighbourhood walking trails. Port Moody–Coquitlam The Port Moody-Coquitlam Railway connected the Port Moody – Ioco spur of the Canadian Pacific Railway to

378-775: The Coquitlam Dam in order to haul supplies and materials to the dam. Alouette Lake Similar to the Stave Lake and Port Moody-Coquitlam lines, the Alouette Lake dam tracks connected power facilities to the CPR that ran on the north side of the Fraser River at Kanaka Creek in Haney . Jordan River This 5.3-mile railway connected the powerhouse and harbour at the mouth of the Jordan River to

420-592: The Jordan River Dam . BCER ended streetcar service in New Westminster on December 5, 1938. The company then announced its "Rails-to-Rubber" conversion programme on September 30, 1944, with North Vancouver's last streetcar service and two of Vancouver's streetcar lines ending in April 1947, and Victoria's streetcar service ending on July 4, 1948. In Vancouver, many streetcar lines were converted to trolley buses , with

462-659: The Southern Railway of British Columbia . This line made use of the New Westminster Bridge , opened in 1904. Burnaby Lake Line The Burnaby Lake line's right-of-way is largely taken up by the Trans-Canada Highway , but sections of it survive as walking and biking trails. Central Park Line Following the cessation of interurban services on the Central Park Line, the right-of-way remained under

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504-849: The Upper Harbour ends and the Selkirk Water begins. Point Ellice, and the Point Ellice Bridge, were named for Edward Ellice who joined the NWC in 1805 and was largely responsible for its decision to merge with the HBC . He went on to a political career in England and was deputy governor of the HBC from 1858 to 1863. 48°26′3.32″N 123°22′41.14″W  /  48.4342556°N 123.3780944°W  / 48.4342556; -123.3780944 British Columbia Electric Railway The British Columbia Electric Railway (BCER)

546-715: The XY Company in Canada. He was sent to Canada in 1803, and in 1804 became a party to the union of the XY and North West Companies. He became a partner in the North West Company, and during the struggle with Lord Selkirk he played an important part. He engaged in the Canada fur trade from 1803, and as a result was nicknamed "the Bear". On 30 October 1809 he married Hannah Althea Bettesworth, née Grey, daughter of Charles Grey, 1st Earl Grey , and

588-574: The 'Railway Bridge' across the north arm of the Fraser River are still in operation today, as part of the Southern Railway of British Columbia . New Westminster – Fraser Mills Opened in 1912, construction of ramps leading to and from the new Pattullo Bridge resulted in the closure of the Queensborough and Fraser Mills lines in 1937, as well as the truncation of the Burnaby Lake line to Sapperton . Victoria – Deep Bay Now called Deep Cove,

630-517: The 14 Hastings East , ran on April 22, 1955. The Marpole-New Westminster interurban line was closed in 1956, followed by the Marpole-Steveston line on February 28, 1958, marking the complete closure of the interurban system. In 1961, the provincial government took over BC Electric, with the railway becoming a division of Crown corporation BC Hydro . In August 1988, BC Hydro sold their freight division which included rolling stock and rails and

672-521: The Tyrwhitt-Drake residence are credited with pulling seven people from the water. The Grant residence at 304 Bay street was used a primary area for recovering both the living and dead. The dead were laid out on the lawn, and the living were taken into the drawing room where Mrs. Grant had worked quickly to turn it into an infirmary. Other neighbours are recorded as having brought: "blankets, brandy and other restoratives." The Daily Colonist remarked: "It

714-623: The Victoria to Deep Cove line (1913), was one of three passenger railways to serve the Saanich Peninsula , and was closed on November 1, 1924, due to low ridership. The Victoria-Deep Cove interurban's alignment can be traced by Burnside Road, Interurban Road and the Interurban Rail Trail, West Saanich Road, Wallace Drive, Aldous Terrace, Mainwaring Road, one of Victoria International Airport 's runways, and Tatlow Road to Deep Cove. Besides

756-428: The ability to grant operating rights to others, including to providers of passenger rail service, that do not materially interfere with Southern Railway of British Columbia's operations. In addition, BC Hydro in 1988 also sold the track assets of a section between Cloverdale from Pratt Junction through Langley City and beyond to CP Rail , but retained ownership of the right-of-way. At the time, BC Hydro also granted CPR

798-479: The collapse occurred. Seeing the streetcar plunge into the water, many bystanders leapt into action. According to the Daily Colonist on May 27, the day after the collapse: "The hour was not without its heroes who were quick to think and act, and to these heroes, women and men, the salvation of many lives from the waters is due, as well as the winning back from death of many who had to all appearances passed into

840-590: The control of BC Hydro . By 1975, the Greater Vancouver Regional District proposed incorporating the right-of-way into a light rail line linking Vancouver and New Westminster, thereby reinstating passenger rail service on the corridor. The provincial government eventually took over the project, which evolved into the Vancouver SkyTrain 's Expo Line . New Westminster–Queensborough The tracks from New Westminster to Queensborough and

882-694: The end of passenger service in 1958 the Granville and Garden City section of the line was relocated largely parallel to River Road north of Westminster Highway. Marpole–New Westminster Interurban service between Marpole and New Westminster along the North Arm of the Fraser River was started in 1909. Still in operation today, as part of the Southern Railway of British Columbia . New Westminster–Chilliwack (Fraser Valley Branch) Opened October 4, 1910 (also used by freight) and still in operation today, as part of

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924-640: The first route of BCER's Vancouver trolley bus system opening on 16 August 1948. The Chilliwack line ceased service in 1950, followed by the Vancouver-Marpole line in 1952 and the Burnaby Lake line in 1953. The stretch of the Central Park line in Burnaby and New Westminster was closed on October 23, 1953, followed by the rest of the line through Vancouver on July 16, 1954. The last streetcar line in Vancouver,

966-677: The following companies: With the global depression in the 1890s, all three companies went into receivership, and were amalgamated in 1895 into the Consolidated Railway and Light Company. The newly founded company was forced into receivership again after a streetcar accident in Victoria (the Point Ellice Bridge Disaster ) resulted in 55 deaths, and was reorganized as the British Columbia Electric Railway Company Limited in April 1897. Power

1008-582: The following year. His only son was Edward Ellice Jr. , who also sat in Parliament. Ellice acquired the large Scottish Highlands sporting estates of Invergarry, with David Bryce building Invergarry House for him, in 1866 to 1869 and of Glenquoich further inland, where he entertained up to a thousand guests a year, notable visitors including Sir Edwin Landseer , William Gladstone and Sir Henry Holland . In 1859 his son's wife, Katherine Ellice served as host when

1050-461: The grass." On the day of the collapse 47 people were recorded as having died, but as the debris of the streetcar was removed and search efforts continued the number of dead rose to 55. Men, women, and children from Port Townsend, Seattle, Tacoma, Victoria, and Vancouver were among the deceased. According to a diary entry written by Peter O'Reilly nearly one year after the bridge disaster he remarks on how he believed that his eldest daughter Kathleen

1092-439: The overcrowded street car, the bridge collapsed causing the streetcar to crash into the water. The 143 occupants of the street car, as well as two other horse-led vehicles and a gentleman on a bicycle who was crossing the bridge at the same time, fell into the water. The register that recorded trolley fares had recorded that 98 fares had been collected, however it is believed that the conductor had not finished collecting fares when

1134-677: The ownership of the CPR, which continued running freight trains on the corridor until June 2001. With the end of freight operations on the line in sight, Vancouver City Council adopted the Arbutus Corridor Official Development Plan in 2000, designating the corridor as a transportation/greenway public thoroughfare to prevent other types of development from taking place along the right-of-way. Marpole–Steveston (Lulu Island Branch) The Steveston line's alignment on Lulu Island can be traced by Railway Avenue, Granville Avenue, Garden City Road, and Great Canadian Way. After

1176-446: The rights to run freight trains through Fraser Valley Subdivision, not the corridor, to a company known as Itel of Chicago who resold it to a new shortline operator and the railway is now known as the Southern Railway of British Columbia and is exclusively a freight railway. At the time, BC Hydro did not specifically reserve rights to operate passenger rail service using Southern Railway of British Columbia's facilities, but did retain

1218-667: The routing of the interurban line does not directly connect to the largest regional centre in the South of Fraser – Surrey Metro Centre – which is expected to be the focus of future population and employment growth, and the current alignment is indirect and through lower density and diverse areas, with a low ridership catchment near potential stations. Also, TransLink estimated that the interurban estimated travel times are not competitive with rapid transit along Fraser Highway or King George Boulevard , with transit times estimated to be around 63 minutes to travel between Langley and Surrey Central, which

1260-425: The shadowland. The work of rescuers lasted through all the afternoon, and by evening the greater number of bodies had been recovered, although it is practically certain that yet others are still to be removed from the fatal waters." Many of homeowners who owned property at Point Ellice are recorded as having seen or heard the collapse and jumped into action to aid in rescue efforts. The daughters of Mr. Justice Drake of

1302-708: The streetcar era, BC Electric also ran bus and trolleybus systems in Greater Vancouver and bus service in Greater Victoria ; these systems subsequently became part of BC Transit , and the routes in Greater Vancouver eventually came under the control of TransLink . Trolley buses still run in the City of Vancouver with one line extending into Burnaby. Streetcar and interurban services were inaugurated in southwestern British Columbia between 1890 and 1891, operated by

Point Ellice Bridge disaster - Misplaced Pages Continue

1344-598: The stretch through the airport, the stretch at the Experimental Farm (now called the Sidney/Centre for Plant Health) has also been blocked. Stave Lake A 6-mile (9.7 km) steam train branch line, the Stave Falls Branch , (constructed during the building of the original Stave Falls hydroelectric plant) was isolated from the main interurban network, and linked the power plant and community at Stave Falls to

1386-471: The traffic on the bridge to within safe limits. The design and construction of the bridge was also found to have been poor, especially in that the specifications called for weldless iron to be used, but the ironwork was almost all welded. The Point Ellice Bridge connects the two halves of Bay Street between Victoria and Victoria West and spans the Upper Harbour at the same location today. It marks where

1428-655: The widow of Captain George Edmund Byron Bettesworth . He had one son by her, Edward . In 1820, he was, with the brothers William and Simon McGillivray , active in bringing about the union of the North West and the Hudson's Bay Companies; and it was actually with him and the McGillivrays that the union was negotiated. He amalgamated the North West , XY , and Hudson's Bay companies in 1821. In 1825 Ellice

1470-600: Was deputy-governor of the Hudson's Bay Company . Ellice was a co-owner of eight sugar estates in Grenada , British Guiana , Tobago and Antigua . In the 1830s, the British government emancipated the slaves, and Ellice received compensation to the tune of about £35,000 for the liberation of over 300 slaves. In 1843, he married, secondly, Anne Amelia Leicester, née Keppel, daughter of William Keppel, 4th Earl of Albemarle and widow of Thomas Coke, 1st Earl of Leicester . She died in

1512-526: Was a director of the New Zealand Company , a venture chaired by his brother-in-law, the wealthy John George Lambton , Whig MP (and later 1st Earl of Durham ), that made the first attempt to colonise New Zealand. His brother Russell Ellice was also a director. He was Member of Parliament for Coventry from 1818 to 1826, and again from 1830 to 1863. He served as a Secretary to the Treasury , and

1554-429: Was a historic railway which operated in southwestern British Columbia , Canada. Originally the parent company for, and later a division of, BC Electric Company (now BC Hydro ), the BCER assumed control of existing streetcar and interurban lines in southwestern British Columbia in 1897, and operated the electric railway systems in the region until the last interurban service was discontinued in 1958. During and after

1596-546: Was born on 27 September 1783 in London , the son of Alexander Ellice and Ann Russell. In 1795, his father purchased the Seigneury of Villechauve in Canada from Michel Chartier de Lotbinière, Marquis de Lotbinière . His younger brother was General Robert Ellice . He was educated at Winchester School and at Marischal College , Aberdeen . He became a partner in the firm of Phyn, Ellices and Inglis , which had become interested in

1638-481: Was later retracted. On June 12, 1896, a coroner's jury concluded that the tramway operator, the Consolidated Electric Railway Company, was responsible for the disaster because it allowed its streetcar to be loaded with a much greater weight of passengers than the bridge was designed to support. The city council of Victoria was found to be guilty of contributory negligence because the bridge had not been well maintained, and because council failed to take steps to restrict

1680-526: Was on the bridge when it collapsed: "Yesterday the Queen’s birthday was kept, but very quietly – no regatta, no racing, no nothing – I believe…Tomorrow the 26th a day never to be forgotten, when I believed for a while that I have lost my darling child but by gods’ miracle she was spared." A letter to Kathleen O'Reilly from Harry Stanhope discusses how the London papers had reported of a death of an O'Reilly, though this

1722-615: Was supplied by then-innovative diversion projects at Buntzen Lake and on the Stave River system farther east, all of which were built primarily to supply power for the interurbans and street railway . Vancouver–Marpole BCER began the Vancouver- Steveston interurban and freight service in 1905 after leasing the line from Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) and electrifying it. The Vancouver-Marpole line's right-of-way (whose northern section runs beside Arbutus Street) remained under

Point Ellice Bridge disaster - Misplaced Pages Continue

1764-426: Was wonderful how coolly and energetically men and women worked. Class distinctions and all were forgotten. Delicate ladies whom one might expect to shrink from scenes of horror aided the work of resuscitating the unfortunate victims as one by one they were brought ashore and laid on the lawns of Capt. Grant's house. It was an awful sight as one motionless form after another was brought up on the steep back and placed upon

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