YOUR HISTORY: Port Moody, during and after the war
Port Moody residents contributed to the war effort, as this photo taken at the old railway station demonstrates.
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YOUR HISTORY by Jim Millar
By 1940, Canada had entered the Second World War, which brought prosperity to British Columbia. In fact, by 1943 British Columbia had the highest income per capita in the country. Many people moved to the west coast, eager to find employment in the war industry, manufacturing products for defence.
Although the province saw an overall increase in its population, Port Moody’s remained at about 1,500 people. It should come as no surprise, then, that few changes in the residential lots were seen.
The new developments took place outside of the established centre of the town. There were few changes in the business landscape as well. The Imperial Oil Company built a service station and the Bennett Store was torn down in the first half of the 1940s. The Bennett Store had occupied the corner of Queen and Clarke Streets since 1907 and served as a general store, post office and public meeting space.
Mills continued to provide most of the employment in the town. In July 1945, the Port Moody Station was moved from west of the town to the foot of Queen Street. This made the Canadian Pacific Rail depot more accessible to the townspeople.
During the war, submarines were even stationed in Ioco. After the war, the rest of the Greater Vancouver area prepared for the influx of veterans and people migrating from other parts of Canada. The increased population would lead to development problems as well as prosperity and Port Moody hoped to benefit from these events.
On a more personal level, a few war veterans decided to form a Legion in Port Moody in 1931. They were awarded with a charter and held meetings in the basement of the Port Arms Hotel and in their own homes. To raise money, the Legion held dinners and dances, and women made and sold baked goods and quilts. By 1951, the Legion put a down payment on a building — 2513 Clarke St. — where they still operate as Branch 119.
Your History is a column in which, once a month, representatives of the Tri-Cities' three heritage groups writes about local history. Jim Millar is with the Port Moody Heritage Society and Port Moody Station Museum.
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