عنوان

Vancouver Island letters of Edmund Hope Verney, 1862-65 /

0774805544 (acid-free paper)

0774805730 (paperback)

9780774805544 (acid-free paper)

9780774805735 (paperback)

dltt

Vancouver Island letters of Edmund Hope Verney, 1862-65 /

[Book]

edited by Allan Pritchard.

Vancouver, BC :

UBC Press,

c1996.

307 p. :

ill., map ;

24 cm.

The pioneers of British Columbia,

0847-0537

Includes bibliographical references (p. [263]-294) and index.

Family and Early Life -- Letters of Sir Harry and Lady Verney -- The Voyage Out: England to Vancouver Island -- Naval Activities -- Other Activities -- People and Politics -- Native Indians -- Coastal Scenes and Scenery -- The Return Journey: Vancouver Island to England -- Later Life -- Notes to Introduction.

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In this previously unknown collection of letters, we see colonial British Columbia through the eyes of a young naval officer who spent three years on Vancouver Island commanding a Royal Navy gunboat during the Cariboo gold rush. A keen observer of life in the new world, Edmund Hope Verney corresponded on a regular basis with his father, a prominent British MP. The letters are highly engaging and provide an interesting record of many aspects of colonial life, including political and social history, civic and eccleciastical affairs, the impact of the gold rush, the establishment of European settlements, relations with Natives, and comments on the personalities and activities of leading figures in colonial British Columbia.

The letters are especially interesting because Verney often chose to write about matters that nobody else thought worth recording. Actively involved in the social and legal affairs of the colony, he took part in the settlement of Comox and Cowichan. He was a magistrate and he was involved with the establishment of a free school as well as being on the immigration board. His opinions on who constituted the ideal British immigrant and his reactions to women from the bride ships are particularly revealing. His letters, filled with lively narration and description, candid commentary, and fascinating personal detail, were clearly written to be preserved, and Verney's comments about the events and people he observed still provide fascinating reading. The excellent introduction by Allan Pritchard provides the biographical and historical contexts and identifies the individuals mentioned in the letters.

Verney, Edmund Hope,1838-1910

Great Britain.-- Officers

Vancouver Island (B.C.), History.

Vancouver Island (B.C.), Social conditions.

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Verney, Edmund Hope,1838-1910.

Pritchard, Allan.

20130502102942.0

[Book]

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