Hastings Mill facts for kids
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Hastings Mill was a very important sawmill (a place that cuts logs into lumber) located on the south side of Burrard Inlet. It was the first big business that helped the city of Vancouver grow in British Columbia, Canada. Edward Stamp started the mill in 1865. It kept working until 1928.
The old store building from Hastings Mill was moved in 1930. It is now in Hastings Mill Park on Alma Street. This building became the Old Hastings Mill Store Museum in 1932. Inside, you can see many old things and artifacts that tell the story of Vancouver's past.
History
In 1867, Captain Edward Stamp began cutting lumber at his mill. It was first called Stamp's Mill. He chose a spot at the foot of what is now Dunlevy Avenue. An earlier planned spot at Brockton Point didn't work out because of strong currents.
Edward Stamp worked hard to start the mill. In 1865, he created a company in England. He had $100,000 to invest in making lumber in British Columbia. He also got permission to buy or rent about 16,000 acres (65 km2) of timberland. He picked a good spot for the mill on the south shore of Burrard Inlet.
Some important machine parts from England were late. So, Stamp didn't start cutting lumber for export until June 1867. He managed the company for less than two years before he retired. His company then closed down in England.
The mill stopped working for a short time in 1870. But it opened again in August. A company from San Francisco, Dickson, DeWolf and Company, bought it. It was first known as Stamp's Mill, but then it became the Hastings Sawmill Company, or simply Hastings Mill.
The area around the mill was like a "company town." People bought things at the Hastings Mill Store. Children went to the Hastings Mill School. This school even had students from Moodyville, across the inlet. Things changed when the Canadian Pacific Railway chose Vancouver as its final stop.
Even so, the lumber business was very important to the new settlement. Hastings Mill was the main reason Vancouver grew in the 1880s. It stayed important to the local economy until it closed in 1928.
Museum
After Hastings Mill closed, its store building was moved. It traveled by barge to the foot of Alma Street in 1930. The building officially reopened in 1931. It was named the Museum of B.C. Historical Relics in Memory of the Pioneers in 1932. It is also called the Old Hastings Mill Store Museum.
The Native Daughters of British Columbia run the museum. It shows many old items and interesting things from Vancouver's past. You can also see First Nations art there.
The museum building was built in 1865. This makes it the oldest building in Vancouver. It was one of the only buildings to survive the terrible Great Vancouver Fire in 1886. After the fire, it was used as a hospital and a place for victims.
See also
In Spanish: Hastings Mill para niños
