fHE HISTORIC NAME of “China
Sreek Road”, over which lusty Vancouver
sland pioneers once passed, will not

ranish from the Port Alberni scene.
Vhen a by-law involving a change of
jame caine up for final passage recently,
i group of citizens were mindful of its
arly glory. They introduced an amend-
nent restoring its hallowed name, and in
loing so, scored a further victory over
hose priggish factions which from time
‘o time seek to divest our local landmarks
yf their associations with the colourful
yast. British Columbia has suffered little
From this form of vandalism, but other
yarts of Canada have on occasion bowed
‘0 it. Perhaps the most flagrant example
was the substitution of the lacklustre
“Alberta” as the name of a section of
that vast area which once gloried in a
loftier title as the mighty “Assiniboia”.
No Canadian province can boast a
richer heritage of colourful place-names
than can our British Columbia; and be-
hind each, however obscure, lies a story
of romance in the truest sense of the
word. The names on our maps stand as
memorials to great men and their deeds,
and to the humbler men and women who
built the western empire we know today.
It is a sad reflection that, although the
names of our geographical features re-
main unchanged, with the passing of a
few decades the memories associated
with them have lapsed. Most British
Columbians are familiar with Lulu Island,

= Photo by Wally) West Studio
Sub-Inspector Geo. H. Clark, M.C.

Sub-Inspector Clark was sergeant in charge of
the Fort George Sub-Division from July, 1941.
Joining the Provincial Police at Quesnel in 1922
he has been stationed at many of the Coastal
points in the Province. Sub-Inspector Clark
will remain at Prince George as Officer Com-
manding Fort George Sub-Division.

but few would venture to explain how the
island acquired its name. In 1862, the en-
chanting young actress, Lulu Sweet ar-
rived in the Vancouver area as a member
of the first theatrical troupe to visit the
coast. She so captivated the populace that
Col. Moody, of the Royal Engineers,
promptly dubbed the nearby silt forma-
tion “Lulu Island.” It is recorded that
“her conduct, acting, and graceful man-
ners were greatly appreciated.”

The great majority of points on the
Pacific Coast were named after men and
ships in the service of Spain and England,
prominent men and women of the early
days, and adaptations of local Indian
words or tribal names. Spanish names
are particularly prevalent among the
waterways separating Vancouver Island
from the mainland, and upon the island
itself.

In 1791, the Alberni canal was named
by Lieut. Francis Eliza, after Don Pedro
Alberni, a swashbuckling soldier of for-
tune who captained the expedition sent by
the Viceroy of Mexico to reoccupy the
coast. The expedition landed at Nootka
on April 5th, 1790. Estevan owes its
name to Lieut.-Commander Juan Perez of
the corvette Santiago, who gave it the
name of his second in command, Estevan
Jose Martinez. It was Martinez who
caused the international “incident” known
in 1790 as the “Nootka Affair,” when he
seized the harbour, erected barracks and
set up a battery of sixteen bristling guns

PRINCE GEORGE TIRE SERVICE

J. SLESINGER, Proprietor

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Vulcanizing and Recapping

MOST MODERN AND UP-TO-DATE EQUIPMENT
IN NORTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA

an
DUNLOP

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PRINCE GEORGE British Columbia

EIGHTEENTH EDITION

Page One Hundred and Twenty-nine