R.J. Haney Heritage Village and Museum staff know how to celebrate Shuswap history and this month they’re taking it on the road.
In partnership with the Mall at Piccadilly, the museum is celebrating Heritage Afloat, this year’s Heritage Week theme from Feb. 17 to 22.
The 18th Annual Heritage Week keepsake poster has a photo from the museum’s collection taken by a then-young photographer Rex Lingford.
He took a photograph of the SS Andover rounding Engineer’s Point coming into the Salmon Arm Bay.
The prettiest sternwheeler to serve Salmon Arm was built in Kamloops by maritime ship builders’ Capt. George Ward and his sons Elmer and Arthur in 1908. The boat was christened the SS Silver Stream but renamed the SS Andover shortly afterwards. Ward didn’t realize another vessel in the British ship registry already bore the name.
Armed with a government subsidy of $1,500, Ward remodelled his steamship for the tourist trade a year later. The state rooms accommodated 16 people with meals served from a galley kitchen on board.
Beginning May 25, 1901, service from Kamloops to Sicamous was thrice weekly with an overnight stop in Salmon Arm.
Salmon Arm’s wharf channel was dredged and the future looked bright for water travel.
Capt. Ward was confident that excursions would appeal to hundreds of tourists during the summer months. He set his prices accordingly.
In 1910 the excursion rates were a dollar for adults and half price for children.
Visit R.J. Haney Heritage Village & Museum’s silent auction table on Feb. 20 to 22.
With the help of the Salmon Arm community, the silent auction has become one of the village’s most successful fundraising events of the season. There are more than 150 items and bidding closes Saturday, Feb. 22 at 3 p.m.
There will be many more heritage displays, along with the Heirloom Discovery Days antique appraisals to be held Thursday to Saturday. Families can participate in old-fashioned fun on Saturday, Feb. 22, beginning with a pancake breakfast from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. at Jane’s Place, as well as gold panning and a children’s crafts station from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
The annual Old Fashioned Pie baking contest will also be held on Feb. 22. Categories are apple, fruit and berry (no custard or meringue pies), and slices of the winning pies will be on sale at 1 p.m. for $2.50 a piece.
Back by popular demand is the Best of the Shuswap pie auction at 12:30 p.m. where winning pies fetch high prices.
For more information, call 250-832-5243, visit www.salmonarmmuseum.org or find them on Facebook.com/Haneyheritage.
