Editor:
A recent article concluded that the history of Crescent Beach went back to 1909, the start of the development of Crescent Beach as a resort community. In fact, Crescent Beach has been a village for four or five thousand years and as such is as old as the pyramids or Stonehenge.
The refuse, largely clam shells, charcoal and fire-cracked rocks resulting from steaming food, has piled up three to five metres of deposits. These deposits compose Crescent Beach. Without these archeological deposits, there would only be a sandspit barely above sea level.
Several areas within the Crescent Beach community were apparently organized cemeteries. In the course of installing sewers and water mains and a few larger excavations, over 700 individuals have been recovered. One suspects that there are in fact thousands more.
As a result of the sensitivity of the site, all construction is required to proceed under permit from the archeology branch of the Ministry of Forests and Sustainable Resource Development after consultation with local First Nations. These are their relatives, particularly the Semiahmoo First Nation, who have the strongest connection to the site.
The evidence of the archeology site is visible through much of the community garden. If you wonder, look for fragments of shell in the plot. The suggestion that people could build within it various structures, hot tubs, etc., or that wineries could be established in the Dunsmuir Farm, do not respect the underlying nature of the farm.
Don Welsh, manager, archeology services, Semiahmoo First Nation
