Slide showing a man in glasses kneeling down behind a little boy with a red coat and grey cap. The boy is holding a ball. Behind them is a grey vehicle of some sort. To the left of the vehicle is piles of wooden planks. There are some people in red visible beyond that, as well as a house. Douglas Channel and mountains in the distance.
James McNay was born in Ayrshire, Scotland, on January 31, 1907. Between 1951 and 1953, he worked in the payroll department for Alcan. He had to leave his wife Effie and his two young daughters, Margaret and Diane, aged 6 and 5 in 1951, at home in Surrey, B.C., during his 3-4 month stints in Kitimat. To fill some of his free time and show his family where he was and what Kitimat was like, he spent many hours walking in the area with a 35mm Kodak camera. He photographed the scenic beauty of the area and parts of the construction of both the smelters and the town. He died in Surrey on August 7, 1983.
Custodial History
Donated by Margaret McNay. Images were taken by her father and sent to their family in Surrey in the 1950s.
Scope and Content
Slide showing a man in glasses kneeling down behind a little boy with a red coat and grey cap. The boy is holding a ball. Behind them is a grey vehicle of some sort. To the left of the vehicle is piles of wooden planks. There are some people in red visible beyond that, as well as a house. Douglas Channel and mountains in the distance.
The Surf Inlet Gold Mine was located on Princess Royal Island above Surf Inlet. Limited production began in 1902 and then ceased in 1905. The mine reopened production in 1917, after major development occurred. It was then operated by the Tonapah Belmont Development Company of Philadelphia. The mine closed in 1926. Three mines were opened in 1934 by Surf Inlet Consolidated Gold Mines, including the Surf Inlet Mine, the Pugsley Mine and the Belmont Mine. These closed permanently in 1943.
Custodial History
Donated by Bulkley Valley Museum/Dirk Mendel
Scope and Content
Folder containing stack of various Post Office documents and notes from the Surf Inlet Consolodated Gold Mines Ltd from the years 1940-43.
