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 conveyors at the Kitimat sandhill gravel pit.
Photograph of Anderson Creek gravel pit showing Lima shovel loading euclid and white trucks. Man standing near one of the trucks. Houses visible in back on left.
Bud Powell is a longtime resident of Kitimat and former smeltersite resident. He worked for Alcan.
Custodial History
Donated by Bud Powell.
Scope and Content
Photograph of Anderson Creek gravel pit showing Lima shovel loading euclid and white trucks. Man standing near one of the trucks. Houses visible in back on left.
1 photograph print : color ; 18 x 12.5cm
1 photograph print : color ; 12.5 x 18cm
3 photograph prints : color ; 8 x 12cm
1 photograph print : color ; 9.5 x 12.5cm
Custodial History
Photographs taken by Gisela Mendel in her role as museum curator.
Scope and Content
Photographs of test holes in cedar trees at Hirsch Creek Park and Enso Park.
Photograph of surveying, drilling test tubes. First visible sign of building the hospital. Henry Janzen (left) and Bod McNaughton, employees of Hardy and Ripley soil consultants, determine conditions of the sub-soil on site chosen for the proposed building. Examination done by means of a pent 1-0 meter.
Photograph of surveying, drilling test tubes. First visible sign of building the hospital. Henry Janzen (left) and Bod McNaughton, employees of Hardy and Ripley soil consultants, determine conditions of the sub-soil on site chosen for the proposed building. Examination done by means of a pent 1-0 meter.
Photograph of a man in the snow next to a fire pit that has been made on the snow. There are two mittens on sticks next to the fire. On the left, there is a paddle in the snow. In the back there is a log with what looks like a black jacket on it.
From the years 1953-1958, Mike Kinnear took photos during his school years, until graduation, while working for Fred Ryan Ltd. after school and holidays. Photos for him was a hobby, and he took many photos of the smelter and townsite as it grew around him. Mike also took a number of photos for the Kitimat Northern Sentinel, during the Ken Brumley and Pixie Meldrum years as editors. Mike and his family left Kitimat in 1958, but he spent the best part of 40 years in the photographic field, mainly in the retail/wholesale part of the photo industry.
Custodial History
Donated by Margaret and Mike Kinnear.
Scope and Content
Photograph of a man in the snow next to a fire pit that has been made on the snow. There are two mittens on sticks next to the fire. On the left, there is a paddle in the snow. In the back there is a log with what looks like a black jacket on it.
