Slide showing an airplane flying over the beach at smeltersite. Behind on the slope, the smeltersite bunkhouses are visible. Pipes can also be seen at the back of the beach area.
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 an airplane flying over the beach at smeltersite. Behind on the slope, the smeltersite bunkhouses are visible. Pipes can also be seen at the back of the beach area.
Photo depicts men towing supplies over the snow on a [sled], that were brought in by a junker seen here to West Tahtsa Lake Camp. Other unidentified men are gathered around the airplane.
Photo depicts men towing supplies over the snow on a [sled], that were brought in by a junker seen here to West Tahtsa Lake Camp. Other unidentified men are gathered around the airplane.
Photo depicts two men kneeling beside the first bags of mail to arrive via Pacific Western Airlines. On the right, Captain T. M. Kellough for PWA delivers the bags to on the left, Kitimat Express driver Lloyd Kaberg, at the wharf, Smeltersite. Northern Sentinel Press Collection
Photo depicts two men kneeling beside the first bags of mail to arrive via Pacific Western Airlines. On the right, Captain T. M. Kellough for PWA delivers the bags to on the left, Kitimat Express driver Lloyd Kaberg, at the wharf, Smeltersite. Northern Sentinel Press Collection
Photo depicts construction of two pan-abode waiting rooms on the beach at Smeltersite for Pacific Western Airlines. A "Mallard" amphibian airplane unloads on the landing ramp in the background.
Photo depicts construction of two pan-abode waiting rooms on the beach at Smeltersite for Pacific Western Airlines. A "Mallard" amphibian airplane unloads on the landing ramp in the background.
Notes
Pan-Abode is interlocking red cedar building materials invented in 1948 in British Columbia. The builders of Kitimat chose innovative materials such as Pan-Abode for the town. Pan-Abode was used in some of the first prototype homes on Kitimat's first streets - Oriole, Pintail, and Partridge. It is also an efficient building material as a structure can be assembled very quickly. Northern Sentinel Press Collection. P00226.jpg
Photo depicts one of four "Mallard" amphibian airplanes with Pacific Western Airlines that was used to transport personnel and freight between Vancouver, Kemano and Kitimat.
Photo depicts one of four "Mallard" amphibian airplanes with Pacific Western Airlines that was used to transport personnel and freight between Vancouver, Kemano and Kitimat.
Notes
Title based on content of photograph. -- Alcan ID No. 5793. Alcan Collection
Photo depicts an aerial view of Kitimat. Seen is land cleared for Neighbourhood "D" and the Whitesail Neighbourhood under construction, right foreground. The Alcan smelter and channel are in the background.
Photo depicts an aerial view of Kitimat. Seen is land cleared for Neighbourhood "D" and the Whitesail Neighbourhood under construction, right foreground. The Alcan smelter and channel are in the background.
Notes
Title based on content of photograph. -- On the official "Town Plan for Kitimat, B.C." by Stein and Mayer & Whittlesey, Neighbourhood "D", the cleared area in the photo, was to have three elementary schools, and one junior and one senior high school. This neighbourhood was never constructed and was returned to bush.
Aerial photo of the Kitimat river estuary showing Kitimat River, Kitimat Harbor, Minette Bay, and the Alcan company smelter site taken from the southwest looking northeast towards the Kitimat City Centre.
Aerial photo of the Kitimat river estuary showing Kitimat River, Kitimat Harbor, Minette Bay, and the Alcan company smelter site taken from the southwest looking northeast towards the Kitimat City Centre.
