Slide showing the side of the Alcan dock, with caissons put into place. Still under construction. In front, dirty water from dredging is unsettling the water. In the background on the opposite shore, tree clearing is visible.
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 the side of the Alcan dock, with caissons put into place. Still under construction. In front, dirty water from dredging is unsettling the water. In the background on the opposite shore, tree clearing is visible.
Slide showing construction of the Alcan dock. Dock construction is on the left side, and water and dirt are on the right. In the distance, the smeltersite pier is visible.
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 construction of the Alcan dock. Dock construction is on the left side, and water and dirt are on the right. In the distance, the smeltersite pier is visible.
Photo depicts the dredge and dragline excavating the channel from the dock to deep water, a truck dumping gravel for the foundation blanket into the bottom of a dump scow. The view looks toward the construction site for the permanent wharf from the south dike of the graving dock, crew bunkhouses of Smeltersite in the background.
Photo depicts the dredge and dragline excavating the channel from the dock to deep water, a truck dumping gravel for the foundation blanket into the bottom of a dump scow. The view looks toward the construction site for the permanent wharf from the south dike of the graving dock, crew bunkhouses of Smeltersite in the background.
Notes
Title based on content of photograph. -- Alcan ID No. BC-2-320. Hal Whiting Collection 985.65.211
Negatives showing the different stages of construction on the Eurocan wharf. Alcan can be seen in the background of some images. Two negatives are of Minette Bay where Eurocan has a stock pile of logs floating on the water and on barges.
Negatives showing the different stages of construction on the Eurocan wharf. Alcan can be seen in the background of some images. Two negatives are of Minette Bay where Eurocan has a stock pile of logs floating on the water and on barges.