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 building for Alcan smelter. Building framework has some sort of large containers attached.
Photograph of smeltersite looking east. Service building area in middleground with pre-cast wall panels in place. Pre-cast concrete yard in foreground.
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 smeltersite looking east. Service building area in middleground with pre-cast wall panels in place. Pre-cast concrete yard in foreground.
Photograph of building construction at the Alcan smeltersite. Possibly part of the service buildings. Building is still framework. Building material is piled in front. Three men are walking on the right side.
Mike (Miecyszlaw) and Nancy Marciniak lived and worked in Kitimat in the 1950s. Their daughter, Nancy Anne, was born here in 1957.
Scope and Content
Photograph of building construction at the Alcan smeltersite. Possibly part of the service buildings. Building is still framework. Building material is piled in front. Three men are walking on the right side.
Photograph of buildings in early Kitimat. Top photo is Nechako centre. Parking lot is full of cars. Mount Elizabeth visible behind. Bottom photo shows foundation and chimney? of a building under construction. Possibly Oceanview apartments. Photos are slide positives attached together.
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 buildings in early Kitimat. Top photo is Nechako centre. Parking lot is full of cars. Mount Elizabeth visible behind. Bottom photo shows foundation and chimney? of a building under construction. Possibly Oceanview apartments. Photos are slide positives attached together.
Showing steel framework of Kitimat's first curling club building being erected just East of the Kitimat River Bridge, Rod and Gun Association clubhouse is in the background.
Showing steel framework of Kitimat's first curling club building being erected just East of the Kitimat River Bridge, Rod and Gun Association clubhouse is in the background.
