White Rock Museum and Archives
14970 Marine Drive V4B 1C4 White Rock, BC, Canada

Happy New Year from the team at White Rock Museum and Archives! Wishing you all health and happiness as we step into a hopeful 2021!

Merry Christmas from all of us at White Rock Museum and Archives! We wish you and yours a safe and happy holiday season!

White Rock Museum and Archives galleries and museum shop are now closed for the season. We wish to thank all of our fantastic local vendors for participating in our seasonal pop-up event. Thank you to the community of White Rock for shopping local and supporting us! #shoptherock Happy Holidays!

Final day to check out our Seasonal Pop up Tables! The White Rock Museum and Archives shop will close for the season at the end of business today! Don't miss out, come on down and check out our fabulous selection of local gifts and products! Shop local and support your neighbours! #ShopTheRock... We are open from 12 - 4 today! Free parking is courtesy of the City of White Rock Face masks are now required for everyone inside our museum shop. We have a capacity limit of 3 guests in our Museum Shop. Our museum gallery is closed, so overflow guests will be asked to wait outside until space is available in the shop. We thank you for your patience.

Just until Sunday... We have a small sampling of items from these past pop up vendors in the museum shop. White Rock photo calendars and cards by Marilyn Trenchard... Beautiful hats and scarves by Glass Pumpkin Accessories Delicious preserves and jams by Mama Chasse Fun beach themed Christmas decorations by Just Beachy Gorgeous natural wood items by Turnings by Winch One of a kind hand sewn apron creations by Dani Designer face masks by Loving The Bling Lovely soaps and cards by Seraphina Soaps and Gifts Come on down and check out our selection of unique and local products! Shop local, support your neighbours! #ShopTheRock

This is the final weekend of our Seasonal Pop Up Tables! Come down and catch these these fabulous local artisans before they are gone! Our shop closes for the season on December 20 Sue's Scrumptious Cookies- Fun and festive decorated Christmas cookies. Excellent for stuffing stockings and tummies! New this week are gingersnaps and orange-cranberry shortbread.... You can also purchase a cookie decorating kit with everything you need to create your own festive masterpieces! Wander Natural Products- Small batch, natural beauty and wellness products and accessories. Lovely gifts for someone special on our list! Gorgeous scent blends with local BC names. Artistic Creations By Trudi- Hand painted Santa decorations created from driftwood. Many styles to choose from. Plant picks, hanging ornaments etc. An excellent addition to your festive décor or makes a great gift! We hope to see you soon! Our shop closes for the season on December 20. #ShopTheRock We are open Tuesday to Sunday from 12 - 4. Free parking is courtesy of the City of White Rock Face masks are now required for everyone inside our museum shop. We have a capacity limit of 3 guests in our Museum Shop. Our museum gallery is closed, so overflow guests will be asked to wait outside until space is available in the shop. We thank you for your patience.

We are thrilled to be featuring these local creators until Thursday! Loving the Bling- Fun and classy, these sparkly items make great gifts and stocking stuffers! Gloves, business card holders and face masks with eye catching glittery accents! As well as pet and sports themed face masks that cover the interests of everyone on your list. Seraphina Soap and Gifts is back by popular demand. Beautiful scented soaps for everyone! So many lovely scents are 3 bars for just $10. Get... them while they last! Seraphina also has knitted dish cloths, hats, jewellery, and candles! We hope to see you soon! Face masks are now required for everyone inside our museum shop. We have a capacity limit of 3 guests in our Museum Shop. Our museum gallery is closed, so overflow guests will be asked to wait outside until space is available in the shop. We thank you for your patience. We are open Tuesday to Sunday from 12 - 4. Free parking is courtesy of the City of White Rock

Coming up on Friday... We are excited to be featuring these fantastic local vendors in our museum shop! Wander Natural Products- Small batch, natural beauty products. Gorgeous scents named after towns and regions in BC!... Sue's Scrumptious Cookies- Fun and festive decorated Christmas cookies. Excellent for stuffing those stockings! Artistic Creations By Trudi- Santa decorations crafted from driftwood. An excellent addition to your festive decor!

White Rock Museum and Archives had a fresh coat of paint this fall! Come on down and visit us on these days filled with sunshine and see how bright and fresh the station looks! Or come in the evening to catch a glimpse of the beautiful seasonal lights in the trees along the promenade! White Rock Museum and Archives would like to thank City of White Rock for keeping our train station looking fabulous, day and night! ... We truly appreciate the care and attention the city crews invest to keep our building and the promenade looking its very best! Thank you! See more

Coming up on Friday... Our Pop-up Shop will be featuring these wonderful local artists beginning this Friday! Mama Chasse Handmade- Handknit and handsewn items, as well as homemade preserves that are always a hit!... Seraphina Soap and Gifts- That's right, another week of delightful scented soaps, just $10 for three bars. As well as handmade cards, candles and handknit hats. We hope to see you soon! We have a capacity limit of 3 guests in our Museum Shop. Our museum gallery is closed, so overflow guests will be asked to wait outside until space is available in the shop. We thank you for your patience. We strongly encourage guests wear masks, and our frontline staff will be masked. We are open Tuesday to Sunday from 12 - 4. Free parking is courtesy of the City of White Rock

We have kept a small sampling of items from these past pop up vendors in the museum shop. White Rock photo calendars and cards by Marilyn Trenchard Beautiful hats and scarves by Glass Pumpkin Accessories Delicious preserves and jams by Mama Chasse... Fun beach themed Christmas decorations by Just Beachy Gorgeous natural wood items by Turnings by Winch One of a kind hand sewn apron creations by Dani We also have a preview of delicious and festive decorated cookies by Sue's Scrumptious Cookies. She will have a pop up table in our shop beginning on Dec 11, along with Wander Natural Products and Artistic Creations by Trudi. Come on down and check out our selection of unique and local products! Shop local, support your neighbours!

Fraser Health’s public health teams are piecing together the puzzle of COVID-19 transmission in our region. Take a look at what that puzzle looks like in two ex...amples using real data. http://ow.ly/5hzZ50Ciax2 Fraser Health City of White Rock, City of Surrey White Rock BIA, Cloverdale BIA, Newton Business Improvement Association, Downtown Surrey BIA, Fleetwood BIA Peace Arch News

Starting today! We are thrilled to be featuring these local creators for a week! Loving the Bling- Fun and classy, these sparkly items make great gifts and stocking stuffers! Gloves, business card holders and face masks with eye catching glittery accents! As well as pet and sports themed face masks that cover the interests of everyone on your list. ... Seraphina Soap and Gifts is back by popular demand. Beautiful scented soaps for everyone! So many lovely scents are 3 bars for just $10. Get them while they last! Seraphina also has knitted dish cloths, hats, jewellery, and candles! We hope to see you soon! Face masks are now required for everyone inside our museum shop. We have a capacity limit of 3 guests in our Museum Shop. Our museum gallery is closed, so overflow guests will be asked to wait outside until space is available in the shop. We thank you for your patience. We are open Tuesday to Sunday from 12 - 4. Free parking is courtesy of the City of White Rock

Our Pop-up Shop starts today! We are excited to reveal our first group of featured artists! Glass Pumpkin Jewellery and Fashion Accessories-wonderful knitted accessories and coordinating jewellery... Marilyn Trenchard Photography-beautiful calendars showing scenes of White Rock Seraphina Soaps-a fan favourite, lovely scented soaps for gifting, or as a treat for yourself We have a capacity limit of 3 guests in our Museum Shop. Our museum gallery is closed, so overflow guests will be asked to wait outside until space becomes available in the shop. We thank you for your patience! We strongly encourage guests wear masks, and all our frontline staff will be masked. We are open Tuesday to Sunday from 12 - 4. Free parking is courtesy of the City of White Rock We hope to see you soon!

Thank you City of White Rock for keeping our city looking so fabulous!

This is a great opportunity for anyone looking to become more involved in the community.

Welcome back! The White Rock Museum & Archives has partially reopened on September 1. The gift shop has reopened with modified hours (open daily from 12:00 - 4:00, closed on Mondays) and with new safety procedures in place. The galleries will reopen on October 13, 2020 with our annual Remembrance Day exhibit - Lest We Forget: White Rock During the War Years . Unfortunately the children's gallery will remain closed until further notice due to safety concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

WHAT’S IN THE ARCHIVES! It’s rare to see a colour photograph of the station in its original Great Northern Railway colours dark brown, with light brown trim. In 1961, three years after this photo was taken, Great Northern changed its colour scheme to white, with green trim, the colours the station is painted today. The other buildings which dominate the skyline are the Ocean Beach Hotel, with the white façade, and the Silver Moon hall to the far right, which served as everything from a polling station to a banquet hall, to a roller rink. Sometime in the 1960s the Silver Moon was converted to apartments which it still is today.

WHAT’S IN THE ARCHIVES! On June 13th, 1950 the Great Northern Railway brought its brand-new, state of the art streamlined passenger train to White Rock for first time. The name of the train was ‘The International’ and it served the regular run between Vancouver and Seattle. Although nearing the end of its reign, railway was still King of transportation in 1950, and this photo is evidence of that. 750 people toured the train during the one hour it was stopped at the station.

WHAT’S IN THE ARCHIVES! This photograph, taken in 1916 shows very well how the White Rock hillside has changed over the last century. The railway had come 7 years earlier, and the cottages dotting the hillside came soon after. The row of cottages, including the large one under construction foreshadow the century of development that would follow.

WHAT’S IN THE ARCHIVES! This excellent photograph shows downtown White Rock in the early 1930s. We don’t know the exact date of the photo but some of the buildings give us a clue. On the extreme right the Blue Moon Dance Pavilion is partially visible. This building burned down on September 11, 1931, so we know the photo was taken before then. The ‘Feedham Block’, visible in the centre of the photo (with the bus parked in front) was built in 1930 and owned by Burnie Feedham. M...r. Feedham also owned the Blue Moon, and when it burned he added a second floor to the Feedham Block which eventually became the Ocean Beach Hotel. The importance of the railway station (on the left) for the community is graphically indicated by how all the other buildings cluster near it. The phrase ‘opposite the depot’ was often used in advertisements of the day, rather than a street address. See more

WHAT’S IN THE ARCHIVES! The photo in the August 13 Peace Arch News of the Peace Arch wrapped in white plastic while undergoing renovations inspired me to find a historical photo of the monument for this week’s post. This photo was taken in 1921 by Vancouver photographer Walter Calder. The crowd was gathered for the first opening ceremony (there were two more ceremonies held in 1922 and 1926 to accommodate VIPs such as French General Joffre and Queen Marie of Romania). The arch was originally conceived and built to honour 100 years of peace between Canada and the US following the end of the War of 1812. However the opening of the arch was delayed until after the First World War. The large white building on the left is the St. Leonard Hotel, infamous with the people of Blaine for its copious sales of alcohol.

WHAT’S IN THE ARCHIVES! Normally at this time of year the immaculate green at Mann Park is bustling with white clad bowlers. And today would have been a very special day to bowl there because it was exactly 60 years ago today that the club was officially opened. These days there isn’t much bowling going on because of the pandemic, so the club is taking the opportunity to do some major renovations to the perimeter of the green. Ten years ago the club provided us with copies of their archive of photographs and newspaper clippings covering their extensive history in White Rock. This photograph shows the opening day celebrations at Mann Park on July 30, 1960.

WHAT’S IN THE ARCHIVES! It was disheartening to read in the Peace Arch News today that Penguin Meats will be closing its doors after over half a century as a family business in White Rock. This 1980 photo shows the beloved meat store at the 1554 Johnston Road where it was located from 1964 to 2016. Most people will remember it at this location. The iconic penguin logo first appeared in ads in the White Rock Sun in 1965 featuring deals like pork steaks for 49 cents, and three pounds of hamburger for one dollar.

Covid-19 has challenged us to come up with innovative ways to share the White Rock story with our community. We are pleased to release our first video episode of the White Rock History Quiz. We invite you to test your knowledge of White Rock's history by taking the quiz with your friends and family to compete for bragging rights. The video was a joint effort with our Archive's Manager Hugh Ellenwood and the creative videography and production skills of Mark Roland Henning fro...m Boutique Empire Studio. We plan to do more of these quizzes, so please let us know what you think about this and share any ideas regarding future themes or topics. Thanks and enjoy!

White Rock’s Virtual Canada Day by the Bay is now live!!!! The team at the White Rock Museum & Archives is pleased to present to you our Virtual Vendors. Please support these amazing artisans. https://www.whiterockcity.ca/364/Canada-Day-by-the-Bay

Our friends Larry and Kelly Kristof of Ethical Addiction Apparel @EthicalAddictionApparel are selling a series of Buffee face coverings featuring four images associated with the White Rock Museum & Archives as a fundraiser on behalf of the museum and archives! The Buffees sell for $20 and $10 from each sale goes to support the White Rock Museum & Archives. If you are interested in purchasing one of these face coverings and supporting our work at the WRMA please contact:... Ethical Addictions by phone 604 560-3255 or email [email protected] for curbside pick up

Hello Everyone, Each of us has a story to tell about our daily life during these unprecedented times. The White Rock Museum & Archives is collecting the stories of daily life, hardship, heroism, joy and sadness that Covid-19 has brought to our community. Find out how to share your personal experience of the pandemic by sending an email to Hugh Ellenwood at [email protected] or a letter to White Rock Museum & Archives Covid-19 History Project, 14970 Marine Drive, White Rock BC, V4B 1C4. Future generations will want to know what it was like to live through this. Please tell us what it’s been like for you. Hugh Ellenwood Archives Manager

WHAT’S IN THE ARCHIVES! Today marks the one hundred and second anniversary of the start of the Battle of Vimy Ridge, a seminal moment in Canadian military history. This photo, taken on August 8, 1916 shows Belle Hood and Earl Barge in front of the Hood family cottage on Elm Street. Earle was bound for France, where he would eventually end up as part of the Canadian Corps facing the German 6th Army at Vimy Ridge. Eart was there during the period of extensive trench raiding by the Canadians from February until the start of the battle. The raids were very dangerous, and Earl was wounded on March 8th, 1917, hit in the leg by 2 machine gun bullets. He spent a year recovering at a military hospital in France before returning to White Rock.