In the 1930s, workers at the Dollar Mill were down on their luck for employment. Workers would use timber that fell into the water or the lumber not good for export to build makeshift shacks on the beaches of Roche Point.
Residents in the Dollarton area were displeased and wanted to remove the shacks from the new high-end Roslyn neighbourhood.
By the mid 1950s, the squatters were evicted from the beach, and the land had the potential for industrialization. Residents proposed a public park motion, and that is how Whey-ah-Wichen/Cates Park came to be today.
Visit the MONOVA website for more information about the history of the North Shore and to plan your visit to MONOVA: Museum of North Vancouver, now open at 115 West Esplanade in The Shipyards.
Currently, MONOVA: Archives of North Vancouver, at 3203 Institute Road in Lynn Valley, is open for drop-ins on Monday and by appointment Tuesday-Friday, 12:30-4 p.m. Contact: [email protected]
Navigate culture on the North Shore by using the North Shore Culture Compass.
