We’re in Union Bay British Columbia, on Vancouver Island, and looking at the remains of a giant wharf used for transloading coal. So, from trains onto waiting ships and barges. It remained in use from the 1880s into about 1960 (or 1961) and most everything removed a few years after. Still, there’s lots of little things left behind and we’ll show you in the photos.
There’s old piers or pilings, a long section of fill that supported the wharf until it reached deeper water, coal slack everywhere, old timbers, hunks of concrete and odd bits of metal. Lengths of rails can be found, along with spikes, tie plates, and other things that defy identification. It’s an industrial site and was for a long time, yet even in spite of this nature is reclaiming the property.
Union Bay (Vancouver Island British Columbia) Coal Wharf: gone now but it lasted into the late 1960s. History-lite and a casual approach with Chris Doering & Connie Biggart (BIGDoer/Synd)
comLet’s all thank “Rob Pohl & Arturo Pianzola” for helping make this and other posts at BIGDoer.com possible. Be like Rob and Arturo…
The story of the whole site is long, complicated and beyond the scope of this post. We’ll just touch on one aspect and that’s the coal wharf itself, or rather what’s left. Otherwise it would be too much in one bite, but we’d love the chance to go back. You know, to wander about further and do something more in-depth. Some of the property is marked private, so it complicates matters further, but we can dream.
Abandoned at the Union Bay Coal Wharf site.
Things not touched on here include the coal storage areas and dumps (there’s still one good-sized hill of fines over there even today), a processing plant with storage, coke ovens, railway infrastructure and many support buildings. One photo dated in the 1940s suggests they had briquet plant but no other information turned up about this aspect of the operation. Like the wharf all of it is gone, but still there’s evidence of it being here.
Scroll down for photos and to comment.
How ever you look at it, they moved a lot of material from the mines to here for forwarding to distant places, and the Union Bay coal wharf kept a lot of folks employed.
A coking operation is where coal gets transformed into a product used in steel-making (or the smelting of metals) by super-heating it in air-free environment. This produced a fuel that burned at a high enough temperature that it could melt nearly anything. A stinky and smoky process, it was only done at Union Bay in the 1896-1919 period (with no production some years).
The coal shipped out and similarly used in the coking process, came from a number of mines in the Cumberland area about a dozen kilometres northwest of Union Bay.
The Wellington Collieries Company (later Canadian Collieries) who owned those mines, also had railway (the aptly named Wellington Collieries Railway) to ship its products to the wharf. It appears they shared some track with the Canadian Pacific’s Esquimalt & Nanaimo near Union Bay.
This WCR relied on steam locomotives up the very end and some real ancient ones at that. From the 1890s to early 1900s period based on photo found during research.
The wharf stood here since the 1880s, but photos show it changed a lot over time. Everything did here. At one point, there were a couple smaller wharves to the left (east) of the main structure. These were rail served and were for the transference of general freight and such. A railway slip where freight cars could be loaded onto barges also appears in some shots.
The trestlework for the wharf started well back of the off-loading point before extending out into the water. The first section was over the storage area (for easy dumping), the next extended out over water but on pilings atop a jetty of fill and the final section in deep water on pilings. The wood elements are gone, but the fillwork remains.
The wharf had a water tower for locomotive use about midway along it’s length (interesting). The structure measured 490m (or 1600ish feet) and claimed as the largest and/or longest on the BC coast. Photos show an imposing structure and of a scale hard to imagine.
Several ships could be filled at the same time and in old photos this is demonstrated often. In one, four are docked and being loaded, while several others are seen in the background waiting their turn. Some are sail powered. Coal was moved about the wharf and unloaded by conveyor. When on the ground cranes with clam-shell buckets did the work and one appeared to be rail mounted. Other more modern photos show dozers in use.
The coking plant and one coal storage area were located on the east side of the wharf. The west side also seemed to be used as storage, but perhaps only for overflow use. Pictures show it empty, but there’s clearly some dumping chutes on that side off the trestlework.
A number of support structure were seen behind the coking plant (so NE of the wharf) but it’s not exactly clear the function of each. Some almost appears to be on pilings and partly over water. One old photo shows them and is labelled “machine shop”.
We explored some sections of the property but found no evidence of buildings. There were lots of odd cast-offs, and of course the ever present coal, but no foundations of anything. There were also many railway sidings here and we did find several short lengths of rail, tie plates and other things. Found a brake shoe off a railcar too.
Mushrooms seemed to thrive along here and Fly Agaric especially so.
The last recorded used of the wharf happened in either 1960 or 1961 (differing reports). Other documents state earlier, but dated photo evidence tends to conflict with this. The railway shut down the same time as the wharf.
The coal company shipped their products up and down the west coast…San Francisco is mentioned a lot. Coal shipped out by freighter (sail or steam ship) or by barge. Steam ships could refuel right at the docks as well. The World War Two period proved to be a particularly busy time, but a few years after the hostilities ended, demand dropped off quickly. Shipments in the final years seemed spotty and intermittent.
The Cumberland Mines closed by the early 1950s and much of the Wellington Collieries Railway line fully abandoned right after. Any coal shipped out on the wharf afterwards may have come from stockpiles at the Cumberland mines and brought in by truck. The same firm had another in the area (the Tsable, southwest of Union Bay) and it’s confirmed they trucked coal to the wharf.
This trucked-in arrangement required some transloading which complicated matters. Truck to railway to ship and all done at the same location. Some coal, it’s suggested was loaded onto railcars here along the Esquimalt & Nanaimo, and shipped for use on the island (it’s a big one – country sized) or sent by railway to later be barged to the mainland from Nanaimo.
The docks and much of the infrastructure at Union Bay remained standing into the late 1960s before they were demolished Still the site is hardly clean and it’s considered one of the most toxic on the island due to the sulphur content of the discarded coal. We suppose at some point the problem will have to be addressed but for now, it seems in limbo. Then there’s all that old metal and other stuff.
A land development firm planned to build some houses to the north of the old coal wharf, but that project seems to have stalled. They put in roads and sidewalks, but nothing else. The toxic ground mentioned earlier must be a sticking point and maybe that’s why there’s been no further progress.
Union Bay is along Vancouver Island’s east coast. The Strait of Georgia separates it from the mainland which is visible on clear days. Denman Island is close by and it was visited by the Team BIGDoer and friends this same week. Here: 1 Day: Denman & Hornby Islands (BC).
Remains include these piers or pilings.
The Highwayman Saloon (did someone say Rum?!) is within view of the Union Bay coal wharf, but it’s closed. It didn’t happen long ago (owner has health issues) but it looked perfect for a Beer Parlour Project shoot. Too bad…we came prepared and were ready to do cold calls.
Thank you so much for your fantastic articles and photos. Alberta and BC are dear to my heart. I could spend 24/7 here with you! Joanne Winchester Honer (Thanks! We visit SK too).
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Date of adventure: October 2023. Location: Union Bay (Vancouver Island) British Columbia. Article references and thanks: Rob & Arturo, Royal BC Museum, Union Bay Historical Society, Village of Cumberland, Cumberland Museum, BC Ministry of Mines, plus the books – The Friendly Port – A History of Union Bay 1880-1960 and Ghost Town & Mining Camps of Vancouver Island.
It's -20C & we're dreaming of Freakin' (or Peakin') at the Beacon. We've seen ads where both are used. The Beacon in the inset photo is seen in the early-1960s, but we know it from the early 1980s. It was a notorious place then, but the beer was cheap & for underage seekers of cold libations like us, they never carded. It was common knowledge among teenagers - The Beacon & the Westgate. As long as you bought a round (even if paid nervously with loose change & with no tip), they didn't care.
- The Beacon dates to the late 1950s & was home to the famous Calypso Lounge. - In the late 1970s, a more youth oriented bar came on the scene (Franky & Johnny's). - This meant a change of attitude to something more brash & edgy. - During these times they hosted loud bands & even strippers. - Trouble soon followed & many nights, it was the wild west. Cops knew it well. - Fights, stabbings & general mayhem was often on the menu. - In the mid-1980s it became the North Centre Inn & was demolished a decade later. - Since 1996 the property has been home to to Central Landmark Mall. - Our image was captured during a cold, cold, cold-day walk in the neighbourhood (2016) - sometimes I think we're crazy.
Photo credit: unattributed - appears to be an old postcard. _______
Wild Horse Hank with Exorcist star Linda Blair (1979) - shot in & around the Crowsnest Pass of Alberta. A TV production, it follows her adventures as she works to save a herd of feral horses.
They're due to be made into dog food, unless she can get them to a federal reserve where they’ll be protected. It's a perilous multi-day journey crossing mountains & deserts, all the while being pursued by poachers. The very last step is to get them across the section of road seen here, along a now closed section of Crowsnest Highway.
It's a minor scene, but we still love searching out these locations & doing comparisons. Important or not, it's a thrill.
We know a lot of locals worked as extras on the picture & we'd love to hear from you. _______
Heather Lodge, Mount Revelstoke British Columbia, mid-1953. Up this high the snow sticks around well into summer. Presenting another beauty from the Crossley slides shot on glorious Kodachrome.
Exploring history with Chris & Connie from Off the Beaten Path.
- Crossley, from Calgary, spent a lot of time in the Kootenays & Columbia-Shuswap regions. He shot plenty of photos & we're sharing them as we go. - Heather Lodge & Teahouse was built in the late 1930s & removed in the mid-1960s. - It was a popular stop for those visiting the park. - Promotional materials list it as being 6350 feet above sea level (or some 1900 metres). - If you'd like to help keep new content coming, please go to the comments. _______
The hotel was built as the Delaney in 1914 & hasn't really changed in appearance. The top floor was blanked off decades ago as surplus to the needs, but otherwise it looks much as it did.
That's owners Sandy & Doug & please stop by when in the area. You won't regret visiting - the food is amazing. There's a lot of places that claim to have the best steak & the Limerick Hotel is a serious contender. _______
Beer Parlour Project Friday: It's 5 o'clock somewhere, except here at the Trails End Hotel. This old watering hole has been closed for a while now (Wood Mountain SK).
The Trails End Hotel was a second home for Saskatchewan poet Andrew Suknaski & makes mention in his book, Wood Mountain Poems (1976). "Johnny will be drinking beer in Wood Mountain's Trails End..."
Crowfoot Valley Service 1972 - from the Crossley Slides. We're not sure the exact location here, but we think it might be in the Gliechen/Cluny (AB) area. That's based on other slides in the same folder & dated the same month, that show identifiable locations. A phone book search turns up nothing.
By this point, globe pumps would be a real rarity, but there appears to be a more modern pump to the right.
Be sure to make some noise in the comments! _______
- shot in & around the Crowsnest Pass of Alberta. A TV production, it follows her adventures as she works to save a herd of feral horses. 
: Scenes from the Limerick Hotel (Limerick SK), visited by the Beer Parlour Project in the summer of 2024. Learn more: 
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