British Columbia: An Illustrated History

Sidney Allinson is the editor at the Royal Canadian Military Institute
and author of The Bantams: The Untold Story of World War I.

Here’s the sort of history book that this reviewer wishes had been
provided when he was at school. Tautly written text, alongside lively
illustrations, presents the evolution of Canada’s most western
province in a way that should appeal to students of any age. Throughout,
the authors helpfully set a periodic chronology against the perspective
of world events elsewhere. The book also includes clippings from
contemporary newspapers, as well as short anecdotal asides about
colorful people and settlements over the past 200 years.

The book starts by showing the clash of cultures when the aboriginal
nations of the region first met Spanish and British explorers in the
18th century. After Quadra, Cook, and Vancouver came the Hudson’s Bay
Company. Then others flocked to develop this vast, beautiful territory.
Pioneer men and women of every race came to British Columbia, though at
first most were staunchly British. Fur traders, miners, artists,
schoolmarms, robber barons, sailors, and soldiers—the 100-odd
well-chosen photographs include a gallery of the “characters” B.C.
lured in those early years, through two world wars, ecological and
social strife, and economic boom and bust.

As well as being a former research director in the House of Commons,
Molyneux is an ex-reporter, which may explain the easy-to-read style of
this book. Its inviting format and page layout make it a model for other
reference books to follow.