Tuesday, April 28, 2015

Journey in Mental Health Care

At the City Centre branch of the Coquitlam public library: 
May 4 to 8, 2015 Journey in Mental Health Care. Past, Present & Future.  Should be interesting...

      I recently was contacted by a grand-daughter of the first Head male nurse at Essondale, AKA Riverview Hospital; after I had posted a little information about Gilbert Mathewson.  And I was delighted to recieve in the mail, a small photo album, that was created by her grandmother, and it actually appears to be a souvenir of the opening of the Male Chronic Wing, AKA West Lawn, it contains many pictures of the new building. And also the grandmother, Margaret A. Mathewson, inserted some family and local photographs on the blank pages, a real treasure this little album is, most of the photographs are 100 years old or nearly.
I will slowly scan and attempt to identify the exact locations of the photographs.
I am honoured to gave been given this album, but I think that after I make a high-resolution copy of it, I will donate it to a museum.

The cover: notice the logo and M and H = Mental Hospital
Western Studios, appears to have been started by Paul Seligman (1865-?) operated from 1913-1914, probably a little longer, before he moved to Oregon to ply his trade.








A view out the main entrance of West Lawn, note the beautiful marble, it is stunning to see it with your own eyes.

Save the Riverview Hospital lands

The Riverview Hospital lands, are under pressure to be developed into market housing. Help to save the lands as a healing sanctuary for the mentally ill of OUR Province.



Please join the Riverview Horticultural Centre Society,( RHCS ) Facebook page. Twitter too!

Please sign the On-line petition or download a Word document petition ,which is a more official type of petition.
Blogs, about the hospital grounds
Mike Farnworth,MLA; Facebook forum " Protect the Riverview Lands"
And another Facebook group: Riverview Preservation Society
this group also has a petition to sign.

Click-able Map of the Riverview site

BISCO -- Brookside-Leeside-Roadside -- Centre Lawn -- Colony Farm
Crease Clinic -- East Lawn -- Essondale Hospital
Finnie's Garden -- Henry Esson Young -- Hillside unit
Home for the Aged-Valleyview -- North Lawn
Nurses homes -- Pennington Hall -- TreeFest -- West Lawn
John Davidson; "Botany John" blog. He was the first Provincial Botanist, who created British Columbia's first Botanical Garden at Riverview.
Other groups involved Riverview Horticultural Centre Society
Who also have a media NEWS Blog
You can also download a 42 page report titled, For the future of Riverview created by the Riverview Task Force.
Or Burke Mountain Naturalists, report: The Riverview Hospital Site, Respecting its Past,Realizing its Future
Coquitlam has designated the buildings and grounds, as a heritage site.
Download the Statement of Significance; SoS report PDF

Tour through the grounds


Paul Buikema, of Progress Landscaping, created this video.

Treefest 2011 slideshow


A slideshow of images from the Tree festival of 2011. Created in HD. Enjoy.

Riverview trees

Finnie's Garden -- slideshow

Finnie's Garden -- Pond restoration slideshow

TreeFest -- slideshow