Ioco Ghost Town Days will be celebrating its 10th anniversary this weekend with old-fashioned fun.
The free event is an opportunity to learn about the heritage of the former Ioco town, with activities such as old-style crafts, photo displays, antique car tours of the site, local youths dressed in heritage costumes, and music from a bluegrass band.
Mary Anne Cooper was part of a group of locals who worked to get the city of Port Moody to designate the area as a heritage site. With a background in conservation education, she was instrumental in the establishment of the former Ioco town site as a designated heritage area and had been leading the co-ordination of the event until last year, when she gave over the reigns to the Port Moody Heritage Society.
"We believe that Port Moody owns a very important heritage site, and that the history is well worth remembering" said Cooper, who, at 96 years of age, is still involved, volunteering for the event as an advisor. "We would like to see this site kept as intact as possible. It's a piece of history that's valuable."
"It has been amazing working with Mary Anne," said Port Moody Station Museum co-ordinator Rebecca Clarke. "I have never met someone so dedicated to their cause and committed to making it fun at the same time. It is an honour to work with someone who has witnessed over 90 years of history first-hand and is still making history every day."
This year, the event has grown into a two-day festival. On Saturday (Oct. 1) from 1 to 3:30 p.m., current and past residents will be reuniting on the lawn bowling green to reminisce. The public is welcome, whether they are familiar with the site or not, to meet and talk with some of the people who lived there.
On Sunday, more than 30 booths and 10 performers will be on hand to teach people about the history of the Ioco townsite.
Ioco Ghost town days is sponsored by Heritage Canada and the Port Moody Heritage Commission.
jgauthier@tricitynews.com
