May 2 marks the beginning of Port Coquitlam's 92nd annual May Day celebrations, a time-honoured tradition that dates back to 1923. One of the festival's traditions is the selection of a May Queen and Royal Party.
During the Depression of the 1930s, a small town going through hard times definitely would have welcomed the chance to come together and celebrate May Day with the community. This is the story of one of those years and that of a young girl chosen as May Queen, an honour that lasts a lifetime.
As reported by the Coquitlam Herald newspaper that year, it was a warm day in bright sunshine for Port Coquitlam's eighth annual May Day, which took place Thursday, May 8, 1930. The Canadian Legion Band, under band master Charles Ayling, led the parade to the Agricultural Grounds (now known as Aggie Park), where a large decorated stage had been set up to host the event.
It was Central School's turn to elect a May Queen and 12-year-old Amelia Walters was chosen to accept the crown from retiring Queen Victorine Young. After the crowning and maypole dancing, the young children participated in sporting events such as sack races, egg and spoon, and three-legged relays. In addition, each child was given a free ice cream cone courtesy of the Elks Lodge. The day's festivities ended with the Grand March, led by Mayor Roger Galer and Queen Amelia, to the gala banquet at Aggie Hall.
In February of this year, Port Coquitlam Heritage received a welcome historical donation of Amelia Walters' May Day dress, a photo album and a family book put together by Amelia's daughter, Dallas Hart, who lives in London, Ont. With the help of these artefacts, a simple newspaper story of that May Day 85 years ago slowly came to life and became more personal.
Amelia was born and raised in Vancouver until 1929, when she came to Port Coquitlam to live with her older sister Elvera and husband Roy Gruchy after the death of their mother the year before. It was a testament to Amelia's kind and thoughtful personality when, as a relative newcomer, she was chosen May Queen for 1930. When Amelia left Port Coquitlam in 1936 and returned to Vancouver to begin nursing training, her friends presented her with a photo album of their times spent together here.
Among the pictures what may be called "selfies" today I recognized Lona (Leacock) Orr, whom I have had the privilege of interviewing a number of times over the years. We recently spent a delightful afternoon going over that album of times gone by and putting names to the faces or, as Dallas said, "connecting the dots" of her late mother's life here. Some familiar names from the past included Shirley Sager, Margaret Jackson, Eve Forrest, Effie Swanson and Helen Berry, herself a former May Queen (1925).
Some friendships can indeed last forever, as does the legacy of being honoured as May Queen of Port Coquitlam.
Congratulations to our 2015 May Queen, Lauryn Cacic, Ambassador Ali Mahdi and their accompanying Lancers, Princesses and Flower Girls. Best wishes to you all as you continue Port Coquitlam's proud May Day tradition.
Your History is a column in which representatives of the Tri-Cities' heritage groups write about local history. Bryan Ness is a member of the Port Coquitlam Heritage Society.
