Part of a mayor’s job is to twist arms to get what a city wants or needs. Often it’s with a neighbouring counterpart over stuff like streets or sewers. At a local volunteer appreciation dinner more than a year ago, Coquitlam Mayor Richard Stewart put a big-time squeeze on then Belcarra Mayor Ralph Drew. The object of his lobbying? A book.
Stewart was a fan of the three local historical books Drew wrote and published on his village, Indian Arm and the north shore of Burrard Inlet, the first of which – Forest & Fjord: The History of Belcarra – won a Lieutenant Governors Gold Medal award for historical writing in 2014. Stewart wanted Drew to do a book focusing on Coquitlam and the Tri-Cities.
Before Stewart dislocated Drew’s elbow, the local historian acquiesced and agreed to do it. The result is a 370-page coffee table book titled Coquitlam Chronicles: Historical Crossroads on the Fraser River.
“[Stewart] twisted my arm, he really did. In retrospect I’m glad he did. I was really happy doing the project, and very happy with the outcome,” said Drew, who will present his work to Coquitlam council, which paid for the nearly $7,600 in digital rights for more than 300 images in the book, on Nov. 19.
Drew was apprehensive at first because both Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam had produced “excellent” centenary books and he didn’t want to duplicate them. So he researched back before the cities existed. Way back. To the ice age. The first chapter is about the area’s natural history.
“That absolutely shaped what eventually happened in [the area’s] history,” said Drew.
The second chapter is about the Indigenous presence long before Simon Fraser canoed down the river named after him. Even the subsequent settlement involved many historical happenings in the province, especially in New Westminster and Fort Langley, which also broadened the scope of the book.
“I initially worried about how it would mesh with the existing centenary books, but I think they complement each other quite nicely,” said Drew, 70, who did not seek reelection last month after being Belcarra’s mayor since December 1983.
The biggest surprise to him was “the extent and depth of logging in the area,” especially in the Coquitlam Lake region after BC Electric built a rail line to build its dam.
“There was very little written up. Yeah, we knew about the sawmills on the river and that was written up, but the actual logging up in the hills kind of went unnoticed. I was impressed as I got into it,” said Drew.
Although he won an award for Forest & Fjord, Drew hasn’t been able to attract a publisher because “local history is a niche market.” He estimated the direct out-of-pocket costs to publish the book at $32,000, but he’s been able to cover that with several sponsorships. The two biggest, he said, were provided by developers Wesbild and Beedie Living.
“It’s a challenge, it’s not easy. I do it because I love local history, and the whole writing process. There’s an artistic component to it, assembling it, the layout I enjoy it,” said Drew. “I wrote this book in a year, and it was an intense year. I’m talking about seven days a week, working anywhere from two to 10 hours a day. I was supposed to take a break after the third book, but I really enjoy the whole research and history process.”
He’s also motivated by the legacy he leaves by writing the books, especially for his three grandsons, who are aged 20, 18 and 9 and live in Coquitlam.
“I’ve set aside four copies, one for my daughter and one for each of the boys and my daughter’s put them on a shelf in the closet. At some point they will become much more interested in it. I have a feeling it will probably be after I’m gone,” chortled Drew.
• To purchase Coquitlam Chronicles contact Drew by email at redrew@shaw.ca or call 604-937-0143. The book costs $49.95 plus GST of $2.50 ($52.45 total). For shipping in Canada west of Winnipeg add $16.50.
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