Helpful Hints About Victoria

I look forward to welcoming CCHA members to Victoria. Valerie Burke has booked a number of rooms for the CCHA at the Executive House Hotel. It is within a few minutes walk to St Ann’s Academy, Milos, the Greek restaurant and site of our banquet, and the #4 bus that goes to and from UVic. When you make your reservation indicate that you are with the CCHA. The Empress, Marriott, Chateau Victoria, Quality Inn Downtown, and the Strathcona (listed roughly in descending order by price) are within a 5 minute walk of the Executive House. Many other hotels are within a 20 minute walk of our downtown activities. There is also accommodation on campus.

If you arrive by air, the Airporter shuttle calls at UVic and the downtown hotels. The fare downtown currently is $21 one way; the fare to UVic may be slightly more. There may be a modest discount for two or more people travelling together and going to the same place. Tickets are sold in the airport near the luggage carousel. You don’t need a reservation when you arrive but MAKE ONE FOR YOUR RETURN TRIP.

BC Transit’s #83 and #88 call at the airport and take passengers to the Highway and a transfer to the #70 or #72 to go downtown or, via a second transfer, to UVic. The fare is $2.50 but the service is irregular and can’t cope with more than carry-on luggage. Check www.bctransit.com to see if the timing might work for you. If you are going to UVic, ask the driver about the transfer point. If you are going to the Executive House or a nearby hotel ask to be let off at the Pacific Coach Lines depot. If you forget, don’t worry; the route ends about a block farther on.

The Congress offers a shuttle from downtown hotels to the campus. It may be a few minutes faster but the city bus may be cheaper and more flexible. The #4 bus route begins across the street from the Pacific Coach Lines depot and on its return stops in front of the hotel. It goes about every 15 minutes and the ride takes 30-45 minutes depending on traffic. If you stay on campus you will have no difficulty in getting to and from the events downtown. The single fare of $2.50 is for all zones and everyone over age 12. A sheet of ten tickets is $22.50 for people aged 19 to 64 and $15.00 for others. You can share them with a friend. A Day Pass is $5.00. The nearest vendor to the Executive House is the 711 convenience store at 743 Douglas St. You can also buy them in the pharmacy at the Student Union Building on campus.

St Andrew’s Cathedral, at the corner of Blanshard and View, has a 5 p.m. Mass on Sundays. It’s about a 10 minute walk from the Executive House. We’re planning an informal nohost get-together at 6:30 p.m. at the Sticky Wicket pub, in the Strathcona Hotel, 919 Douglas St., around the corner from the Executive House Hotel. It would be helpful if you would let me know (proy@uvic.ca) if you plan to attend so we can reserve a table(s) of suitable size.

Tourism is a major industry in Victoria. You will find lots of information about attractions in and around the city on the website www.hellobc.com/victoria

Finally. Victoria is on the wet Coast, so BRING RAIN GEAR just in case the sun doesn’t shine.

— Patricia Roy

Catholic Legacies / Patrimoines Catholiques in/à Victoria: May 28-29 mai 2013

A two-day event in three places Deux jours, trois lieux
Contacts: Hélène Cazes hcazes@uvic.ca et Leslie Kenny lakenny@uvic.ca

Join us for two days of seminars, visits and books exhibits that bring to vivid life the stories of Roman Catholic missionaries during the period of Victoria’s colonial settlement. The focus is on two legacies: the “bishop’s books,” a collection of 3500 rare editions from Renaissance-era Europe to nineteenth century European and North American publications initially brought to Victoria during the 1870s and continued up until 1976 currently housed in the University of Victoria’s Special Collections; and the Sisters of St Ann archives, now available for consultation at the Royal British Columbia Museum.

The Bishop Seghers Library at UVic Special Collections

Gathered from booksellers and bookfairs from Europe and North America, the library now called Seghers collection of 3500 rare and precious religious books was initially started in Victoria sometime around 1863 by the Belgian priest Charles Seghers. An ambitious and intrepid missionary, Seghers always carried books with him, even on extensive travels throughout the Pacific Northwest, until his untimely murder in Alaska in 1886. Ninety years later in 1976, having additions made by later generations of missionaries and priests, the collection arrived at UVic on permanent loan from the Diocese of Victoria in 1976. Following decades spent in relative obscurity in the UVic vaults, the books are gaining renewed attention as one of Canada’s most valuable and significant religious libraries.

The Archives of the Sisters of St Ann

In 1858 the Sisters of St Ann arrived in Victoria from Saint-Jacques, Quebec, and immediately set up the first of the many schools and hospitals that would have such a defining influence on the development of Vancouver Island and the Pacific Northwest. They have been courageous and audacious missionaries, accompanying and serving the missions up into the furthest and cruellest regions of the North. From the time of their first settlement to the present day, the Sisters have recorded and archived the history of the Northwest Canada. One hundred and fifty-four years later in 2012, the Sisters placed their entire collection of photographs, letters, documents, works of art, vintage textiles and other artifacts into the joined care of the Royal BC Museum and their own archivist. This is the largest private collection and the first religious archive ever donated to the BC Museum. The Sisters are also recognized for their formative contributions to the UVic School of Nursing over many years.

Publications: Early Jesuit Missions in Canada

A series consisting of more than 40 volumes called “Early Jesuit Missions in Canada” has been published over the past few years. It consists mainly of translations from French and Latin of the correspondence and diaries from the 17th and 19th Centuries. Available at five online locations: globalgenealogy.com (In North America) 1-800-361-5168; Saint Mary’s University Bookstore, Halifax, NS., bookstore@smu.ca; H u r o n i a Mu s e um, Mi d l a n d , ON . , 8 Spring 2013 ISSN 1182-9214 Volume XXVII, Number 1 hmchin@csolve.net; Sainte Marie Book store, Midland, ON., friends@csolve.net; in the U.S.A., ARX Publishing, info@arxpub.com.