Flamborough Head

Andrew Wallace began building wooden fish boats in 1894 in False Creek. He established Wallace Shipyards in 1905 and the following year moved his operation to the North Shore, to what is now the area just east of Lonsdale Quay between Waterfront Park and St. George’s Ave.

In 1921, Wallace Shipyards was renamed Burrard Dry Dock Company where the famous St. Roch, the first ship to travel the Northwest Passage and circumnavigate North America, was constructed in 1928. With Burrard Dry Dock, the Wallace Family continued to build ships to serve in both world wars and reached its production zenith in World War II, employing nearly 14,000 people and building most of the 255 Victory Ships made in B.C. These ships replaced allied ships sunk by German submarines.

Flamborough Head, pictured at right mounted in a cradle, was one of these Victory Ships. It served the British Royal Navy as an escort maintenance ship from 1944 until 1952 and then was transferred to the Royal Canadian Navy, serving as a floating machine shop until the late 1990s. Only a portion of the stern now remains as a memorial to the Victory Ships built by Burrard Dock workers. The rest of Flamborough Head was sunk in the waters of British Columbia in 2001 near Snake Island in Nanaimo harbour to create an artificial reef. It is now a popular scuba diving site.

The dry dock facilities in this area between Waterfront Park and St. George’s Ave. closed in the early 1990s. Currently, the area is poised for redevelopment as a vibrant public centre which will be named “The Shipyards.” Proposed is a covered area with a 15,000 square foot skating rink for winter and water fountains in summer. There will be 60,000 square feet of commercial space which will include restaurants, retailers, artisans, crafts, a garden/gazebo area and a Friday night market. The North Vancouver Museum and Archives and Presentation House Gallery will be relocated here. There’s the possibility for a ferris wheel near the end of the wharf similar to the one on Seattle’s waterfront. There are suggestions to make the entry from the sea more attractive by decorating the walls in the area of the sea bus terminal. Also, businesses will be kept open after 6:00 p.m., when apparently 70 per cent of purchases are made. Finally, there will be a gateway to the general area known as Lower Lonsdale at Lonsdale and Third Ave.

This all sounds terrific but what about Flamborough Head? Until recently it was slated to be dismantled and the process had already begun. It is expensive to remove the asbestos and lead paint, let alone to move the ship. However, due to the outcry from historical preservationists, saving the remnant as a waterfront museum is now being considered. It is hoped it can be mounted near the water with its closed end facing the Burrard Inlet. The currently open end would face “The Shipyards” and have four levels accessed by a spiral staircase. The top level would be a viewing deck and lower levels would serve as exhibits of the old shipyards and Victory Ships that were built there.

In the meantime, whatever happens, it is a pleasant trip by sea bus to the Lonsdale Quay area to view Flamborough Head, and the developing area.

Additional Photos