VHF’s Heritage Hour (formerly Evening Lectures) series offers illustrated talks that look at the history of Vancouver, covering the events, movements and people that have shaped our city. Since the first event in 2012, the series has included a diverse range of subjects and perspectives in over 50 talks from more than 30 presenters. A listing of many of them can be found below.
Heritage Hour talks will return in person for the spring 2023 season. Join us at University Women’s Club at Hycroft Manor from 7pm to 8:30pm to enjoy fascinating pieces of Vancouver’s heritage with a selection of local speakers.
You can earn 1 Heritage Conservation Education credit per Heritage Hour talk or Lunch and Learn, to a maximum of 3 towards VHF’s Heritage Conservation Certificate.
Thank you to our event partner
Tuesday, May 16th, 7pm - 8:30pm
University Women’s Club at Hycroft Manor
$20/15+tax
Based on 360 Riot Walk, an interactive walking tour created by Henry Tsang, White Riot: The 1907 Anti-Asian Riots in Vancouver explores the conditions leading up to and the impact of the demonstration and ensuing mob attack on the city's Chinese Canadian and Japanese Canadian communities in Vancouver. It delves into the social and political environment of the time, when racialized communities were targeted through legislated as well as physical acts of exclusion and violence, and poses the question: in the current ethos of anti-racism and decolonization, what does it take to reconcile our collective histories within the legacy of white supremacy? In this illustrated book talk, artist and author Henry Tsang will explore to this pivotal moment in the history of racialized communities and a cultural and social context for understanding for the current wave of anti-Asian sentiment, highlighted by archival photographs of the riots colourized by Tsang as well as those of contemporary Vancouver where the riots took place.
White Riot: The 1907 Anti-Asian Riots in Vancouver will be released in April 2023 and is available for pre-order through Arsenal Pulp Press.
Visit 360 Riot Walk to learn more about that project.
About the Speaker
Henry Tsang is a visual and media artist based on the unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlil̓ilw̓ətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) peoples that is also known as Vancouver. His projects explore the spatial politics of history, language, community, food and cultural translation in relationship to place, taking the form of gallery exhibitions, pop-up street food offerings, 360 video walking tours, curated dinners, ephemeral and permanent public art, by employing video, photography, language, interactive media and convivial events. He is a past recipient of the VIVA Award and is an Associate Dean at Emily Carr University of Art & Design in Vancouver, Canada.
From the VHF Archives
Visit our YouTube page for more heritage and history themed videos including previously recorded evening lectures, including Hippie Vancouver: Activism in the ‘60s and ‘70s and its legacy with Michael Kluckner, Chinatown Through a Wide Lens: The Hidden Photographs of Yucho Chow with Catherine Clement, and Japanese Hall 1928-2018: The Extraordinary Story of Community Resilience, Survival and Transformation with Laura Saimoto. Be sure to subscribe and click the notification bell to be notified when we upload new videos.
Yucho Chow photo courtesy of Peter Chow Collection in the Yucho Chow Community Archive. Please note this photograph is for research and study purposes only. Other uses require permission from the families.
Virtual Evening Lecture Recordings
Online
$16+tax
Join us from the comfort of home to enjoy fascinating pieces of Vancouver’s history with a selection of speakers. These illustrated lectures take a look at the history of Vancouver, covering the events, movements and people that have shaped our city from a diverse range of perspectives.
Recordings from past VHF virtual evening lecture are available. A link will be sent for each virtual evening lecture following your purchase and the video will be available for viewing on YouTube up to a month after your purchase.
Past Talks
- March 28 – Linking Time: Contemporary Cemetery Design within Historic Settings – Bill Pechet
- April 18 – (Re)Making home away from home: South Asians’ 120 Years in Vancouver – Dr. Satwinder Kaur Bains
- March 15 – Hippie Vancouver: Activism in the ‘60s and ‘70s and its legacy – Michael Kluckner
- April 26 – Women’s Labour History in Vancouver – Bailey Garden
- March 2 – Vancouver’s Stained-Glass Heritage: Artists & Studios, 1889-1940 – Jim Wolf
- April 6 – Race, Regulation and Resistance: Understanding Vancouver’s South Asian community history – Milan Singh, Naveen Girn, Paneet Singh
- May 4 – Building BC: The Photography of Leonard Frank and Otto Landauer – Michael Schwartz
- September 28 – BC’s Black Pioneers: Economic, Political and Social Influences – Fran Morrison
- October 26 – Lower Mount Pleasant: Industry, Immigrants and Institutions – Christine Hagemoen
- November 30 – All Aboard! A virtual tour of Vancouver’s neon past and present – John Atkin and Angus McIntyre
- March 3 – A Century of Planning Vancouver: From Bartholomew to City Plan – Michael Kluckner
- October 27 – Chinatown Through a Wide Lens: The Hidden Photographs of Yucho Chow – Catherine Clement
- November 17 – Vancouver After Dark: Stories of the City’s Historical Nightspots – Aaron Chapman
- December 1 – The Changing Landscape of Vancouver’s Private Gardens, 1890-2020 – Adrienne Brown
- February 26 – Vancouver’s Hidden Heritage Building: The Resurrection of the Heather Pavilion – Donald Luxton
- April 9 – Japanese Hall 1928-2018: The Extraordinary Story of Community Resilience, Survival and Transformation – Laura Saimoto
- April 30 – The Francophone Pioneers of Vancouver: A Little-known History and Legacy – Maurice Guibord
- October 1 – “Just what is it that makes the modern house so different, so appealing?” – Greg Bellerby
- October 29 – The History and Legacy of the Vancouver Park Board – John Coupar & Terri Clark
- November 26 – “Land of Destiny”: A History of Vancouver Real Estate – Jesse Donaldson
- February 27 – Stanley Park: Digging Deeper and Rethinking Cultural Heritage – Rena Soutar (Cha’an Dtut) & Geordie Howe
- March 20 – Squat City: An Informal History of Squatters in Vancouver – Daniel Francis
- April 24 – Themes, Subthemes and Memes: Telling History in a Different Way – Donald Luxton
- September 18 – Private Property, Public Regulation, and the History of the Arbutus Corridor – Douglas Harris
- October 9 – Vancouver’s Police Museum: Stories from 240 E Cordova – Rosslyn Shipp & Elizabeth Peterson
- October 30 – Granville Street: 1886 to Today – Commerce, Entertainment and Historic Buildings – Aaron Chapman & Michael Gordon
- February 21 – Stanley Park Sites and Stories: Then and Now – Adrienne Brown
- March 28 – Rum-runners and Border Wars: Prohibition in BC – Daniel Francis
- April 25 – Ten Myths About Vancouver: The Real Stories – John Atkin
- September 19 – Shaughnessy’s Backstory – Michael Kluckner
- October 24 – What a Mess: False Creek, the Industrial Waterway – John Atkin
- November 7 – Kitsilano Indian Reserve: Contact to Today – Douglas Harris
- February 16 – Selling Vancouver to Tourists: 1890 – 1960 – Michael Kluckner
- April 5 – How Streetcars and Real Estate Shaped Vancouver – John Atkin
- May 29 – The Crescent: From the CPR and the Garden City to Today – Adrienne Brown
- October 18 – Sawmills and Opera Houses: The Origins of Chinatown – John Atkin
- November 1 – The Legacy Sites and Stories of the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games – Jason Beck
- November 29 – Who was Major Matthews? – Heather Gordon
- January 21 – Vancouver as a Sustainable City – Dr. Tom Hutton
- March 4 – Challenges & Trends: Public Engagement for Community Planning – Dr. Maged Senbel
- April 15 – Arts & Crafts Movement of the Pacific Northwest – Larry Kreisman
- September 30 – Gentrification, Heritage & the Future of Vancouver – Michael Kluckner
- October 21 – Samuel Maclure in Shaughnessy – Jim Wolf
- November 4 – Vancouver’s Vaudeville: the Great White Way – John Atkin & Tom Carter
- February 19 – How Chinatown became a National Historic Site – John Atkin & Jeanette Hlavach
- March 19 – History of electric car – John Stonier
- April 16 – Marriage of architecture and gardens – Christine Allen
- September 17 – Big Bands in Vancouver – Dal Richards & John Mackie
- October 15 – 1913’s 100 year building boom – John Atkin
- November 5 – COV’s Archivist’s picks, new acquisitions & the challenges of archiving digitizing records – Heather Gordon
- January 17 – History of Exterior Paint Schemes – Donald Luxton
- February 21 – History of Neon Light in Vancouver – John Atkin
- March 6 – History of Stained Glass – Jim Wolf
- September 25 – Vancouver’s early transit system – Henry Ewert
- October 2 – Architectural History of Vancouver – Donald Luxton
- October 30 – Catalogue Homes in Vancouver – John Atkin
A packed audience at Hycroft Manor for Dal Richards and John Mackie in 2013.
Dal Richards and John Mackie chat about big bands in Vancouver in 2013.
Audience member at one of the 2014 evening lectures at Hycroft Manor.
Author and artist Michael Kluckner spoke about gentrification that began as early as the 1950s in Vancouver during his 2014 lecture.
John Atkin launches the 2012 spring evening lecture series at Hycroft with a talk on the history of neon in Vancouver.
Donald Luxton gives a presentation on the resurrection of the Heather Pavilion in 2019.
Dr. Tom Hutton gave a lecture on Vancouver as a sustainable city in 2014.
Drawing Room in Hycroft Manor
Atrium in Hycroft Manor
A packed audience at Hycroft Manor for Dal Richards and John Mackie in 2013.
Dal Richards and John Mackie chat about big bands in Vancouver in 2013.
Audience member at one of the 2014 evening lectures at Hycroft Manor.
Author and artist Michael Kluckner spoke about gentrification that began as early as the 1950s in Vancouver during his 2014 lecture.
John Atkin launches the 2012 spring evening lecture series at Hycroft with a talk on the history of neon in Vancouver.
Donald Luxton gives a presentation on the resurrection of the Heather Pavilion in 2019.
Dr. Tom Hutton gave a lecture on Vancouver as a sustainable city in 2014.
Drawing Room in Hycroft Manor
Atrium in Hycroft Manor