Posts Tagged Vancouver Island

Photo Credit: Comox Valley Echo

Well, sadly it is official.  As a follow up to a previous story I posted this morning, the Lorne Hotel and Pub in Comox, one of British Columbia’s oldest and longest serving hotels, has been completely destroyed by fire today. It’s a very sad loss for heritage in British Columbia.

If you would like to read the story at the Vancouver Sun by Tamara Cunningham, please click here to take you directly to the story.

Below is a picture of the Lorne Hotel in the 1880s, courtesy of the Comox Archives and Museum.

Photo Credit: Comox Archives and Museum

Photo Credit: Gavin Stevenson

Ever since Robert (Bob) Swanson passed away I’ve wanted to write a story about him. So now that I have this site dedicated to topics in Canadian heritage and history, I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to tell you a little bit about this remarkable man. His name might not be familiar if you live on the Prairies or even in Ontario or Quebec. Yet, if you’ve ever sailed on a coastal or lake ferry in foggy, rough water anywhere in the world, or heard a train’s shrilling horn as you approach a railway crossing, you have this man to thank. In 1949, Swanson patented the multi chimed air horn which revolutionised how horns are used on trains and ships around the world. This invention has saved thousands of lives worldwide and he was a Canadian from Nanaimo, British Columbia.  (more…)