Anna (Brass) Tremere is the President of the Riverview Hospital Historical Society. She attended the School of Psychiatric Nursing and graduated in 1967. She worked at Riverview as a student nurse and as a Registered Psychiatric Nurse from 1965 to 2001.

Tremere's mother Olive Brass was also a psychiatric nurse at Essondale Hospital, and Tremere grew up to know the hospital well. Tremere later became head nurse and a case manager for the transitional housing program at Connelly, Cottonwood and Cypress lodges.

In 1993, Tremere established and assumed the role of President of the Riverview Hospital Historical Society. In 1998 the Society under Anna’s leadership established a museum on the hospital site and welcomed the public to access Riverview’s history. Thanks to Anna’s work, the museum preserved and presented the history of the hospital and preserved an incredible collection of records and artifacts relevant to daily life of the patients and staff at Riverview. When Riverview Hospital was closed in 2012, Anna worked with government partners to transfer the collections to the City of Coquitlam and to the BC Provincial Archives.

Anna continues to pass on her knowledge and inspire others by participating in several projects, organizations and committees including the Suitcase Project with Heidi Currie, the Riverview Lands Advisory Committee, the Riverview Horticultural Centre Society, and by serving on the Coquitlam Heritage board of directors. Tremere won the British Columbia Historical Federation's Award of Merit in 2018.

Richard Broadbridge was a prominent Edwardian photographer who operated in Vancouver and photographed areas of British Columbia before he relocated to Australia. In 1908-1909 he operated in partnership as the Broadbridge-Bullen Photo Co. and in 1910-1911 under the name Broadbridge Commercial Photo Co. In 1912, his offices were located at 330 Homer Street in Vancouver and photographs from this time are stamped with "Broadbridge Photos."

Paul vanPeenen worked as a photojournalist at the Coquitlam NOW from August, 1991 to February, 2012. He was born in the Netherlands on April 10th, 1964 and immigrated to Winnipeg with his family in 1980. The family relocated to Calgary in 1981 and it was there that he began to discover his passion for photography. He enrolled in the Journalism Program at the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology in 1985. During this time he worked at the Grande Prairie Daily Herald-Tribune as a reporter/photographer. After graduation, he was offered a full-time position as the paper's staff photographer. In 1987, he completed an internship with the Edmonton Journal before taking a job with the Medicine Hat News. After four years he was hired by the Coquitlam NOW and spent the next 21 years as the staff photographer, documenting life in the Tri-Cities area. While working for the NOW, he completed a Masters of Liberal Arts at Simon Fraser University. He retired from the NOW in February, 2012 to pursue his love of travel and photography.

C.W. Philp was elected to Council for the Corporation of the District of Coquitlam in 1915. He became the acting Reeve on May 3rd, 1916, when Reeve Marmont temporarily returned to England and served in this capacity until August when he became the Reeve, a position he held until January, 1918. Philp was born in St Thomas, Ontario but by 1897 he was in Seattle and then followed the Klondike Gold Rush to Dawson City. He tried his hand at gold mining until 1904, then returned to St Thomas before buying a plot of land along Marmont Road around 1910. He was a building contractor by trade and he re-built the Vancouver Golf Club several times after fire repeatedly claimed the buildings.

Roderick Charles (R.C.) MacDonald was born in Hosta, Scotland on November 21, 1885 to Malcolm MacDonald and Mary Ann Macaulay. He married Daisy Elizabeth Wiltshire on June 30, 1915. MacDonald was first elected to Council for the Corporation of the District of Coquitlam in 1922. He served for two years in this capacity before being elected Reeve in 1924. He served as Reeve until 1941 and served as President of the Union of British Columbia Municipalities from 1937-1938. In 1941, he was elected to serve as M.L.A. for the Conservative Party in the Dewdney riding, a position he held until he was defeated in the 1952 election. He served as Minister of Mines from 1945 to 1949 and then Minister of Municipal Affairs from 1949 to 1952. MacDonald died on September 18, 1978.

Colonial settlement of the area between New Westminster and Pitt River along the Fraser began in the 1920s in the pursuit of trapping, fishing, and logging. Industry and more intensive colonial settlement began with the opening of the Fraser Mills sawmill on the north bank of the Fraser in the last years of the 19th century.

Coquitlam comprised an area of approximately sixty-five square miles that had been surveyed by Royal Engineer A.L. Breakenridge in 1863. In the late 1880s, the landowners and pre-emptors living in the area petitioned the province to incorporate as a Municipal District.

The area was incorporated by letters patent dated July 25, 1891 as the Corporation of the District of Coquitlam. The letters patent called for the nomination of five councillors and a reeve and the first meeting of a municipal council were assembled in Kelly’s Hall on August 22nd, 1891 at Westminster Junction, now within the City of Port Coquitlam. The first reeve was R.B. Kelly and the first councillors were E.A. Aitkins, James Fox, S.W. Lehman, James Morrison, and J. Shennan. The first City Clerk was R.D. Irvine.

In 1894, a portion of the Maple Ridge Municipality between the newly formed Corporation of the District of Coquitlam and the Pitt River was added to the Coquitlam municipality, following a petition by the landowners to the province.

In 1913, the land owners in the area known as Westminster Junction wished to limit their tax liability for the development of the rapidly growing district and to establish their own tax base. A petition was sent to the province and the area seceded from the Corporation of the District of Coquitlam, forming the City of Port Coquitlam.

In the same year, The Canadian Western Lumber Company decided to incorporate the area surrounding Fraser Mills and the Corporation of the District of Fraser Mills was incorporated by letters patent in 1913. The Corporation of the District of Coquitlam and the Corporation of the District of Fraser Mills amalgamated in November 1971, when both districts revoked their letters patent and new letters patent was issued incorporating the area as the District of Coquitlam. Supplementary letters patent were issued in 1973 and 1986 to reflect changes in municipal boundaries.

Effective December 1, 1992, the District of Coquitlam’s status was changed by new letters patent to that of a city municipality and it became known as the City of Coquitlam. Today, it is bordered by the municipalities of Port Moody, Port Coquitlam, Burnaby, and New Westminster as well as the Fraser River to the south, the Pitt River to the east, and the Coastal Mountains to the north. It includes the community of Maillardville, a region near Fraser Mills settled by French Canadians in the early part of the 20th century.

History of the municipality’s bylaws indicates both the perceived remoteness of the region and its rapid urbanization. Road taxation began in 1897, the sale of liquor was first regulated in 1909, and municipal health regulations were first passed in 1912. Coquitlam had electricity by 1911, and plans for running water began in 1916. The building of a separate fire hall in 1946 and expansion of water service in the mid-1950s indicate a particularly vigorous period of population growth. The municipality assumed responsibility for paved roads and sidewalks by 1961. Zoning changes in the 1970s and 1980s reflect a change in land use from agricultural to single-family suburban residential and low-density apartment housing. An average of two development permits was issued every month by the early 1980s.

The town centre, developed in the 1980s and 1990s, provides cultural and recreational facilities and includes the Coquitlam Centre Mall, the Evergreen Cultural Centre, the Public Safety building, City Hall, the Pinetree Community Centre, the City Centre Aquatic Complex, the Coquitlam Public Library, the City Archives, and Douglas College. The population of Coquitlam has more than doubled from the 1970s to the present day.

City Clerks, District and City of Coquitlam
R.D. Irvine 1891-1899
John Smith 1899-1913
A. Haliburton 1913-1917
Robert Newman 1918-1927
Alan M. Shaw 1928
William Russell 1928-1947
F.L. Pobst 1947-1972
R.A. Leclair, acting clerk, 1965, 1966 1967
H.F. Hockey, acting clerk, 1967
Ted Klassen, acting clerk, 1967
Ted Klassen, 1972-1991
Sandra Aikenhead, 1991-1994
Warren Jones, 1994-2000
Trevor Wingrove, 2000-2002
Sonia Santarossa, 2002-2008
Jay Gilbert, 2008-present

Reeves and Mayors, District and City of Coquitlam
R.B. Kelly 1891-1896
E.A. Atkins 1897-1903
Ralph Booth 1904-1908
D.E. Welcher 1909-1910
James Mars 1911-1913
L.E. Marmont 1918-1922
George H. Proulx 1923
R.C. MacDonald 1924-1941
J.W. Oliver 1942-1944
L.J. Christmas 1945-1969
J.L. Ballard 1970-1971
James L. Tonn 1972-1983
Louis Sekora 1984-1998
Jon Kingsbury 1998-2005
Maxine Wilson 2005-2007
Richard Stewart 2008-present

Gordy and his wife Mary Robson founded the "Maple Ridge News" in late 1984. When the Columbian Newspaper folded in 1985, staff started the Now group of newspapers and Robson decided to expand the News offerings into the Tri-Cities with "The Sunday News" to compete with the Now. About a year later, he started a Tri-City specific edition issued on Wednesdays, which later became the Tri-City News and was expanded to two editions per week. The newspapers were printed by Hacker Press in Abbotsford.

Gordy Robson served as the Mayor of Maple Ridge between 2005 and 2008 and has served as a Councillor for Maple Ridge since 2014.

The Tri-Cities Now (originally the Coquitlam Now and at some points referred to simply as The Now) was first published in 1984. During the first years of its publication, it was published by Bob Moody under the company Now Newspapers Ltd and during the early years it is referred to as an independent community newspaper. By 2001, Now Newspapers Ltd. was listed as a division of the Lower Mainland Publishing Group Inc., a CanWest Company. In 2006, the publisher changed to Coquitlam Now, a division of CanWest Media Works Publications Inc. The newspaper was purchased by Glacier Media Group in 2007 along with several other local newspapers in British Columbia. In 2014, Glacier Media Group purchased the Tri-City News from Black Press and in September, 2015 announced that the Tri-Cities Now would print its final edition on October 1st, 2015.

The Eagle Ridge Residents' Association (TERRA) began on November 10, 1981 when a group of seventy concerned citizens met at the Church of Christ Hall on Runnel Drive to form a group to represent their concerns. The aim of the association was to improve conditions in the area and to give a united voice to their concerns. Membership in the Association was set at $5.00 per person and a group was elected to draft the constitution and bylaws. The Association lobbied municipal, provincial, and federal government on issues related to community planning, development, land use, and public services.

Association Presidents were:

John Roberts (1981-1982)
Terry O'Neill (1983)
Wally Unger (1984-1985)
Greg MacRae (1986)
Clayton Moore (1988-1990)
Susan Backus (1991-1992)
Dulce Huscroft (1993-1994)
Cindy Macie (1995-1998)
Ken A. Wood (1999-2002)

William Johnston Fenton was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, in August 1925. He immigrated to Canada with his Mother, Amelia Arabella, Father, William James, and his Sister, Caroline. After first settling near Prince Albert in northern Saskatchewan, the family made its way to Vancouver in April, 1936. The connection between the Fenton Family and forest products began when William James Fenton got a job with the Canadian Western Lumber Company Ltd at Fraser Mills on August 1st, 1936, commuting from Vancouver via interurban streetcar. In 1938, the family purchased land and built a house on Alderson Ave in Maillardville so as to be closer to the mill. Over the next few years, the family grew to include Jim, Irene, Phyllis, Mickey, and Colleen. William James became Personnel Manager but his career was interrupted by ill health and he died on July 4th, 1955 at the age of 52.

William Johnston Fenton (most commonly known as John Fenton) and all of his siblings worked at Fraser Mills or with other forest product operations in the area. John started as a casual labourer in the shipping department in 1942 and moved to the plywood plant shortly thereafter. He joined the Canadian Army in June 1944, was discharged in August, 1946, and returned to the mill. He worked as a clerk in the Traffic Department before becoming an Invoice Clerk in 1948. In 1952, he was assigned to Calgary not long after his marriage in 1951. They moved back to Coquitlam in 1954 and John then worked for the Sales Department of what was by that point, Crown Zellerbach. He moved through the managerial ranks, ultimately becoming Sales Manager for British Columbia. During this time, he built two houses on Quadling Avenue, and was a prominent community volunteer for the Coquitlam School Board and the local United Way.

In 1966, he was transferred to Toronto to be the Manager of the Ontario Sales Region and soon was responsible for sales in Ontario, Quebec, and the Maritimes. He returned to Coquitlam in 1970 and held various management positions before moving to Kelowna in 1984, where he retired as Manager of Marketing in 1990. During the later years of his career, John became an industry guru regarding wood products, with a particular emphasis on plywood. He was active as an industry representative who facilitated market expansion in the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe, and Japan. His knowledge of plywood production and forest products manufacturing helped inform early negotiations with the United States on a Softwood Lumber Trade Agreement and he assisted in developing product standards through the Canada Standards Association.

Gaston T.L. Lorimy was born in France in 1880. He was a commercial photographer. He moved to Canada around the turn of the 20th century. He married Madeline Terillon. He was the owner of Edmonds Studio in Burnaby from 1930-1938. He died on September 30, 1961.

Gary Lupul was a Canadian professional ice hockey player who played in the NHL betwen 1979 and 1986 for the Vancouver Canucks. Following his retirement for active play, he was employed by the Vancouver Canucks as a junior and college scout.

Helena Regehr was born to Peter Regehr and Anna Reimer Regehr on May 16, 1910 in the small Mennonite village of Marjanowka No. 5 in the Terek settlement. It was situated in what is currently known as the Russian republic of Dagestan near the west coast of the Caspian Sea. She was born in the school house where the Regehrs had set up quarters and where her father was teacher. She was raised, with her seven siblings, in a German-speaking and faith-centered home with strong community ties.

As the Communists gained power throughout Russia, the peaceful life in Mennonite villages was threatened. With the assistance of the Canadian Pacific Railway and the Mennonite Central Committee of Canada, families began to plan for emigration. Helen was 15 years old when her family left Russia and boarded a ship to cross the Atlantic. They arrived in St. John’s, New Brunswick on January 24, 1926. A journey by train across Canada took them to Rosthern, Saskatchewan, where they lived for a year. In response to news about opportunities for work, they moved to Coaldale, Alberta in February of 1927.

As the Regehrs settled in Coaldale, Alberta, the first imperatives were to re-establish domestic life and to repay the CPR travel debt. The older children were unable to continue their schooling and contributed to the family labour and income. Helen, the oldest of the eight Regehr children, followed many of her peers to Vancouver where they worked as maids in wealthy British homes.

A new opportunity presented itself when the outbreak of the Second World War created an urgent need for nurses. Despite never having completed high school, Helen successfully enrolled in the School for Nurses of Essondale Mental Hospital in Essondale BC. She attended from 1944 to 1946, thriving under the demands of her studies and achieving the award for highest marks all three years.

Helen’s career as a psychiatric nurse took her to Ontario. She worked in a Toronto hospital and later in Bethesda Home for the Mentally Handicapped in Vineland where she met an orderly named John Wiebe, also a Mennonite immigrant from Russia. They were married on July 25, 1948.

John and Helen settled in Leamington, Ontario where she devoted herself to her home and her two children.

When her husband John passed away in 1971, Helen moved back to Coaldale, Alberta to help care for her aging parents. Later she moved again to Abbotsford, BC to be near her son and daughter-in-law and her two granddaughters. She lived there until her passing on May 7, 1989.

Stephen A. Carter was born in Vancouver on February 22, 1946 and grew up in the Deep Cove/Dollarton area. He graduated from the University of British Columbia with a Bachelor of Education degree with specialties in History and Geography. He taught Social Studies for twenty-one years in Richmond and then finished his career in Kelowna. Following his professional teaching career, he became a pen and ink artist and started writing adventure/action historical fiction books about the American Civil War. He has published three books, written over 500 poems, and is working on screenplays for a film production company in New Zealand.

In 1889, the Ross, McLaren Mill was opened at Millside, an area near New Westminster, British Columbia. The mill had cost $350,000 to build, and was headed by President James McLaren, a Quebec timber investor and President of the Bank of Ottawa, and Vice-President Frank Ross. Production at the mill began in 1890. In addition to new facilities and a large amount of capital to support it, the mill also possessed the transportation benefits of frontage on the Fraser River and a spur line to the Canadian Pacific Railway system. However, despite these advantages, the mill soon faced several events that affected its production in a negative way. In addition to the death of McLaren, the mill also experienced a decreased demand for timber due to a general economic depression in 1892. Even when other mills began to recover in 1895, Ross, McLaren’s productivity was curtailed by the silting of the Fraser River, which made it impossible for large vessels to reach the mill.

All of these factors contributed to the company’s decision in 1899 to place the mill and its timber rights up for sale. An American investment syndicate, headed by Lester David of Seattle and Mr. Jenkins of Minneapolis eventually purchased the mill in 1903. The new owners sought to resolve the mill’s difficulties by dyking the area, and holding the federal government accountable for dredging the Fraser River channel and ensuring its accessibility to ships. Now called Fraser River Saw Mills, the mill was finally re-opened in 1905, as the largest mill in the Pacific Northwest. By 1906, the mill was already setting records for production levels and over 250 labourers were employed. As a result of the increased production levels and staff, both the mill and Millside were expanded; this included the construction of the Fraser Mills Sash, Door & Shingle Company Limited.

Production at the mill was so high by 1907, in fact, that the mill was nearly shut down due to a lack of available labour. The mill was taken over by an investment syndicate headed by A.D. McRae of Winnipeg and Senator Peter Jansen of Nebraska. The new owners instituted a major re-organization of the business. A half million dollar renovation and expansion of the original mill buildings was implemented and improvements made to increase transportation access to the mill via the Fraser River. The name of the town was changed from Millside to Fraser Mills.

The re-organization of the business culminated in 1910, with the purchase of enough timber rights in the Lower Mainland and on Vancouver Island for the company, now called the Canadian Western Lumber Company Limited, to be considered to have the largest private holdings in the world. Through direct or indirect purchase, the Canadian Western Lumber Company Limited acquired full or partial ownership of the following companies by 1916: Canadian Tugboat Company Limited; Coast Lumber & Fuel Company Limited; Coast Lumber Yards Limited; The Columbia River Company Limited; Columbia Western Lumber Yards Ltd.; Comox Logging and Railway Company; Crown Lumber Company, Limited; Fraser Mills Sash, Door, and Shingle Company Limited; Lumber Manufacturers’ Yard Limited; Security Lumber Company Limited.; and Western Canada Sawmill Yards Limited. Later acquisitions include The Golden Light, Power and Water Company Limited. In 1954, the Canadian Western Lumber Company, Limited was acquired by Crown Zellerbach Canada Limited. The immediate successor company to Crown Zellerbach Canada Limited was Fletcher Challenge Limited of New Zealand, which purchased the company in 1983 and, with further acquisitions, became Fletcher Challenge Canada Limited in 1987. In 2000, Norske Skog, a Norwegian paper company, acquired all of Fletcher Challenge's pulp and paper assets, and a majority interest in Fletcher Challenge Canada Limited. This resulted in the formation of Norske Skog Canada Limited.

The Lockwood Survey Corporation Ltd. was an aerial photographic survey company based in the Toronto, Ontario area with divisions across Canada, the west coast division being located at 1409 West Pender Street, Vancouver, BC.

It was formed out of a number of amalgamations, mergers and name changes of predecessor companies, beginning with the Toronto-based Photographic Survey Company, which began in 1946 under the direction of Douglas M. Kendall, with British financing from Sir Percy Hunting. From 1956-1965, the company was known as Hunting Survey Corporation, Ltd., later known as Lockwood Survey Corporation, Ltd. from 1965-1972. From 1972-1975 the company was called Northway Survey Corporation, Ltd., and then Northway- Gestalt Corporation Ltd. from 1975-1984. The company has been named Northway Map Technology Ltd. since 1985.

Pacific Survey Corporation was a mapping firm based in Vancouver. Its operations ceased prior to 1989.

The Dept. of Lands, Forests and Water Resources was established in 1908 under its first name, the Dept. of Lands (Department of Lands Act, SBC 1908, c. 31). Before 1908 the agencies responsible for the functions of the Dept. of Lands, Forests and Water resources were: (1) the Dept. of Lands and Works (Crown lands management, sales, pre-emptions and leases, lands surveying and mapping, timber inspection, forest protection and log scaling), and (2) the Dept. of Mines (water rights in regards to mining operations). The Dept. of Lands, headed by the Chief Commissioner of Lands, was given responsibility for public lands and water rights, and all matters connected therewith. (SBC 1908, c. 31, s. 5). These responsibilities included: (1) the management of all public lands, as per the Land Act, (RSBC 1897, c. 113); (2) administration of water rights, as per the Water Clauses Consolidation Act, (RSBC 1897, c. 191) [in 1892 by means of the Water Privileges Act (SBC 1892, c. 47), the government had reserved to itself the right to manage all water resources in the province that were unreserved and un-appropriated as of April 23, 1892]; and (3) land settlement programs for returned soldiers. In 1909, the enactment of the Water Act (SBC 1909, c. 48) resulted in the creation of the Water Rights Branch of the Dept. of Lands, under the management of the Chief Water Commissioner (re-named Comptroller of Water Rights in 1912). This legislation also resulted in the creation of Water Districts under the management of District Engineers, who would be responsible for management in the field of the Branchs responsibilities. In 1911, the Timber Department, including Timber Inspectors, forest protection services and log scaling operations, was transferred from the Dept. of Public Works to the Dept. of Lands. In 1912, the management of timber resources was formally added to the departments responsibilities with the enactment of the Forest Act (SBC 1912, c. 17). To accommodate these new responsibilities, the Forest Branch, under the Chief Forester, was created in the Dept. of Lands. In 1945, the Dept. of Lands was renamed the Dept. of Lands and Forests (Department of Lands Act Amendment Act, SBC 1945, c. 45). At this time, the department was reorganized into two branches, the Lands Service and the Forests Service. In 1962, the Dept. of Lands and Forests was renamed the Dept. of Lands, Forests, and Water Resources (Department of Lands and Forests Act Amendment Act, SBC 1962, c. 22). At this time, the department was reorganized into three branches, the B.C. Lands Service, the B.C. Forest Service, and the B.C. Water Resources Service. On December 23, 1975, the Dept. of Lands, Forests and Water Resources ceased to exist. The government established two new agencies, the Dept. of Forests and the Dept. of Environment, to replace it (OIC 3838/75). All activities associated with the forestry function were transferred to the Dept. of Forests (OIC 3849/75, 3868/75). With one minor exception, the remaining functions of the Dept. of Lands, Forests, and Water Resources were transferred to the Dept. of Environment (OIC 3843/75, 3844/75, 3846/75, 3852/75). In 1976, these organizational changes were reiterated in legislation (SBC 1976, c. 18)

Caisse Populaire Maillardville was a francophone credit union that grew to serve 9,500 members in Maillardville, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody and Chilliwack. It was founded in 1946 and originally called La Caisse Populaire Notre Dame de Lourdes Credit Union. It’s guiding vision was to “unite the French community through financial solidarity." As a closed bond credit union, it required that its members be French-Canadian Catholics and served solely the French-speaking community of Maillardville. In its very beginnings, the credit union was run out of the home of Alma and Arthur Fontaine at 405 Marmont Street.

As the community grew and its need for banking services expanded, a small stucco building was erected for the credit union’s use on the corner of Brunette Avenue and Nelson Street. In 1950, the name was officially changed to the Caisse Populaire de Maillardville Credit Union to gain support not only from Our Lady of Lourdes parishioners, but also those of the newly-opened Our Lady of Fatima church. In 1951, the credit union instituted a special savings program, or “school program” for children attending Maillardville Catholic schools.
In order to remain keep pace with larger financial institutions, in 1956 the credit union opened to non-Catholic francophone members. In 1957, their small building was moved to 1013 Brunette Avenue, and over the next forty years, underwent many expansions and alterations. To continue to offer competitive financial services, in 1968 a resolution was put forward and passed to open membership to English-speakers.

In 1989, the credit union decided to try and garner a greater market share for itself, and decided to change their name to one that would be meaningful in English and French. The credit union offered a thousand dollars to any individual who could come up with a suitable bilingual name. They received over six hundred submissions in the contest and the board selected "Village Credit Union." Village Credit Union expanded to other locations in the Lower Mainland during the 1990s, but due to loan delinquency and losses, Village Credit Union dissolved and merged with Vancity Credit Union in June of 2005.

Originally known as the King Albert High school, Como Lake High School opened in 1951, serving students from Grad 7-11. It is located at 1121 King Albert Avenue, Coquitlam, British Columbia.