John Hendry, (January 20, 1843 - July 17, 1916), created B. C. Mills, the first major lumber company in western Canada starting with his first mill in 1875. He is a

person of National Historic Significance Persons of National Historic Significance (National Historic People) are people designated by the Canadian government as being nationally significant in the history of the country. Designations are made by the Minister of the Environment on the re ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

Early life

Hendry was born in

Belledune, New Brunswick Belledune (2011 population: 1,548) is a Canadian village that straddles both Restigouche County and Gloucester County, New Brunswick. The community of Belledune was created through the amalgamation of Jacquet River, Armstrong Brook, and Bell ...

to Scottish immigrants James and Margaret Hendry (née Wilson), John Hendry’s father had immigrated to New Brunswick from

West Kilbride West Kilbride ( gd, Cille Bhrìghde an Iar) is a village and historic parish in North Ayrshire, Scotland, on the west coast by the Firth of Clyde, looking across the Firth of Clyde to Goat Fell and the Isle of Arran. West Kilbride and adjoining ...

, Scotland, in 1840, settled in Gloucester County, and was engaged in the sawmill and flour milling businesses. John was educated in New Brunswick, and he received formal and practical training with his father. In the 1860s he and his elder brother started their own sawmill. When their father died John took over the family business temporarily. He then travelled in the “

western States The Western world, also known as the West, primarily refers to the various nations and states in the regions of Europe, North America, and Oceania.

,” but in 1870 he returned to New Brunswick to establish a sawmill, which exported to the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

. and worked at the family mill before moving west permanently in 1872.

Lumber dominance

In 1876, Hendry and

David McNair David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

established Nanaimo Planing Mills.

Political foray

Hendry, was on

New Westminster New Westminster (colloquially known as New West) is a city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada, and a member municipality of the Metro Vancouver Regional District. It was founded by Major-General Richard Moody as the capita ...

city council from 1879 to 1880 and elected mayor in January 1889. He resigned in July because of a conflict of interest with him being involved with the New Westminster Southern Railway Company.

Legacy

Hendry's introduction of

steam donkey A steam donkey or donkey engine is a steam engine, steam-powered winch once widely used in logging, mining, Shipping industry, maritime, and other industrial applications. Steam powered donkeys were commonly found on large metal-hulled multi-m ...

s and railways were the model for the lumber industry of the 20th century. In 1926, Hendry's daughter Aldyen, who was married to the

Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia The lieutenant governor of British Columbia () is the viceregal representative of the , in the province of British Columbia, Canada. The office of lieutenant governor is an office of the Crown and serves as a representative of the monarchy in ...

Eric Hamber Eric Werge Hamber (1879–1960) was a Canadian businessman and the 15th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia. Early life Born on April 21, 1879, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, as a youth he was an excellent athlete who shone in his school rowing, ...

, donated some mill property to the

Vancouver Park Board The Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation, commonly referred to as the Vancouver Park Board, is the elected board with exclusive possession, jurisdiction and control over public parks in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Established by sectio ...

with the condition that it be named after her father. It is still known as

John Hendry Park John Hendry Park is 27-hectare park in the city of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It's operated by the Vancouver Park Board and the Grandview Community Association. Locals often refer to the park informally as Trout Lake, due to the lake it ...

. Vancouver Olympic Host City
/ref>

References

External links