1955: Kelowna turns 50
In 2017, Canadians celebrate Canada’s 150th anniversary of Confederation. Special events will be held throughout the year, but the high point of the celebrations will undoubtedly be July 1, the actual day of Canada’s 150th birthday.
Milestone birthday celebrations are nothing new. People, organizations, towns and cities, provinces, and countries all have special birthdays which become the focus for celebrations. The citizens of Kelowna have had many milestone celebrations over the decades, the most recent being Canada 150.
Kelowna’s townsite was surveyed and designated in 1892. On May 4, 1905, our town became the City of Kelowna, reflecting the steady growth and development which had occurred since 1892. On May 4, 1955, the City of Kelowna celebrated its Golden Anniversary — 50 years of incorporation. It was an occasion which was widely recognized and celebrated.
A special Jubilee Banquet was held in Kelowna on May 4, 1955. I recently acquired an official program for that event.
Guests attending the Jubilee Banquet were officially welcomed by “Your Host the Corporation of the City of Kelowna”. Kelowna City Council of the day consisted of Mayor J.J. Ladd and Aldermen R.F. Parkinson, M.A. Meikle, R.D. Knox, A. Jackson, A.J. Treadgold, and E.R. Winter.
The menu for the Jubilee Banquet was listed, with historic surnames attached:
Juice – Applecot a La Father Pandosy
Pickles Casorso Olives Haynes Celery Thomson & Knowles Cold Cuts of Turkey Saucier Ham Crichton Beef Gillard Sliced Beets Brent Tossed Green Salad Lysons Potato Salad Bouvette Rolls Clement Rum and Butter Sundae Raymer Coffee Barlee
Guests at the banquet not only had a tempting array of food before them, but also enjoyed a formal program, listed opposite the menu.
The front cover of the program featured a “View of Kelowna about 1905” and the back cover showed the “City of Kelowna Today,” emphasizing the growth and development which had occurred in the 50 years since incorporation.
Many other events were staged as part of Kelowna’s 50th birthday celebration. A Golden Jubilee parade was held on Bernard Avenue on May 4, featuring marching bands, First Nations people on horseback, young cadets marching in formation, cowboys and covered wagons, and a variety of floats. Not surprisingly, Kelowna’s birthday float featured a large, fierce, serpentine Ogopogo. Kelowna’s “royalty” sat on a large apple throne, firmly affixed to the float’s deck.
At the foot of Bernard Avenue, near the current site of the Sails sculpture, was a massive, threetiered birthday cake. Made of plywood and painted and decorated to replicate icing, this cake boasted the requisite 50 candles, albeit it electric and not wax.
A photograph in my collection shows a car parked adjacent to Kelowna’s Golden Jubilee birthday cake, its roof not as high as the first of the cake’s three tiers.
Of special and long lasting interest to local citizens is the “Golden Jubilee Edition” of The Kelowna Courier. This special newspaper boasted 81 pages in 12 sections. The first page was titled “Birthday Gift,” and featured a picture of Kelowna’s new chain of office. On May 2, 1955, this symbol of the office and authority of Kelowna’s mayor was presented to the City of Kelowna by a number of old-timers and long-established businesses.
Other pages in the 1955 commemorative newspaper featured photographs of and articles about Kelowna’s history and pioneers. The first page of section six features an early Kelowna street map, showing the locations of various local businesses and institutions. The population of Kelowna — 500 — was listed on the map. Kelowna’s schools, churches, societies and organizations also had their histories elsewhere recounted in the issue.
On page one of section 11 is an article and accompanying photograph of the official Jubilee Celebration, held in City Park on the afternoon of May 1. More than 4,000 people attended, celebrating Kelowna’s milestone birthday and witnessing the official dedication of Kelowna’s Jubilee Bowl. For many years, this City Park structure was a popular venue for outdoor musical and theatrical entertainment.
The May 4, 1955 edition of The Kelowna Courier remains one of the best sources of local history and I frequently refer to this periodical in the course of my local research.
Robert Michael Hayes is a lifelong resident of Kelowna and is a descendant of the pioneer Clement and Whelan families. He is a life member of the Okanagan Historical Society. This article is part of a series, submitted by the Kelowna Branch, Okanagan Historical Society. Additional information would be welcome at P.O. Box 22105, Capri P.O., Kelowna, B.C., V1Y 9N9.