Victoria, British Columbia in 1897: Travel, Church, and Social Life

Travelling from Vancouver to Victoria in 1897

In May 1897, travel between Vancouver and Victoria meant boarding a coastal steamer and crossing the Strait of Georgia. In her letter written from James Bay, Victoria, May Wright briefly mentions crossing “on the Charmer,” giving us a small but meaningful glimpse into steamship travel in 19th-century British Columbia. These vessels connected the mainland to Vancouver Island and carried a mix of passengers from performers to settlers who were moving between the province’s growing urban centres.

What feels routine in her letter actually reflects how interconnected British Columbia had become by the late 1890s. The trains she often describes passing through Agassiz linked the Fraser Valley to Vancouver, and from there ships completed the journey to Victoria. (I write more about that railway connection in my post on the Canadian Pacific Railway station in Agassiz.) Even in a short reference, we see how travel shaped daily life and tied together communities across coastal BC.

Entertainment and Society in Vancouver, 1897

Before crossing to Victoria, May spent time in Vancouver, where she attended a cricket match and an evening concert. These brief references in her 1897 letter remind us that Vancouver was already developing a lively social and cultural scene. Cricket which is a distinctly British sport, reinforced colonial identity, while concerts and touring performers brought entertainment to a rapidly growing city on Canada’s west coast. By the late 19th century, Vancouver was no longer a rough frontier outpost but an emerging urban centre with organized leisure and public events.

What stands out is the contrast with rural life in Agassiz. While much of May’s correspondence focuses on farming routines and domestic work, moments like this show another side of 1890s British Columbia: one shaped by recreation, performance, and public gathering. (I explore rural settler life more fully in my posts on the Hazeley Ranch letters.) Even in a few lines, her account captures how urban entertainment and British social traditions were becoming part of everyday life in Vancouver at the end of the century.

James Bay and Social Class in Colonial Victoria

When May writes from 69 Superior Street in James Bay, she places herself in one of Victoria’s established residential neighbourhoods. By 1897, James Bay was known for its proximity to the Inner Harbour and its mix of respectable middle-class homes and long-standing colonial families. In her letters, she briefly comments on the household she is staying with and makes a telling remark about “society,” hinting at how carefully social position was observed in late-Victorian British Columbia. May comes from a long line of respectful reverends and priests which gives her social standing.

Even in a few understated lines, questions of class and belonging surface. Victoria in the 1890s was a city shaped by British social expectations, where church connections, business status, and reputation mattered. (In my Hazeley Letter posts on Agassiz, we see similar social networks at work in a rural setting.) This letter quietly reveals how ideas about respectability and status followed May from the Fraser Valley to colonial Victoria, reflecting the social structure of British Columbia at the end of the 19th century.

Church and Funeral Culture in Victoria, 1897

In her May 1897 letter from Victoria, May briefly mentions attending a funeral soon after arriving in the city. It is a short reference, but it reflects how central church life and religious observance were in late-19th-century British Columbia. In colonial Victoria, churches were not only places of worship; they were social anchors, shaping community relationships, respectability, and public ritual. Funerals, in particular, were moments where social networks became visible, reinforcing family ties and social standing.

Although she does not elaborate, May’s passing comment reminds us that daily life in 1897 often revolved around church gatherings, services, and community events. (In other Hazeley Letters written from Agassiz, we see similar patterns of church attendance and rural religious life.) Even in a single line, her letter captures how faith, mourning customs, and social obligation were woven into everyday life in Victoria at the end of the 19th century.

What This Letter Reveals About Women’s Mobility in 1897 British Columbia

May’s letters quietly highlight something significant: women’s mobility in late 19th-century British Columbia. May moves between Agassiz, Vancouver, and Victoria with relative ease as she was attending public events, travelling by train and steamer, and staying with acquaintances in the city. While not every woman in 1897 would have had this freedom, her experience reflects the growing transportation networks and social connections that made travel possible for certain middle-class women in colonial BC.

What feels ordinary in her writing is actually evidence of change. Railways and coastal steamships connected communities across the province, and women like May participated in those expanding networks. (Throughout the Hazeley Letter Series, we see her navigating both rural farm life in Agassiz and the more urban world of Victoria and Vancouver.) This letter reminds us that women were not confined to one place. Instead they were active participants in the social and geographic movement shaping British Columbia at the end of the century.

May’s Letter to Mother – June 5, 1897

69. Superior St.
James Bay
Victoria, B.C.

June 5, 1897

My dearest Mother,

I have heard nothing from the boys since I left, but the paper says the Fraser is falling all the time, but the water from the Rockies has not begun to come down yet, they think though that all danger of flood is over.

There are two two — of three month to Montreal this summer, Mrs. Jameson is thinking of going as it is very cheap, only $50 return. One is on the 1st of July & one later. I see from the paper that the Agassiz’s are in Victoria & Mr. Lane came over the same day. The empress of India came in on Tuesday on her outward voyage, we went down to the wharf to see her but were just too late; there was an American man of war in though, the Japanese man of war has gone to —. I am very sorry as I particularly wanted to see it, we used to meet the sailors about.

We played tennis in the Drill Hall on Wednesday. It is nice playing on wood & much easier that on grass. We went to a sort of social given by the Presbyterian literary society last night, & the night before we had a little dance here.

There is a man here who knows Mr. Farr, he was a farmer in the place where Mr. Farr was Liberal Candidate, his name is Mr. Grimes & he is a terrible borender, very like Williams of the Shakespeare he wanted us to go out canoeing with him but Mr. Jameson would not allow it as he does not consider it safe as the water is too rough here.

Miss. Jameson heard from Mr. George a day or two ago, he is up at the townsite very busy, It is nothing like as hot down here as it was at Agassiz. It is a great comfort to have reasonable weather. One of the first building down here is the Methodist Church,. I have not been inside it but they say it is very well furnished inside as out.

I must go see whether Miss. Jameson is going out as it his half past ten.

Love to everyone,

Your affectionate daughter,

May Wright