Welcome to Left Coast Dispatch
Why start a newsletter?
For five years, I was the director of Point Ellice House Museum and Gardens (PEH) where I witnessed the power of storytelling and the keen interest many people have in learning about the past.
In 2023, I was forced to end management of the museum.
As any parent can tell you, there are limited childcare spaces in Victoria, so I looked after my young son for a year and then I started looking for work.
I have no doubt that some potential employers in Victoria see my time at Point Ellice House as either a failure or as an affront to certain politicians. Despite two years of pandemic closure and decades of chronic underfunding, we wanted to operate a museum where people were paid a living wage instead of one where the exploitation of workers and volunteers was the model.
We live in a time when the value of critical thinking is being degraded; a time when earning a living from making sense of the past is viewed as redundant to an artificially intelligent future.
At Point Ellice House we shifted narratives and placed the heritage site within the context of ongoing colonization. When we announced the closure, a few letter and email writers claimed that this was evidence of ‘woke’ history’s failure to connect. Here’s part of an email that one S.B. Julian sent to me at the time:
There's plenty to unpack in that snippet, but it’s clear this person never visited the site during my time there. Those of us who were actually at Point Ellice House doing the work know that many people who visited wanted a deeper understanding of the past. The way we told stories was a factor in our success, evidenced by the more than 600 people in attendance for our final open day.
Where can we find public history?
After working for years to try and avoid closure of the museum and a public naming and shaming of the government that owns the place, I found myself on the front page of the local paper was a last-ditch attempt to save our work and our jobs.
In a recent set of essays titled “What is Canadian Nationalism,” Nora Loreto reminds us that cultural production in Canada is next to impossible:
“To have culture, culture must be created. And it isn’t for lack of want or talent or energy from among consumers or creators that Canada has effectively destroyed its cultural production...Where cultural production was key to creating a White Christian Canada, today, we can see how crushing cultural production is also key to keeping us that White Christian Canada that we have never quite managed to shed. Because it is not allowed to be too critical. It is not allowed to challenge cultural icons. We cannot take risks and make dangerous art. These things are forbidden in Canada. They will get you banned by the CBC and ignored by the Globe and Mail — at the exact moment that Canadians need, and want it, the most.”
I took a risk speaking out about the state of support for public history in British Columbia. We took a risk telling new stories at PEH. “The truth about stories is, that’s all we are,” argues author Thomas King. In other words, making sense through narrative is part of what makes us human. Instead of feeling despondent about the fascist backlash against knowledge production, I am choosing to recognize that now is exactly the time when we need to remember the truth about stories.
Many people value the kind of critical cultural analysis and public history work I am a part of. I also know many of us are searching for trusted sources and analysis. And so, I turn to the patronage model as a way to continue to this work.
What exactly am I getting into?
Not every issue of Left Coast Dispatch will be a long-form piece of historical inquiry, though there will certainly be some of that. If my work is new to you, please take a look at the past work available on my website.
A working list of newsletter ideas includes: Plaque of the Week, UFOs in Victoria, BC History Lessons, Lost Infrastructure, Archival Photo of the Week, Cemetery Tours, and Shipwrecks. I’m sure there will also be comment on politics, parenting, and biking. Here’s a Plaque of the Week teaser:
You can read more about HMS Algerine and its mizzen mast here: https://www.nauticapedia.ca/Gallery/Algerine.php
My goal is to have digestible vignettes on various topics, often historical in nature (but not always). As the name “Left Coast Dispatch” might imply, there will be a Vancouver Island and BC bias to this newsletter, but that does not mean I won’t be engaging with news and stories from other locales.
This is also an iterative project. I’ll be figuring it out as I go, testing out features, listening to your feedback, and answering your inquiries. If it’s not your cup of tea, I hope $5 was not too steep a price. If you like what you read, I hope you will become a recurring subscriber. You can sign up by clicking here. And please share with your family and friends!