Anne Humphries stems from a family that sailed around the Horn of South America, in 1851, to work in Fort Victoria. Her great grandfather eventually became a meat and poultry producer on Vancouver Island and supplied Mouat’s store. He used to go duck hunting on Cusheon Lake where he had a hunting cabin.
Anne was raised in Victoria and although she moved away as an adult she loved the area. Ten years ago when her children were grown she was able to make a move and chose Salt Spring as her home. A meeting of the Historical Society piqued her interest and she volunteered to help. After spending three months cataloging BC Historical quarterly she felt she had earned her stripes.
A passion for history was birthed in Anne when she did some research to help her son with a school project about the family’s history. Now she enjoys meeting pioneer families and encouraging them to donate pieces of history to the Archives. She is an advocate for preserving heritage buildings and heritage landscapes of the Island.
Anne is now working on the Ruby Alton collection. She had been a close friend and at first she found the job too difficult. Now, some time after Ruby’s passing, Anne is able to lovingly catalog the collection.
Solving a mystery is the most interesting part of the work. Searching old photographs, letters and meeting minutes for information can be fascinating. People begin to mean a lot to you. We too play the part of pioneers. This archive is a pioneer effort.
Anne remembers an interesting incident that happened when the representative from the
BC Archives visited Salt Spring on his tour of BC. Because of this meeting the Archives were late in closing down. The door to room next door, which was usually locked, suddenly opened. In walked the artists guild. They covered widows with sheets and turned up heat. A nude model arrived. The archivists tried to shut door but could not do so. A small mock battle started between the groups. The wonderful head librarian stood in the stairwell, unable to leave her post and tired to mediate. Whole thing was a hilarious tempest in a teapot.