There are people who walk around Vancouver looking at what’s in front of them, and then there are people like Christine Hagemoen, who can’t help but see what used to be there, too.
A longtime Scout contributor, Christine is the curious mind behind our popular You Should Know series, in which she digs into the people, places, buildings and bits of Vancouver history that most of us pass without a second thought. She’s also an excellent walking tour guide, with an impressive ability to make an ordinary street corner feel like the scene of a much larger story.
This Sunday, October 25th, Christine is launching her second book, Mount Pleasant Stories: Historical Walking Tours, Walk 2: NW Mount Pleasant, at The Lido.
The new book builds on her first, this time exploring the stretch of Mount Pleasant between Cambie and Main, from Broadway north to 2nd Avenue. Today, much of this area is defined by commercial buildings, warehouses and light industry. Harder to imagine is the residential neighbourhood that once existed here. Christine’s research brings back the families, businesses, immigrant communities and everyday lives that shaped the neighbourhood long before its current incarnation.
Vancouver is better at knocking things down and putting new things up than it is at remembering what came before. Christine puts in the hours to recover those stories, and then generously shares what she finds.
Hit the Lido Sunday, pick up a copy, meet Christine, and get to know a little more about this corner of the city.
Can’t make it to The Lido? Both books are available at Pulpfiction Books (Main Street and Commercial Drive), while Book 2 can also be found at Massy Books in Chinatown and Cross & Crow Books on Commercial Drive.
