Making Vancouver: Class, Status, and Social Boundaries, 1863-1913

by Robert A.J. McDonald

Making Vancouver is about the people of Vancouver, British Columbia. It traces the social transformation of the city and points out how Shaughnessy Heights lumber barons, Mount Pleasant trades people, and East End labourers were part of a complex society whose members exhibited sharp differences in attitudes and behaviour. In Making Vancouver, Robert McDonald depicts a western city that was neither egalitarian nor closed to opportunity. Vancouver up to the crash of 1913 was a dynamic centre. The rapidity of growth, easy access to resources, a narrow industrial base, and the homogeneous nature of its population, the majority of which was of British birth, softened the thrust towards class division inherent in capitalism. By distinguishing between two types of identity - class and social status - McDonald shows how middle and upper working-class residents formed a broad group of 'respectable' citizens that straddled class lines. By contrast, those at the top of the social structure constituted a self-conscious upper class, and those at the bottom, the 'immigrants,' the transient workers, and the poor, were regarded as 'outsiders.' Collective biographies of four groups of residents - business leaders, social leaders, civic politicians, and labour activists - illustrate the nature of the social relationships.

Genres: History

316 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1996

Reviews

[Deni Loubert]

Having moved to the area recently, I have been exploring various books on the history of the Vancouver region. This, so far, is one of the best. Detailed without being overly boring, it tells the tale of early Vancouver. We see the rough and ready days of the sawmill towns and it even pays attention to the role of the First Nation tribes of the area. As it moves into the turn of the century we see the city grow, and the politics that grow with it.
I got a great overview of the founding families, their role in the city and the interior politics that shaped the early city. There was enough of a personal look at life in early Vancouver to give a bit of a flavour of what it would have been like to have been here then.
All in all, a great book and one that makes me wonder if the author has continued on into the next era. I certainly hope so!

[Ryan Chynces]

A great historical explication of the early development of Vancouver.