No Coal Here

Take Back the Port Rally at the Fraser River quay.

Logo

Iconic

Who's that tall fellow on the quay? Why, the world's largest tin soldier!

Beautiful Day

All the bits of the Quay previously photographed individually, now in one great picture.

Incognito

Look who's still in his Hallowe'en costume!

Wide Angle

A question from Raskolniikov made me realize that the Oh, Buoy! photo from a few days ago was out of context if you've never seen the New West Quay. This photo should clear things up somewhat.

This is an overhead view of the quay, from the walkway over the railway. The Tin Soldier is to the left, there's the buoy again, the Pilot House boat which I have also posted photos of previously, and, in the distance, a real tug pulling a barge full of gravel down the Fraser River. Every time I walk over to the quay, a similar view greets me (sometimes cloudy, sometimes without the tug/barge combo).

Oh, buoy!

This large buoy has been covered for a long time as renovations of the River Market dragged on and on. Now it is visible once again, immediately next to the Tin Soldier.

View from Above

To get to the New Westminster Quay, people climb a set of stairs to an overpass that takes them over the railway tracks. This photo was taken from the top of the stairs. It is overlooking the Fraser River, the Quay where the outdoor stage and food booths are set up for Fraser Fest (buffalo burgers! salmon barbeque! ice cream!), as well as the Fraser River Discovery Centre building to the left.

Regiment-ed

The Royal Westminster Regiment Historical Society and Museum on Queens Avenue near City Hall. The Royal Westminster Regiment is an active Army Reserve battalion, with units currently stationed in Afghanistan.

This is the regiment after whose mid-19th century soldiers the world's largest tin soldier at the New Westminster Quay was designed.

Up!

The view up Begbie Street from the staircase leading up to the 3-storey outdoor parkade. To the right is the Scotia Bank building - it's one of the few still being used as a bank, harking back to the era when all banks were housed in grand buildings such as this one.

Pilot House

Back on the New West Quay this sunny evening for a walk. Facing the World's Largest Tin Soldier (arm and leg at right of photo) is a play structure for the kids, the M.V. Expo Tugger (1986). Based on the year, I assume it was installed the year of the World's Expo in Vancouver. There were no kids playing on it tonight, so I did just after taking this photo.

Big Red

Sapperton Landing Park, the Wharf.

This building - the Wharf - is located 180 degrees from yesterday's tugboat photo. It dates from the 1930s.

The Wharf was a transfer point for food, wood, coal, supplies and prisoners as this landing point on the Brunette River (and its confluence with the Fraser River) was once the location of a First Nations' village, a Royal Engineers' camp, the first colonial legislature of BC and a federal penitentiary.

World's Largest Tin Soldier

At the New Westminster Quay lives the world's largest tin soldier. Unveiled at the location on 14 February 2001, the tin soldier is also a time capsule to be opened in 2025. The soldier is modeled on the soldiers of the Royal Engineers, who founded New Westminster in the 1850s.

Height: 9.8m
Weight: 5 tons
Material: stainless steel
Constructed by: Austin Metal Fabricators, Burnaby, BC