Heritage Site: Port Edward
North Pacific Cannery Triplex Restoration
Organization: Port Edward Historical Society
Address: 1889 Skeena Dr, Port Edward, BC
Visitor Information
Hours of operation: Open seasonally from May to September (closed October–May); open Tuesday–Sunday from 10am–5pm in May, June, and September with guided tours at 11am and 2pm, and daily from 10am–5pm in July and August with guided tours at 11am, 1pm, and 3pm (tour schedule subject to change).
Admission includes site access and complimentary guided tours offered at scheduled times. Group and school tours may require advance arrangements.
Admission cost: Adults (18–64) $18, Seniors (65+) $16, Youth (6–17) $11, Children under 6 free, with family and group rates available. School group tours are $9 per person. Admission includes guided tours and applicable taxes. Cash, debit, VISA, and MasterCard accepted (cash recommended due to occasional weather-related card machine disruptions).
northpacificcannery.ca
Background
Beginning in 1890s, the North Pacific Cannery in Port Edward, BC, one of the oldest canneries on the west coast of North America, employed Japanese Canadian workers, including fishermen, boat builders, and carpenters, who lived in segregated housing areas. In the 1950s, following the wartime expulsion of all Japanese Canadians from the west coast, some returned to the Skeena River and other locations on the north coast to take up fishing again, drawn to a way of life they understood.
In 1965, two triplexes were built at the North Pacific Cannery to house Japanese Canadian fishermen and their families. In 2023, the North Pacific Cannery Triplex restoration project was undertaken by the Port Edward Historical Society, with funding by Japanese Canadian Legacies, to honour the pre- and post-war Japanese Canadians who contributed so much to British Columbia’s fishing industry.
The opening ceremony was held on Saturday, May 24.
