The Birth of BC Electric (1860 to 1929)

Every era lays claim to fame through earthshaking events, remarkable individuals, and new ideas. But, by any standard, the seven decades that began with the introduction of gaslight to this province in 1862 and ended in 1929 when the British Columbia Electric Railway Company (BCE) was "brought home" from England were remarkable. In 1867, a new country called Canada was created, followed by a new province, British Columbia. Since neither the transcontinental railway nor the Panama Canal had been built at the time, it took months to get news or goods from Eastern Canada or Europe. The province was virtually cut off from the rest of the country. Seventy years later train lines, highways, and a budding airline industry connected the country.

For most of this period, women and many ethnic groups couldn't vote. The First World War employed weapons of unimaginable destructiveness and was not truly won by any side. Transportation was no longer typified by beasts of burden but by new electrical and combustion systems.

And, during these 70 years BC Hydro's largest predecessor was born. Created in 1897, BC Electric was preceded by various utility companies that produced power, lit streets, heated homes, and ran streetcars. At first, the new company did three jobs: generate and sell power, manufacture and sell gas, and run transit systems. Its markets were Vancouver and Victoria.

The BCE neon sign dominates Hastings Street during the 1920's.

 As the population grew, so did the company and the services it offered. So, by 1929, BC Electric was firmly established in the economy of BC and -- for better or for worse -- in the consciousness of its citizens. Although the company provided many excellent services and played a leading role in modernization, it was still a private utility operating on a for-profit basis. Plenty of people saw BC Electric as the big, bad utility. Some things never change.
In the rest of the province, power and transit remained local affairs -- when they were available at all. In 1910, some 38 communities were served by utilities of one sort or another; 20 years later, 118 communities throughout BC had power and BCE and the West Kootenay Light and Power Company ran major hydroelectric generating facilities in Vancouver, Victoria, and the Kootenays. 
 
During its first three decades, BC Electric grew and improved through the efforts of its employees, many of whom spent their entire careers with the company. They believed they were providing good service -- and they were. These were the original power pioneers who laid the groundwork for the future.
 

This illustration from the late 1920's shows BCE's various operations: gas, electricity generation and transit.  A streetcar motorman is on the right, and line workers with their distinctive felt hats are on the left.