A LENS ON VANCOUVER'S PAST
Photography by Walter Frost
Have you heard of East Vancouver photographer Walter Frost?
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Walter Edwin Frost (1898-1988) was an avid amateur photographer interested in ships, trains, and the city of Vancouver.
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Walter entrusted his extensive collection of 13,369 images including 83 photos of Holland-America Line freighters and passenger ships docked on Vancouver's waterfront to the City of Vancouver Archives in 1984.
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Walter's body of work demonstrates in crisp, clear black & white photographs how the nature of shipping and naval architecture have evolved.
For more about Walter, click here.
What is the inspiration for HAL | VAS?
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Did you know that Holland-America Line (abbreviated as HAL) ships have been calling at Vancouver for over 100 years?
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Or that the three letters V-A-S (pronounced VICTOR-ALPHA-SIERRA) was the radio callsign of the former Vancouver Harbour Marine Communications and Traffic Services Centre?
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Why now?
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The year 2025 marks:
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80 years since the liberation of the Netherlands from Nazi occupation
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Bevrijdingsdag (or Dutch Liberation Day) is the day that the Netherlands celebrate being freed from Nazi occupation on 1945. It is celebrated annually on May 5th, the day after Dodenherdenking (Remembrance of the Dead), which is solemnly commemorated on May 4th.
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The year 2020 marked:
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100 years since the Holland-America Line began its North Pacific Coast service
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45 years since HAL's first Alaska cruise
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The S.S. Eemdyk (2) inaugurated HAL's North Pacific Coast service when the 7,665-GRT freighter arrived in Vancouver on September 29, 1920 to load 5,000 cases of B.C. salmon and general cargo destined for continental Europe.
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In 1975, HAL's 8,566-GRT passenger liner M.S. Prinsendam completed HAL's first Alaska cruise on the Inside Passage itinerary.