# 125th Anniversary of the Steveston Post Office

- Link: https://historicsteveston.ca/news/125th-anniversary-of-the-steveston-post-office/
- Published: 2015-05-02T00:34:15-07:00
- Author: Sarah

⌊Dignitaries cut the cake at the 125th Steveston Post Office Celebrations⌉⌊Dignitaries
cut the cake at the 125th Steveston Post Office Celebrations⌉
 **Members of the 
community came together on May 2, 2015 to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the
Steveston Post Office.**

Festivities ran from 10am – 1pm and included live entertainment, prizes and give-
aways, free refreshments and postal exhibits.

Municipal, Provincial and Federal dignitaries were present on the day and we were
honoured for them to join us. A special thank you to: Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie;
Richmond City Councillors Harold Steves, Bill McNulty, Carol Day, Linda McPhail 
and Chak Au; MP Kerry-Lynne D. Findlay; MP Alice Wong; MLA John Yap and MLA Linda
Reid.

To mark the event, a Design a Stamp competition took place. Participants from as
young as 4 years put their creative juices to work and produced some amazing submissions.
Special thanks to Steveston London Principal, Jim Allison and art teacher, Sid Akselrod;
Byng Elementary Principal, Al Zarchikoff and Homma Elementary Principal, Susan Roy
for encouraging staff and students to take part.

Congratulations to the winners, Kristine Wau, Andrew Phipps and Bob Baziuk and to
the finalists, Ruby Kump, Aidyn Cartner, Daisy Mavis, Emily Chen, Celine Tsa and
Meghan Lok.

_Graciously supported by: Canada Post, RBC Royal Bank, Richmond News, Steveston 
Historical Society, Tourism Richmond and the City of Richmond_

_Special thanks to Price Mart and the Steveston Coffee Company for providing the
birthday cake, cupcakes and coffee._

## Video from the 125th Anniversary Celebrations (credit _Matthew Van Deventer)_:

## Steveston – Early Postal History:

(courtesy of the British Columbia Postal History Research Group)

Following the relocation of the Lulu Island Post Office on the Government dock at
the end of Number 2 Road, William Herbert Steves saw the need for a new Post Office
to serve the rapidly growing Steveston area. The new office, to be named STEVESTON
after Manoah Steves, father of the first Postmaster William Herbert Steves. The 
office was approved under authorization notice 162-13, dated March 1890, and was
established on May 1, 1890 although the proof strike is dated ‘MY 2 90′ indicating
that the office did not open until mid may.

The post office was probably located in the Steves seed store on 2nd Avenue between
Bayview and Moncton. Mail was received tri-weekly from New Westminster by mail steamer.

Mr. Steves’ father, Manoah Steves had been born in New Brunswick and came to Richmond
in 1877 after having spent a short time in Maryland. He purchased land on the west
end of Lulu Island where he established a seed business. He was joined the next 
year by his family. The Steveston townsite was named after Manoah Steves.

W.H. Steves remained postmaster for four years and then G. Blake took over for one
year. It then moved to Hunt’s store on Moncton Street and later to the Hepworth 
Building on the SE corner of Moncton Street at 2nd Avenue. Following the completion
of the tram service to Vancouver, mail service improved and by 1947 mail was received
twice daily on the B.C. Electric Railway 8am and 4pm trams.