Name/Title
Fernie After the FireEntry/Object ID
2014.07.01Description
Painting
This image depicts a devastated Fernie in the East Kootenay region of southeastern B.C., after the Great Fire of 1908. This landscape has almost a woodblock print quality with its strong design and depiction of the mountains. The colours are greyed and muted, as though viewed through a haze of ash and smoke, reminiscent of Joseph Spalding's photographs of the event and its afternmath.
The fire was caused by a brush fire, transformed by strong winds into an inferno, that swept through the town of Fernie, leaving mostly ashes and rubble. Miraculously loss of life in the fire was reported to be minimal*, but an estimated 1,000 homes and buildings were destroyed, leaving over 6,000 homeless. However, the resilient citizens of Fernie were no strangers to disaster having experienced mining explosions, previous floods and a 1904 fire that destroyed the downtown commercial district, and they dedicated themselves to the rebuilding of their lives and their town.Artwork Details
Medium
Watercolour on paperSubject Place
Region
Cascades and PlateauContinent
North AmericaContext
Fernie Will Rise Again, The Cranbrook Herald, August 13, 1908
"The Great Fire of 1908 was a dramatic, defining moment for Fernie that saw the community obliterated by fire in less than 90 minutes on August 1st, 1908. The fire claimed no lives*, but the property loss was valued at over $5 million dollars, a staggering amount at the time. It was the second major fire in four years. In 1904, a fire destroyed much of Fernie’s commercial core and led to the incorporation of the City of Fernie and the formation of the Fernie Fire Department.
The efforts of the firemen were no match for the 1908 firestorm; they surrendered where The Brickhouse Bar is today. People fled for the river. A Great Northern train passing through Fernie rescued many and took them to Hosmer. Surprisingly, over 16 homes survived, all at the far west end of Fernie. The Crow’s Nest Pass Coal Co. offices (Fernie’s City Hall today) also survived and became the place where refugees from the fire could obtain food and clothing. Nearby towns offered shelter, and supplies came from across Canada."
Reconstruction of the town quickly began and was largely completed by 1910. A number of the buildings were built from locally produced yellow brick. Many of the buildings seen today along Victoria (2nd) Avenue were restored in the 1980s with the assistance of provincial grants.
Extract from tourismfernie.com/history/the-great-fire-of-1908
*Loss of life is variously reported from 10 people (CHEK News 2020 ) to 100 people (New York Times 1908 and Public Safety Canada 2013)Made/Created
Artist Information
Artist
Harry Dunnell (1865-1948)Role
PainterDate made
circa 1920Time Period
20th CenturyNotes
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
Born in England, Harry Dunnell was a skilled Canadian painter and educator. He was brought out from England in 1930 to organize the manual teacher training programme and was appointed the Inspector of Manual Training for B.C.’s Dept. of Education Normal Schools* in 1903. He was the drawing master and technical instructor at the Vancouver Normal School, and was later appointed the art master at the Victoria Normal School (1915-31), now the location of Victoria's Camosun College, Lansdowne campus. Dunnell lived on Waterloo Road nearby.
Dunnell and others in charge at the Normal Schools had widespread impact on art education across the province. While he did paint for pleasure, Dunnell was hired for his expertise in manual training, and likely the more formal aspects of drawing and design. He was a member of the Island Arts and Crafts Society and the Victoria Sketch Club.
*The B.C. Provincial Normal School was a publicly funded post-secondary institute opened in 1915, run by the Department of Education, for training teachers for elementary and high schools. Until 1956, Provincial Normal Schools operated in both Vancouver and Victoria.The term "normal school" is derived from the France's École normale supérieure of the 1790s which provided instruction in the "norms" or "standard practices" of teaching. Alberta was the first province to transfer teacher training from normal schools to university faculties of education in 1945. Other provinces later did the same.Inscription/Signature/Marks
Type
Signature, Inscription, LabelLocation
Signed monogram - HD
Inscription verso upper left pencil: $150/Miss Mills/Send StudioTranscription
Verso frame on backing, 2 labels (see in file)
1. Handwritten in pen and black ink by artist?:
Fernie after the Fire / Hy Dunnell /150 Government St. / Victoria, B.C.
2. Printed gallery label (ivory on blue, shield shape):
The Art Gallery / PICTURES / FRAMES / ARTIST'S AND / PYROGRAPHIC SUPPLIES / JOS. SOMMER. / 1012 GOVERNMENT St. / VICTORIA / B.C.Dimensions
Dimension Description
Visible imageHeight
45.7 cmWidth
63.5 cmRelationships
Related Entries
Notes
Biography and other photographs by Joseph Spalding: see 2015.01.04 and 2015.01.12
![The Remains of Fernie, B.C. Fire, Aug. 1[19]08. Photograph by Joseph Frederick Spalding (1887-1958): From Fernie & District Historical Society (FMP 00930-04)](https://d8e7jbdw4fu0e.cloudfront.net/5457/4ed35500-cded-11ee-8cda-8d0afad88905-vUVFDHt.lg@2x.jpg)
![Rebuilding Fernie, B.C. after the Great Fire, Aug. 1 [19]08, Mt. Hosmer in the background. Photograph by Joseph Frederick Spalding (1887-1958): From Fernie & District Historical Society (FMP 00213)](https://d8e7jbdw4fu0e.cloudfront.net/5457/0066f7d0-cdef-11ee-8cda-8d0afad88905-vUVFDHt.lg@2x.jpg)