On to Ottawa Trek anniversary commemorated
Today CRAB Park in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside is a rare patch of quiet waterfront greenspace.
75 years ago, it was the launching site of the famous Depression-era protest, the On to Ottawa Trek. Twelve hundred unemployed workers clambered on to boxcars to travel to Ottawa demanding “work and wages.” They made it to Regina, where attacks by police ended the rolling protest, though not the struggle. Many historians consider the Trek and the “Regina Riot” a turning point in the fight for social justice in Canada.
The On to Ottawa Historical Society commemorated that first day of the trek with a bronze plaque that will be mounted on the bridge to CRAB park, at the north end of Main Street.
Working Design is pleased to have been able to assist in the design and development of the plaque.
Kudos to two of our friends, Ron Verzuh and Joey Hartman, who are involved with the On to Ottawa Historical Society.
