Glimpses of the Past: December 25, 2025

Compiled by Cathy English, Curator, Revelstoke Museum and Archives

One Hundred Years Ago – December 23, 1925

The D.O.K.K. lodge was holding seasonal activities to raise money for the local Christmas Cheer funds. The lodge held their annual “Cheer” dance, which saw more than 80 couples occupying the dance floor, to the tunes of the Davis Dance Orchestra, under the leadership of M. McFadyen. An electric parlor lamp was raffled off, and was won by Mr. A.A. Milne (probably not the same A.A. Milne who wrote the Winnie the Pooh stories!) The dance raised $185.50 for the Cheer Fund.

The Province Theatre, on First Street East, was well filled with an audience eager to hear the Revelstoke Band give a concert under the auspices of the Women’s Canadian Club in aid of the Christmas Cheer Fund. The concert raised close to $50, and entertained the audience with Sousa marches, and selections from the opera “William Tell.” The band was conducted by Alderman R.H. Sawyer, who had been the bandmaster since the early 1900s. Several vocal selections were also presented by members of St. John’s Church.

Mrs. Isabel Coursier displayed several of her beautiful paintings in the window of H.N. Coursier’s Insurance office on Second Street West. The paintings were framed in gilt and placed among a profusion of evergreen and Oregon grape twigs. Mrs. Coursier was well known as a landscape artist. Revelstoke Museum and Archives currently holds about a dozen paintings by Isabel Coursier, and plans to show some of them in an exhibit in the new Cathy English gallery in 2026.

The Revelstoke Ski Club was preparing for a big Ski Carnival in February of 1926. Invitations had been sent to well-known ski jumpers including Henry Hall of Detroit; Uno Hillstrom of Vancouver; H. Strand of Nelson; and A. Granstrom of Seattle to attend the tournament. The club was hoping that the Canadian Pacific Railway company would provide a discounted rate for visitors, as they normally did.

The Province Theatre was showing “The Lost World” in which prehistoric monsters of 10,000,000 years ago were discovered by a pair of modern lovers in a world never before dreamed of. The promo photo shows a tyrannosaurus rex stomping on a streetcar. This sounds a little like Jurassic Park! Admission prices were between 15 cents and 55 cents.

Jeweller J. Guy Barber was suggesting that men give their ladies a Mantle Clock, or White Ivory Boudoir Sets.

The Great War Veterans’ Association (currently Canadian Legion) held a successful Christmas Tree party in the Drill Hall on Second Street West. Close to 200 children and adults sat down to a sumptuous tea. Each child was presented with a Christmas cracker, and a demonstration of wrestling and boxing was held. Finally, sleigh bells were heard in the distance and Santa Claus appeared by the Christmas tree, loaded down with presents.

F. G. Bews Jeweller was selling diamond rings in the newest style settings from $18.50 up to $275. (Over $5,000 in today’s currency.)

The Revelstoke Cooperative Society was advertising fresh young turkeys at 40 cents per pound.

Columbia Hardware Co. Ltd (current location of Roxy Theatre) and C.B. Hume and Co. Ltd. General Store, (RBC location) had a full-page ad offering everything from clothing and accessories to nuts and fruit, to dolls, toys, and bicycles, and furniture suites.

P. Burns and Co. Meat Market (Revy Outdoors location) was offering turkeys, geese, ducks, chickens, and oysters, with turkeys arriving direct from the farmer. They advertised as the house of Government Inspected Meats.

Modern Bakery was advising patrons to get their orders for Christmas Cakes and Plum Puddings in right away. This was the same location as the current Modern Bakeshop.

Revelstoke furrier J.H. Munro had on display in Roger’s Clothing Store an Extra Choice Dark Canadian Raccoon Coat. The Vancouver selling price was $450, but Munro was willing to sell it to the person making the highest cash offer, provided it equalled or exceeded the cost of manufacture.

Mackenzie Avenue at Christmas time, circa 1935. Revelstoke Museum and Archives photo 1204