First West Vancouver Ferry

First West Vancouver Ferry. . In the area then known as West Capilano, and today as Ambleside, a former Canadian Pacific Railway conductor. John Lawson, purchased land in 1906. He moved his family there the following year, Lawson had big ideas for his land, which he christened Hollyburn, after planting holly bushes beside a stream. He subdivided the property for sale and ever began the construction of a golf course, though this idea was abandoned before it was finished. , To overcome the considerable problem of marketing real estate without a bridge to Vancouver, Lawson and other developers formed the West Vancouver Transportation Company in 1909 and built its first ferry, the West Vancouver. , It operated every two hours from seven in the morning to seven in the evening, a meagre service, to be sure but enough to kick-start settlement. , The new population petitioned the provincial government in 1912 to create a new municipality west of the Capilano River, and on 15 March 1912 the municipality of West Vancouver was born. The municipality bought out the private ferry owners and created the West Vancouver Ferry Company, adding a new ferry and upgrading the service to half-hourly.