Founder’s Day was recognized once again March 8 with a tea at George Little House, the home of the man credited with laying the foundations for what is now the City of Terrace.
It’s the 17th year Little, who first arrived in the area March 10, 1905, has been celebrated by members of the Terrace Regional Historical Society and others with a gathering at his former residence.
Located at the foot of Kalum St. in the downtown core, George Little House is now owned by the city and now contains offices, a retail location and the VIA Rail waiting room.
Linda Bee, the daughter of Julia and Gordon Little, who was a son of George and Clara Little, was among those present.
One of the Little family’s historical items is a figurine presented to Little in 1952 in recognition of the 50th anniversary of the first official municipal structure being created in 1927. Little was the first commissioner.
Bee has no strong memories of being inside her grandfather’s home, but recalls where it was first located — on the lot where the Days Inn now stands in the middle of the city.
“Actually, it was right where the [hotel’s] banquet room is now,” said Bee.
Now retired from a career as a custodian with the school district, Bee said her mom, Julia Little, loved coming to the first Founder’s Day teas to share her stories of the city’s earlier times.
The house was moved across the railway tracks to Hall St. behind Terrace Totem Ford, where the Ksan Society used it as a shelter. It was then donated to the city and moved back across the tracks in 2003 to its present location.
Debbie Letawski, who manages George Little House for the city, a task that includes running the VIA Rail waiting room, has been an organizer and host of the Founder’s Day from the start.
“This is how you remember,” she said of occasions such as Founder’s Day.
“Yvonne Moen always says you can’t go forward unless you know your past,” said Letawski in quoting the longtime community historian. “This is how you learn.”
It’s also why Letawski advocates for the city to take an active role in providing a location for an archive.
“Too often our history can just disappear,” she said of items that can go missing after being passed down through the generations.
Letwawski would also like to see an audio tour produced to go along with a walking tour booklet already produced that guides people to some of the more historical locations within the city.