Summer 2013 Gazette - The Alpine Club of Canada

Mount Robson centennial exhibit unveiledby Lynn MartelMount Robson is a mountain,and a place, of many richstories.And the stories associated with thearea’s earliest human history are just theones Zac Robinson gathered to create abrand new exhibit for the Mount RobsonProvincial Park (MRPP) visitors centre’smuseum.Robinson, University of Albertaassistant professor in the phys ed andrecreation department, collaborated withhis colleague, history professor LizaPiper, MRPP senior Park Ranger HugoMulyk and Val Kerr, a MRPP interpreter,to plan two large-scale museum panels tobe unveiled this summer. The panels weredesigned and created by Suzan Chamney,who also designs the ACC Gazette andCanadian Alpine Journal. The exhibit’saddition to the museum helps celebratethe centennial of legendary nativeAustrian guide Conrad Kain’s historicalascent of the Rockies’ highest peak,3,954-metre Mount Robson, and also thedesignation of 224,866 hectare MountRobson Provincial Park, both of whichhappened in 1913.Kain climbed Robson’s east face (nowthe Kain Face) with W.W. “Billy” Foster,who served as ACC President from 1920to 1924, and Albert “Mack” MacCarthy,a prominent ACC and American AlpineClub member. Their ascent took placeduring a special Mount Robson camporganized by the ACC, whose attendeesarrived at Yellowhead Pass via the newlycompleted Grand Trunk NorthernRailway.Covering one long wall and half ofa second, the exhibit will complementexisting displays focussing on the ecology,biology and natural history of the MountRobson area, and the story of the park’sUNESCO designation in 1990 as part ofthe Canadian Rocky Mountains WorldHeritage Site. The new text and historicalimages describe those who have been apart of the area’s history for centuries,including early explorers, fur traders,map-makers, railway surveyors, outfitters,and the activities and contributions of theFirst Nations peoples.“We really wanted to highlight thelong human history of the area,” saidRobinson, himself of Métis descent.“First Nations peoples, for example, havebeen moving through the Robson andYellowhead Pass area for centuries. Theyknew it well. The low elevation of thePass made it an important travel route forvarious peoples from across the country.”Creation of the new exhibit wasmade possible thanks to funding fromBC Parks, the ACC, the Universityof Alberta and the Network inCanadian History and Environment(http://niche-canada.org/research).Alpinist magazine generously allowedthe reproduction of route lines drawn onimages of Robson’s four faces from theirIssue #29.“It has been a pleasure to be involvedwith this project as we had been developingideas for the anniversary celebrationsfor a few years,” Mulyk said. “At my firstdiscussion with Zac I knew we were onthe same wavelength and the end resultwould be something we would be veryproud of. I hope this display will providea snapshot of the history of the park forvisitors to the area, celebrate our pioneersand their sometimes amazing feats, andprovide special meaning and recognitionfor residents of the Robson Valley, manywho have historical ties to this park andarea.”As a member of the ACC’s MountainCulture Committee—and also the Club’sVP for Activities—Robinson said the ACCwas especially keen to commemorate itsinvolvement. The ACC has been a strongadvocate for the park since its earliest days.As an academic historian—not to mentionan active mountaineer—Robinson saidhe’s interested in “the values people haveinvested in these places, and how theychange over time.”“We wanted to get that across—themultitude of investments—in order toshow just how important these placeshave been, and still are, to so many people,10 Alpine Club of Canada Gazette Summer 2013