The early 1900s was a difficult era to live in.
The mid-Western U.S. was in depression and people had no work.
Immigrants from far and wide were desperate trying to find work to feed their families.
In an effort to land a job, many of these immigrants went as far as changing their names to sound English, as it was said that people with English-sounding names had a better chance at being hired.
Local historian David Lepsoe will be taking you on a different historic tour this year on Saturday, June 22—the Finn/Currie Flats tour, currently Hillside Avenue in Chase.
How did Finn Flats became Currie Flats, the name that most people know the area by? Milton Currie was a compassionate man, who felt for the elderly destitute people in Chase.
He bought quite a bit of land in Finn Flats and hauled houses down where he let these unfortunate people stay for free.
That’s how Finn Flats became known as Currie Flats. Milton Currie moved from a house on the lake to what became Currieville about 1929.
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The tour will start at 1 p.m. at the Town Map Board on the corner of Shuswap Avenue and Coburn Street with a short history of the area, followed by a 45-minute stroll through Finn Flats.
The tour will end at Chase Museum for more storytelling and for the museum’s popular annual Strawberry Tea.
Lepsoe has organized historic tours since 2004.
The first tour was a candlelight tour at Chase Country Christmas.
Love for history and the community has inspired him to pass this knowledge to locals and tourists who want to know more about the past of this beautiful village.
Tickets are $10 per person and can be purchased at Chase Museum, at the Chase & District Chamber of Commerce or on Facebook @EliteEventsBC.
Proceeds from the ticket sales will be donated to Chase Museum.
-submitted by Elena Markin
@SalmonArm
newsroom@saobserver.net
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