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Monday 11am - 3pm Tuesday 10am - 4pm Wednesday 10am - 4pm Thursday 10am - 4pm Friday 10am - 4pm Sunday 10am - 4pm

Bowen Island Museum and Archives

Name: Bowen Island Museum and Archives
Address: 1014 Miller Road, Bowen Island, BC, V0N1G0, CA
Telephone: 604-947-2655
Price range: $
Rating: 5

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Museum and Archives The Bowen Island Museum & Archives has been collecting material related to the history of the "Happy Isle" since 1967.
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With its park-like setting, the Museum & Archives, which includes two museum displays and an extensive archival collection, exhibits the unique history of Bowen.

09/15/2026

As we count down the days to the opening of the Nex̱wlélex̱wm Kyosei Peace Park, we’re sharing more glimpses into the lives and experiences of Canadians of Japanese descent on Bowen Island.

PICNICS, BEACHES & DANCING

Long before the ferries we know today, thousands of people travelled by steamship from Vancouver to spend summer days on Bowen Island.

Canadians of Japanese descent were among them, coming to Bowen for picnics, swimming, games and dancing.
The photographs capture glimpses of those days: large group picnics, friends gathered on the beach, and young people dancing and jitterbugging.

The Nex̱wlélex̱wm Kyosei (共生) Peace Park remembers not only the Canadians of Japanese descent who lived and worked on Bowen Island, but also the many who came here to spend time with family and friends.

Making Peace with the Past – Creating Hope for the Future

Join us for the opening on Saturday, September 26, 2026. Meet us at the Bowen Island Lodge at 1:00 p.m., and we will walk together to the Peace Park.

09/11/2026

In the weeks leading up to the opening of the Nex̱wlélex̱wm Kyosei (共生) Peace Park, we’re sharing some of the people, places and histories that connect Bowen Island to the wider Japanese Canadian history of Átl’ḵa7tsem / Howe Sound.

Union Steamships were a familiar sight along the coast, carrying workers, families, goods and supplies between Vancouver, Bowen Island and industrial communities throughout Howe Sound.

WORKING THE INDUSTRIAL COAST
Japanese immigrants and Canadians of Japanese descent lived and worked on Bowen Island and Átl’ḵa7tsem / Howe Sound in the industries that shaped the region.
On Bowen, Japanese workers logged the forests, staked mining claims and worked at the explosives plant at Tunstall Bay. Eikichi Kagetsu established a logging operation near Seymour Bay, where Japanese workers and their families lived at the camp.
Across Howe Sound, Japanese workers were part of industrial communities at Woodfibre and Britannia Beach, working in mills, mines and other industries. Fishing also connected Bowen and Howe Sound to a much larger Japanese Canadian community along the B.C. coast.
They did this work while facing discrimination and laws that restricted where Japanese people could work and the jobs they could hold.
In 1942, the forced removal of people of Japanese descent from the B.C. coast brought these communities and working lives to an abrupt end.
The Nex̱wlélex̱wm Kyosei (共生) Peace Park will help make this history better known.
Making Peace with the Past – Creating Hope for the Future
Opening Saturday, September 26, 2026 - Gather at the Bowen Island Lodge at 1:00
Sandy Beach Municipal Park, Bowen Island

09/08/2026

As we count down to the opening of the Nex̱wlélex̱wm Kyosei (共生) Peace Park on September 26, we’re sharing some of the people and histories the park will remember.

DAIKICHI KOGA

WHO HELPED BUILD BOWEN'S FIRST RESORT?
If you know old Bowen, you may recognize the photographs: landscaped paths, ponds, gardens and the Japanese-style bridge above Bridal Veil Falls.

But do you know who helped create them?

Daikichi Koga came to Canada from Japan in 1906. He became works foreman for Captain John Cates's Terminal Steam Navigation Company and, with his brother Shiro, supervised a crew of as many as 25 Japanese workers on Bowen Island.
Their work helped turn Cates's vision for Bowen as a summer resort into reality. They built and maintained gardens, pathways and ponds, as well as infrastructure that supplied water and power to the growing resort. Around 1914, Koga and his crew constructed the distinctive Japanese-style wooden bridge above Bridal Veil Falls.

Much of what they built has disappeared, but photographs preserve a remarkable record of their work.
Daikichi Koga’s work helped shape Bowen Island. The Nex̱wlélex̱wm Kyosei (共生) Peace Park will help make that history better known.

Making Peace with the Past – Creating Hope for the Future
Opening Saturday, September 26, 2026 at 1 PM
Sandy Beach Municipal Park, Bowen Island

09/05/2026

As we prepare for the opening of the Nex̱wlélex̱wm Kyosei (共生) Peace Park on September 26, we are sharing some of the people and histories the park will remember.

THE YAMADA FAMILY OF KING EDWARD BAY
For nearly twenty years, the Yamada family made their home at King Edward Bay on Bowen Island.
Kanichi and Masano Yamada raised their ten children here. Kanichi worked on the Malkin property, while the family farmed and kept dairy cows. Their children attended Bowen Island School.
In 1942, the life the Yamadas had built on Bowen Island was abruptly ended when they were forcibly removed from the B.C. coast, along with thousands of other Canadians of Japanese descent.
More than eighty years later, traces of their life on Bowen remain. Apple trees planted by the Yamada family at King Edward Bay still stand today, and grafts from those trees will soon be planted at the new Nex̱wlélex̱wm Kyosei (共生) Peace Park.
The trees are a living connection to the Yamada family and the life they built on Bowen Island.

Making Peace with the Past – Creating Hope for the Future

Opening Saturday, September 26, 2026 at 1 PM�Sandy Beach Municipal Park, Bowen Island

09/01/2026

THE HISTORY HAPPENED HERE.�
IT SHOULD BE REMEMBERED HERE.

Something important is taking shape at Sandy Beach.

On September 26, the Nex̱wlélex̱wm Kyosei (共生) Peace Park will officially open.

The Peace Park honours the Japanese Canadians who lived, worked, raised families and helped shape Nex̱wlélex̱wm / Bowen Island and communities throughout Átl’ḵa7tsem / Howe Sound before their forced removal from the B.C. coast in 1942.

Through photographs, stories and interpretive signs, the park will present this history and create a permanent place for learning, remembrance and reflection.

Making Peace with the Past – Creating Hope for the Future

Opening Saturday, September 26, 2026 at 1 PM. �Sandy Beach Municipal Park, Bowen Island

08/14/2026

!Join us for a free ’Craft + Culture’ summer activity! A bite-size local history lesson with a related craft.
A weaving workshop with Hiromi Yamada while exploring the history of Robinson Weavers on Bowen!
In partnership with the Bowen Island Public Library
All materials, tea and snacks provided.
Location: 1014 Miller Rd. Bowen Island Museum & Archives
Time: Saturday August 15, 2026, 10:30 – 12
Register at: [email protected]

08/07/2026

Join us for a free ’Craft + Culture’ summer activity! A bite-size local history lesson with a related craft.
A weaving workshop with Hiromi Yamada while exploring the history of Robinson Weavers on Bowen!
In partnership with the Bowen Island Public Library
All materials, tea and snacks provided.
Location: 1014 Miller Rd. Bowen Island Museum & Archives
Time: Saturday August 15, 2026, 10:30 – 12
Register at: [email protected]

07/10/2026

Join us on Saturday July 11, 2026 10:30am - 12noon for Craft + Culture at the Bowen Island Museum & Archives. A free Saturday morning activity for caregivers and their children: a bit size history lesson and related craft. This Saturday with feature an Origami workshop with Hiromi Yamada and Japanese Canadian History on Bowen. We will also celebrate Tanabata.
Refreshments and materials provided
Where: Bowen Island Museum & Archives
1014 Miller Road
When: 10:30 am - 12 noon July 11, 2026
To RSVO and join the fun: email [email protected] to register
Support provided by the Bowen Island Literary Task Group

07/08/2026

Join us on Saturday July 11, 2026 10:30am - 12noon for Craft + Culture at the Bowen Island Museum & Archives. A free Saturday morning activity for caregivers and their children: a bit size history lesson and related craft. This Saturday with feature an Origami workshop with Hiromi Yamada and Japanese Canadian History on Bowen. We will also celebrate Tanabata.

Refreshments and materials provided

Where: Bowen Island Museum & Archives
1014 Miller Road
When: 10:30 am - 12 noon July 11, 2026
To RSVO and join the fun: email [email protected] to register

Support provided by the Bowen Island Literary Task Group

06/12/2026

Join us tomorrow - Saturday, June 13, from 1:00–4:00 p.m. for a wonderful opportunity to come together, connect with friends and neighbours, and celebrate our community in the museum’s building and garden.
The afternoon will feature delicious food generously donated by local favourites Artisan Eats, Barcelona Tapas, Bowen Island Pub, The Ruddy, The Snug Cafe, Tell Your Friends, and Tippy, along with live music by Bowen Island musicians Arthur and Leo Szabo.

Address

1014 Miller Road
Bowen Island, BC
V0N1G0

Opening Hours

Monday	11am - 3pm
Tuesday	10am - 4pm
Wednesday	10am - 4pm
Thursday	10am - 4pm
Friday	10am - 4pm
Sunday	10am - 4pm

Telephone

604-947-2655

Website

http://www.bowenislandmuseum.ca/

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