Slide on Over: Greater Victoria then & now

The goal of this slider project is to bring awareness to change over time in the greater Victoria area. Victoria is a city with a deep history and has seen substantial change throughout its complicated past. Using historical colonial maps and photos along with modern satellite imagery and repeat photography methods, we are able to get a sense of the magnitude of change over time. This project was made in collaboration with the RUSH initiative which helped identify areas of interest, as well as input from local high school students who identified areas they would like to see protected from future change.

"Asking teenagers about change is tough, but the fact that they have seen it speaks to the current pace of development."  -Derek Leschasin

Repeat photography is a powerful tool to demonstrate change over time. Whether it be showing changes in natural features or the urbanization of a once small town, these photos have a great power. We always say a picture is worth a thousand words and in this case it is no different. 

Throughout this project, repeat photography was far and away the most difficult process. Repeat photography requires very precise attention to detail and patience. Lining up a historical photo to a modern day landscape is very difficult given that there are only a handful of landmarks remaining to compare. These photos took multiple attempts in varying locations across the landscape in order to get an accurate comparison. 

For background on this technique, check out an extensive repeat photography project called  the Mountain Legacy project,  underway in Canada's Rocky Mountains.

The following images were taken at Tillicum Narrows, in the Gorge Waterway, facing east towards downtown Victoria. This site features a tidal rapids, which traditionally held spiritual significance for local First Nations, represented today by the Songhees and Esquimalt nations. Today, the surrounding area is heavily urbanised and the shoreline has been modified. The bridge currently crossing the narrows is the seventh to be constructed on the site since the initial placement of a log bridge in 1848. The scenery in the background of these images shows the development and densification that has occurred since colonization, though some features remain the same, including the Douglas-fir near the centre of the images.

The next images, taken in 1900 and in 2024, show the impact of development on the Shelbourne Valley neighbourhood in Victoria. Sliders can show logging activity, development, new roads, and land use change. The historical photo of Cedar Hill at Cedar Hill X Rd was taken in 1900, from Mount Tolmie. At the bottom of the image is where Shelbourne St would now be located. Today, the area is a busy urban hub (left image from 2024). The only structure still remaining in the modern day image is the St. Luke's Anglican Church in the center of the photos.

Sliders can use maps as well as photography. Maps give a bird's eye view of place and can help show an original surveyor's perspective on the land next to a modern day orthographic image, showing change over time. Many historical maps need geocorrecting (the process of altering a hand-drawn map to correspond to modern geographic mapping coordinates).

Below is a historical colonial map of North Saanich from 1859. This map now includes the Victoria International Airport as well as the new Amazon sorting facility. Not far away for there lies the Sandown Centre for Regenerative Agriculture (Seen by the oval racehorse track in middle of the screen). Sandown is located on the historical lands of the W̱SÁNEĆ people and more specifically the  W̱SĺḴEM First Nation. As seen on the historical map. The area surrounding Sandown was historically an important traditional Garry Oak ecosystem, and some of its remnants are still visible on site to this day. This area has seen drastic urbanization since the creation of the historical map.

Sandown is an important site for endangered Garry oak meadows, and restoration of parts of the site are a key part of the farming work happening there.

Watch a video on Sandown and the work happening there!

The following maps, the left from 1858, and the right a current orthographic map, show the initial surveying and creation of land parcels in what are now the west shore communities of Greater Victoria. The military lands alongside Becher Bay remain relatively undeveloped and a refuge for Garry oak ecosystems, while the development around Esquimalt Lagoon is quite striking. Note the size of the colonial land parcels as compared to modern-day lot sizes.

Moving forward there is opportunity for this project to be continued on in the future. Repeat photography is an amazing way to discover the amazing places in which we live. It allows us to see first hand how our local landscapes have changed. We hope that bringing light to change over time will help individuals be more conscious of the changing world around us. We encourage others to try this activity and to share their repeat photography results. As a community, we can begin to understand the profound nature of urban change. 

We would like to thank Maleea Acker, Ken Josephson as well as Anne-Marie Daniel for their guidance and and support throughout our project.