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Camping at the Seaside:

The "fashionable" thing to do in summer

From about 1894 to 1908, summer camping on the beach was considered a fashionable holiday tradition, enjoyed by many of Vancouver's early well-to-do families.

The most popular spot was Greer's (now Kits) Beach, where "tent town" comprised two long rows of tents on either side of an irregular "street" of beach sand.

Greer's Beach was reached by boat down False Creek from Carrall Street ; on foot across the CPR trestle bridge or via a sinuous trail through the cleared area; or by buggy over a former wagon track used by loggers with their oxen.

English Bay Beach was another popular camping site, where, in 1898, "about two score tents extended to the West" and "many were commodious and richly furnished."

Beach camping was discontinued after 1908, due to improper sanitation conditions and increased development.

Picnickers and campers - complete with cow! - at Greer's (now Kits) Beach, 1896
City of Vancouver Archives, item # Be P98

Children enjoying the sand and surf, Greer's Beach camp, 1902
City of Vancouver Archives, item # Be P143

Two ladies, likely "the McIntosh girls" looking very comfortable in their well-appointed
camp quarters at Greer's Beach, 1894
Charles S. Bailey photo
City of Vancouver Archives, item # SGN 167

Greer's (Kits) Beach, ca. 1900
City of Vancouver Archives, item # Be P99

Crickmay's camp at the foot of Bayswater Street, at the time referred to as "over at Jericho,"
before Kitsilano was named, 1896
City of Vancouver Archives, item # Be P35

The Crickmay family, William and Frances and their nine children and assorted relatives, arrived in Vancouver in August 1888 from England. William built the Imperial Opera House at Pender and Beatty, his daughter Elizabeth was the second matron of the City Hospital on Beatty Street, and his son Alfred founded Crickmay and Bermingham, one of Vancouver 's earliest customs brokerages.

Greer's Beach, September 1908. This is very likely one of the very last days that Greer's Beach
would host Vancouver's resort camping families; the tradition was halted after 1908.
City of Vancouver Archives, item #Be P24

Summer camp of Mrs. Sam Scott. This tent was between Beach Avenue and the sandy beach,
at about the foot of Burnaby Street. Just one of several similar camps, this one was
nicknamed "Hogan's Alley."
English Bay, 1897
City of Vancouver Archives, item # Be P70.2

English Bay bathing beach, ca. 1898
Campsite area visible to the far right (West).
Thompson Photo
City of Vancouver Archives, item # Be P90 N45