The BC Historical Federation recognized the Nikkei National Museum and Cultural Centre in Burnaby with its first annual Storytelling Award at the federation’s annual gala on June 5.

The award is for the online exhibit Writing Wrongs: Japanese Canadian Protest Letters of the 1940s, which brings together and interprets a significant collection of Japanese Canadian letters written in protest of the dispossession and dispersal of the Japanese Canadian community from the West Coast during the Second World War.

Interspersed with videos and other digital media, the exhibition takes a unique perspective by presenting descendants of original protest letter writers reading letters written by their ancestors, many of whom were unaware of the existence of the letters. The exhibition contains a searchable database of primary source documents in addition to containing diverse voices to share personal perspectives throughout the four-part narrative.

The BCHF also presented an honorable mention in this category.

The Maple Ridge Family History Group of the Maple Ridge Historical Society has worked ceaselessly over the past two years to prepare its new online and travelling community history, On the River: The
Fishing Industry in Maple Ridge.

Produced entirely by volunteer senior researchers who mentored new researchers throughout the development of the project, the history merges teamwork and community spirit with a love of genealogical records, census data, and more, to weave together the evolution of the fishing sector in Maple Ridge between the 1890s and the 1920s.

“Family history is essential storytelling, and the Maple Ridge Family History Group exemplifies the blending of local and family history practice,” the nominator wrote.