Low Down Articles
GVHS Related
This article first appeared in the "GVHS Related" column of the "The Low Down to Hull and Back News". Reprinted with permission. See list of GVHS Related articles or search Low Down Articles.
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Flying throug time with the Historical Society
Ever wanted to fly back in time! Well, now it's possible.
The Gatineau Valley Historical Society (GVHS), in conjunction with Marshall Maruska Aerial Images of Chelsea, is taking the public on a unique and fascinating historical journey.
Together, they have produced an aerial image sequence that transports viewers up the Gatineau River as it appeared on Nov. 6, 1926: from the Chelsea Dam to the Wakefield covered bridge. The collection is now accessible to the public online.
"What's particularly exciting about this 1926 set of photographs," commented Duncan Marshall, of Marshall Maruska Aerial Images, "is that they were taken out of the front of the aircraft, sequentially - there is a sense of flying back in time."
The 1926 photographs are especially important, as they were taken just four months prior to the river being flooded, ready for the completion of the Gatineau Power Company's Chelsea and Farmers Rapids Dams, in the spring of 1927.
"The landscape was going to be literally transformed," said Marshall.
To highlig the contrast between the old and new landscape, the 1926 photographs, taken by members of the Royal Canadian Air Force, have been paired up with photographs taken Nov. 22, 1997, by Marshall Maruska Aerial Images.
Viewers can catch a glimpse of the "lost village of Cascades", a small community now covered by the Gatineau's murky waters.
In total, 20 pairs of photogrtaphs illustrate the difference between then and now.
"They are a fantastic aide memoir," said Marshall, of the images, which can be viewed at www.gvhs.ca/digital/gatineau-river/thenandnow/index.html.
Approaching the 'lost village' of Cascades
