Gibson Place

by Lori Treloar

Gibson Road, in the village, is another disproportionately short road when you consider the longevity of the family at Shawnigan Lake and the contributions made by the Gibson family, as a whole, to the community.

George Gibson came from Scotland to Shawnigan Lake in 1910. He fell in love with the area, built a home and raised his family here. George was an accomplished artist and worked as an architectural carver using wood and stone. Many churches, schools, private homes and public buildings on the island have benefitted from his talent. Examples of his work can be seen at Christ Church Cathedral and the old CPR Terminal in Victoria, the Provincial Legislature, Hatley Park Castle at Royal Roads and Shawnigan Lake School to name a few. In addition, Mr. Gibson carved the majestic stone lion that still guards the Shawnigan shoreline at the Easter Seal Camp.

George's son, Eric, was the A.R.P. warden for the area during WWII. Later, he served for more than thirty years as Fire Chief for the Shawnigan Volunteer Fire Department. He was also very involved with the upkeep of the old Athletic Association building and used his handyman/carpenter skills on many projects associated with the “hall”. Eric was a keen athlete and continued to referee basketball well into his later years. For several years, Eric operated a sporting goods store in the village. Later, in the early 60s, he converted his store into a much-needed coin-operated laundry.

Eric married Alice Brown, a teacher at the Shawnigan Lake public school. Alice (Brown) Gibson, better known as Brownie, was involved in almost every aspect of life in the community of Shawnigan Lake. In 1928, Miss Brown was appointed Brown Owl for the first Brownie pack at Shawnigan. For many years, she wrote for local papers as the correspondent for Shawnigan Lake. Her knowledge of Shawnigan Lake was without equal and she was considered the local historian.

In 1966, Brownie wrote the story of Shawnigan Lake, Green Branches and Fallen Leaves,

under the auspices of the Centennial Celebrations Committee. Several years later, she was instrumental in founding the Shawnigan Lake Historical Society and, later, establishing the Shawnigan Lake Museum. Among other things, she sat on the first Board of Directors for the Shawnigan Lake Cemetery, ran a coffee shop in the village, sat on the executive of the old hall and played the organ on Sundays at the United Church in the village. She also worked diligently with Gladys and Garth Harvey to start the long-standing community newspaper, The Crier.

Members of the Gibson family still reside in the area. Gibson Road may be short but the impact of the Gibson family on our community will be long lived. A local park is also named in their honour.