This marker is one of well over 100 Heritage BC Stops of Interest which line the highways and byways of British Columbia. The oldest series of markers consisted of green placards with white lettering placed within a zinc frame. Newer ones, such as this example, consist of a predominantly green metal plaque with an off-white frame and lettering, mounted on a board of composite material. This marker is one of the 2017 series and relates a bit of the story of the Doukhobors, who immigrated to the region shortly after the turn of the twentieth century.
The Doukhobor movement arose in the 18th century when many Russian Christians banded together to further their particular Christian beliefs. The Doukhobors rejected the literal teachings of the Bible and, as well, the need for an organized church, instead looking inside themselves for the guidance they sought. The Russian Orthodox Church and the Czarist authorities considered this a threat to the authority of the church, and so began to persecute the Doukhobors. This persecution peaked in the late nineteenth century when they adopted pacifism and renounced militarism. Tsar Nicholas II, the reigning Tsar at the time, had many Doukhobors exiled to Siberia and the Caucasus, most notably their then leader,
Peter Verigin. Those who refused military service were imprisoned while others suffered beatings or imprisonment for their beliefs.
Their plight came to the attention of a few notable Russian citizens, in particular
Leo Tolstoy, as well as Quakers sympathetic to their situation. Together, these groups helped the Doukhobors in emigrating to Canada, a country then attempting to attract immigrants to settle newly opened prairie lands.
In Canada, in spite of eventual troubles with the Canadian government, the Doukhobors prospered, building many "agro-industrial" settlements, first in Saskatchewan, then later in Alberta and British Columbia.
More of their story follows text from the marker. That story may be found on bronze plaques mounted prominently in each Doukhobor cemetery in Southern BC.
THE DOUKHOBORS
Doukhobors arrived in the Kootenay Boundary area in 1908. Persecuted in Russia for rejecting church rituals and military service, they were derisively named Doukhobors, or 'Spirit Wrestlers'. Finding refuge in Canada, these Christian pacifists maintain their heritage and contribute to B.C.'s multicultural mosaic.
PROVINCE OF
BRITISH COLUMBIA
2017
History of the Doukhobors Migration to Canada
In Russia, the Doukhobors had been exiled or sent to prison because they refused to fight for the Czar. They believed it was wrong to kill. Many died in the harsh conditions of Siberia.
At this time, the Canadian prime minister, Sir Wilfrid Laurier, and Sir Clifford Sifton, Minister of the Interior, were advertising free land to encourage people to settle in Canada. Some people, including a Russian writer named Leo Tolstoy, decided to help the Doukhobors and arranged for them to move to Canada.
The Canadian government offered the Doukhobors land to farm in the Saskatchewan district. They were promised free land, the right to their own religion, and a guarantee that they would not have to serve in the Canadian military.
The first Doukhobor immigrants left Russia aboard the Lake Huron on December 21, 1898. This group, numbering over 2 100 people, arrived in Halifax on January 23, 1899. Another group of 2 300 Doukhobors arrived several days later on the Lake Superior. This same ship returned and brought well over 2 300 more people. These Doukhobors had immigrated to Cyprus but the colony was not a success, so they decided to come to Canada. They arrived on May 21, 1899. A fourth ship carrying around 800 people had arrived earlier in May 1899. There were approximately 7,500 Doukhobors that came to Canada in 1899.
The Doukhobors settled down, cleared the land, built houses and began farming. They did well and eventually built brick factories, saw mills and flour mills.
In 1902, Peter Verigin, the Doukhobor community's spiritual leader, decided that he would buy land in British Columbia where an oath of allegiance was not required. Over the next five years, he moved around 5,000 Doukhobors to the interior of British Columbia, around the towns of Brilliant, Grand Forks, Glade and Pass Creek.
Once more, they had to clear the land, prepare the soil for planting, and build houses. This time they also planted lots of fruit trees and built a big jam factory, as well as more brick factories.
In 1907, the Doukhobors faced a new challenge. The Canadian government was asking the Doukhobors to swear an oath of allegiance to the King. Many did not wish to do so, as they felt this would mean they would have to fight in a war if there was one.
They were given a choice: sign the oath or lose their land. Some of the Doukhobors, who became known as the Independents, signed the oath and remained on their land. The others lost over 250,000 acres that they had worked to clear and improve for farming. The Canadian government sold their land.
Parks Canada Honors the Migration of Doukhobors to British Columbia as a
National Historic Event.
