Manoah Steves

Manoah Steves (originally Steeves; 1828–1897) was the founder of Steveston, British Columbia, which is named in his honour. The village has since been amalgamated into the city of Richmond in Metro Vancouver.

Family

Steves was a descendant of Heinrich Stief and Regina Stahlecker, founders of the Steeves family in North America.[1][2] As a Stief descendant, Steves is a second cousin of William Steeves, a Father of Canadian Confederation.[1] He is also the great-grandfather of Richmond politician Harold Steves, who as of 2021 owns the farm founded by Manoah.[1]

Life

Born in New Brunswick, in 1868 Steves moved to Ontario with his wife Martha, followed by a brief sojourn in the American state of Maryland.[3] In 1877, they moved to Lulu Island and purchased 400 acres in the southwest part of the island.[3][4] Sometime after moving west, Steves replaced the double-e in his surname with a single "e".[1] Upon settling on Lulu Island, Steves established a dairy farm and imported the first purebred Holstein cattle into British Columbia.[5] Steves was one of the petitioners asking the province to incorporate the city of Richmond. After incorporation, Steves served on the first town council, in 1879.[3]

Legacy

In addition to the village of Steveston, Steves Elementary School and Steveston Post Office are named after Manoah Steves.[3][4]

Manoah Steves Elementary School

References

1. Sinoski, Kelly (12 April 2016). "Steves family celebrating forefathers' foresight in coming to Canada". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved 3 October 2021.
2. Wright, Esther Clark (1965). The Steeves Descendants. Wolfville, N.S.: self-published.
3. "Steves Elementary: About Us". Richmond School District No. 38. Retrieved 2021-10-03.
4. "125th Anniversary of the Steveston Post Office". Steveston Historical Society. Retrieved 2021-10-03.
5. Hyde, Ron (2016). The Sockeye Special: The Story of the Steveston Tram and Early Lulu Island. Richmond, B.C.: self-published. ISBN 978-1-55383-436-6.