Open Collections

University of British Columbia. Library

This video created by the University Archives includes historical photographs and film footage documenting the Great Trek at UBC in 1922. Overcrowded and inadequate facilities at the University of British Columbia's temporary quarters at the Fairview "shacks" prompted students to stage a publicity campaign in 1922 to convince the government to resume construction on its new Point Grey campus. The campaign culminated on October 28, 1922 in what has become known as the Great Trek. The student body of some 1,200 with banners and floats marched through downtown Vancouver and then out to the tip of Point Grey where they climbed into the framework of the unfinished Science building. The public support rallied by the campaign convinced the government to resume work on the Point Grey campus and where UBC opened its doors in 1925. Student organization of the Great Trek and the entire publicity campaign represented a remarkable but not isolated chapter in the University's history. Subsequent student-based initiatives resulted in the construction of the Gymnasium (1929), Brock Hall (1940), Armoury (1941), War Memorial Gymnasium (1951) and the Student Union Building (1968). For more information about the Great Trek see: https://www.library.ubc.ca/archives/trek/

Motion Pictures

video/mp4

This video was created from still images using Muvee.

UBC Archives Video & Film Collection

2013-04-10

Images provided for research and reference use only. Permission to publish, copy or otherwise use these images must be obtained from the UBC Archives: https://archives.library.ubc.ca/contact-us/

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