Collector/curator's description reads: “1954, Vancouver. George Germel Singh Aulack in his RCAF uniform along with his sisters: (left to right) Gaily, Chindow, Germail and Mindow. Germail was a Flying Officer with the RCAF. He was born in India but arrived in Canada with his mother in 1934 when he was two years old. This photo was taken at South Airport (or Van Airport in those days) in 1954, two weeks before he died in St Hubert, Quebec while on a rescue flight with the RCAF. He was only 23. Their parents were Aulack Giana Singh and Tante Kaur Singh.”

Collector/curator's description reads: “Circa 1938, Vancouver. Photo of Giana Singh Aulack (left) and his wife Tante Kaur Aulack. Giana arrived in Canada by ship in 1906 as a British subject from Punjab, India. He worked first on the railroad; then in a sawmill in New Westminster while living with some other single Punjabi men in a cookhouse (sort of a communal residence). Over time he saved and bought three homes while having a trucking business. Around 1931, during the Great Depression, he travelled to India to get married. He brought along with him a photo of the Vancouver City Hall and claimed it was his home. He won over and married Tante Kaur. However, on his return to Canada, much to his horror, Giana learned he had lost all three homes and his trucks due to the depression that was gripping the country. Tante Kaur arrived in 1934 only to find the comfortable life she thought she might have was gone. The couple would raise eight children. The oldest, Germael Singh Aulack, was born in India but became a Flying Officer in the RCAF. He perished in an airplane accident at the age of 23 years. The other children were born in Canada: David Singh; Sadu Singh; Gaily kaur; Jernail Singh; Chindow Kaur; Mindow Kaur and Javinder Singh.”

Collector/curator's description reads: “C. 1952, Vancouver. Photo of Giana Singh and Tante Kaur Aulack family. Front row from left to right: Sadu Singh Aulack, Giana Singh Aulack, Jarnail Singh Aulack, Tante Kaur Aulack and David Singh Aulack. Back row left to right: Chindow Sidhu (nee Aulack), Gaily Koonar (nee Aulack) Mindow Sidhu (nee Aulack). Missing from this photo: Their oldest son, and RCAF Flying Officer named Germail Singh Aulack was away at the time this photo was taken. He killed in October 1954 in a plane crash at age 23. Their youngest and 8th child, Javinder Singh Aulack, had not been born when this photo was taken.”

Collector/curator's description reads: “1938, Vancouver. Photograph of the Burns family. Left to right: Natara Singh Burns (born 1907) and holding baby Davinder ‘Mindry’; Bhaghleant ‘Bonto’; Ajeet ‘Doc’; and mother Chanana Kour Burns. Natara came to Canada around 1921. He worked as a sawmill labourer and owner, but also as a priest in Abbotsford. The couple spent their later years in Lake Cowichan and there is a little street named after Natara called Natara Place.”

Collector/curator's description reads: “Early 1930s, Vancouver. Photo of a Sikh Canadian family: Indar Singh Ghuman and his wife Basant Kaur Ghuman, along with their daughter Joginder Kaur Deol Nee Ghuman (1930-2012) and young son Narang Singh Ghuman. Indar Singh who was born in 1888 in India and arrived in Vancouver in April 1906. He worked at Fraser Mills. Both his children were born in Canada. But tragedy struck the younger boy: while living at Fraser Mills, Narang Singh drowned in a water pit in the backyard. The couple would go on to have three more children. The family did go back to India for a few years and then was unable to return till after the war.”

Collector/curator's description reads: “Circa 1953, Vancouver. Photo of the Gill family. Front row left to right: Ganga Singh Gill (cousin); Malkit Gill (daughter, age 3); Kartar Kaur Gill (wife); Indar Singh Gill; Nash Gill (son, age 5, currently a lawyer in Abbotsford, B.C.); Joginder Singh Gill, Shah (brother). Back row left to right: Kartar Singh Sidhu (brother-in-law); Mohinder Singh Gill (brother); and Pal Singh Gill (cousin). Indar Singh Gill immigrated to British Columbia, Canada in 1930 from Dhudike, Punjab, India at the age of 17 years. He worked in sawmills at Sooke Lake & Paldi, Vancouver Island. He returned to India in 1947 and brought his wife, Kartar Kaur Gill and his newborn son Nash back to Canada in 1949. In 1950, Indar Singh Gill ventured into the wood-sawdust fuel business as the Indar Fuel Company operating from Mission, B.C. until 1958. In 1960 he constructed a new state of the art sawmill in Mission, B.C. and operated it as Fraser Valley Sawmills until 1964. In 1980, he again constructed a shake and shingle mill in Fort Langley, which is still presently operating.”

Collector/curator’s description reads: “C. 1918, Vancouver. Photo of Ishar Singh Gill and his beloved dog, King. Ishar came to Canada in 1906 and eventually owned and operated Patterson Wood Yards, a company that delivered wood fuel to homes. When paying taxes or tarrifs, Ishar was simply recorded as Hindo [Hindu] #10. The dog accompanied him on his rounds delivering wood and the two developed a special bond. King was so loved that after he died, every other dog owned by the Gill family has been named King. Ishar Singh was known for being very stylish. He was the first among his community to buy a brass bed. Friends and neighbours came by his house just to see the fancy bed.”

Item is a photograph showing a group preparing a cremation.

Collector/curator's description reads: “Late 1930s, Vancouver. Black and white reproduction photo of (left to right): Mulan Kaur Johal; Bawa Singh Johal and their nephew Rampal.”

Collector/curator's description reads: “Circa 1934, Vancouver. Photo of the Gurdas Singh Johan family (aka the Gurda family). (L to r) Bunt; Gurdas Singh Johal; Paula; Betty; Bhani Kaur Johal; Buchan. The eldest child, Bunt, dons an aviator cap and googles that reflect the period. It was the early years of flight and newspapers were full of stories of daring, celebrity pilots such as Charles Lindbergh and Amelia Earhart. The Johals would eventually have 11 children which forced Betty, their eldest daughter (3rd from right) to leave school to help support the family. Although denied an education, Banto Betty Gill (as she was later known) emerged as a beloved leader both in the Sikh community and in the City of Richmond.”

Collector/curator's description reads: “1940s, Vancouver. Photo of the Gurdas Singh Johal family. Front row sitting: Bhani Kaur holding Dee; Gurdas Singh holding Jeet; Mulan Kaur; Beryl (daughter-in-law) holding Bobby (grandson); and Bunt. Second row standing: Kari; Dolly; Paje; and Mindy. Back row standing: Banto Betty (later known as Banto Betty Gill); Bachan; and Paula.”

Photograph shows the weekly market on Front Street

Head and shoulders portrait

Panorama view showing the area between 33rd Avenue and King Edward Avenue and west of Granville Street and east of Oak Street, construction workers and in the background the construction camp, Shaughnessy School, Braemar School and Little Mountain

Collector/curator's description reads: “C. 1936, Vancouver. Mohan Singh Sangara and his wife Kishan. Mohan came to Canada in 1904 and worked in lumber mills. He went back to India to marry Kishan who immigrated to Canada in 1927 on the ship "Princess of Russia" by way of Japan. Mohan opened a mill in Port Alberni, where some of his children were born. The family eventually moved back to Vancouver and lived on Saint George Street near Kent Avenue. This is one of two photos taken the same day at Yucho Chow Studio. The other photo is a photo of Mohan and Kishan and their children.”

Collector/curator's description reads: “C. 1936. Vancouver. Photo of Mohan Singh and his wife Kishan with their four children. Left to right: Siebo, Mohan Singh, Donie Singh, Kishan, Jim (baby) and Dedo. Mohan Singh Sangara and his wife Kishan. Mohan came to Canada in 1904 and worked in lumber mills. He went back to India to marry Kishan who immigrated to Canada in 1927 on the ship "Princess of Russia" by way of Japan. Mohan opened a mill in Port Alberni, where some of his children were born. The family eventually moved back to Vancouver and lived on Saint George Street near Kent Avenue. This is one of two photos taken the same day at Yucho Chow Studio. The other photo is a photo of only Mohan and Kishan.”

Collector/curator's description reads: “Circa 1940, Vancouver. Photo of Nargen and Daljeet Sengara and their children. Note that the children in the front row are each holding a book suggesting to the viewer that all of them are getting an education, including the girl. There were only seven children in the original photo. Daljeet was pregnant at the time. Once the 8th child was born, she asked that he be added to the photo. That child can be seen sitting on the floor in the front. The photo was also cut into an oval shape to fit in an oval frame.”

Collector/curator's description reads: “1945, Vancouver. A hand colourized photo of the Nargen and Daljeet Sengara family. Two of the children are dressed in brown; two children in blue; two in pink and two boys at the back are in matching cardigans and blazers. A few years later, this exact same photo was doctored to include two other children that were born after this photo was taken.”

Collector/curator's description reads: “1945, Vancouver. Photo of the Nargen and Daljeet Sengara family. The original was taken C. 1945. This is a composite photo where two children were about 5-6 years later. The little girl on the stool (right) and the male child sitting on the floor (centre) were added by Yucho Chow Studio.”

Collector/curator's description reads: “1939, Vancouver. Photo taken inside a Sikh Temple located at 1866 West 2nd Avenue, Vancouver, BC.”

Collector/curator's description reads: “Circa 1940s, Vancouver. Photo taken inside a Sikh Temple located at 1866 West 2nd Avenue, Vancouver, BC.”

Collector/curator’s description reads: “Early 1930s, Vancouver. A hand-colourized photo of three South Asian women (likely related by birth or marriage) with two unidentified female children. We know the name of only one of the women: Basant Kaur is second from the right.”

Collector/curator’s description reads: “C. 1938, Vancouver. Photo of Basant Kaur Singh (right), her daughter Esther Kaur (left) and an unidentified woman, likely a relative.”

Collector/curator’s description reads: “1934, Vancouver. Photo of Basant Kaur holding her first-born daughter, Mary Kaur.”

Collector/curator’s description reads: “Late 1920s, Vancouver. A hand colourized photo of Carter Singh and his young wife, Basant Kaur. The Yucho Chow seal, which would have originally been on the cardboard frame, has been removed and attached to the front of the print.”

Collector/curator’s description reads: “1934, Vancouver. Photo of Carter Singh and his wife Basant Kaur holding their first child, Mary Kaur. The part of the photo showing Basant and Mary was taken in 1934. Carter was superimposed into this photo much later. (This same image of him appears in another photo, taken almost a decade later.) The image has been hand coloured although it is not clear if these colourization[s] or the superimposition was done by Yucho Chow Studio.”

Collector/curator’s description reads: “Early 1940s, Vancouver. Photo of a Sikh Canadian couple and their three daughters.”

Collector/curator's description reads: “Late 1920s, Vancouver. Studio photo of an unidentified South Asian/Sikh couple taken at Yucho Chow's 23 West Pender Street studio. The photo was found in the collection passed down through the Ishar Singh Gill family, a businessman who owned and operated a wood fuel delivery business.”