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Henry Weir, who was reported to have been a carpenter for the Hudson's Bay Company aboard the Norman Morison , came to Craigflower Manor to build the farmhouse's interior staircase banister was made out of Arbutus wood. Arbutus trees (arbutus menziesii) only grow within two miles of a large salt water source, which is the Pacific Ocean. This tree only grows in the Southern hemisphere and on the Northwest Coast of North America.

The wood is very hard to cut through, especially with pioneer manual tools and to the recently arrived Scotsmen, it would be an unfamiliar wood, and as Weir would have quickly found out, the wood's difficult nature. Arbutus must be carved into small pieces, and then attached together from the separate pieces. The Arbutus was probably chosen for its beauty and the quantity of it found on the site. Weir finished the banister on maple posts, and this banister is still standing today. The McKenzie children used to consider it their part in the dusting of the house by sliding down the banister in order to keep it shiny!

As well as the banister, Weir also built all of the window frames for the farm house.

The story opposite was written by Henry Weir, about his early adventures in Victoria and down the coast to Fort Nisqually. In this story, read by his great- granddaughter, Joan McIlwyn-Cleghorn, Henry's sense of adventure and humour come through, and it gives a good idea of how rustic Victoria was when the McKenzie's first arrived.

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Henry Weir
20th Century, 1912
Craigflower, View Royal, Victoria, Canada

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Arbutus Bannister
16 July 2006
Craigflower, View Royal, Victoria, Canada

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Cannisters from the Craigflower's pantry
16 July 2006
Craigflower, View Royal, Victoria, Canada

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In 1854-55, Craigflower Schoolhouse was constructed by the Hudson's Bay Company at the farm as part of its settlement obligations on Vancouver Island. The need for and the location of the school itself was decided upon by the first colonial assembly , but the physical construction of the building became the responsibility of Kenneth McKenzie. After a painstakingly long process of choosing a teacher, Robert Barr, Kenneth McKenzie brought him over on the Norman Morrison. When he arrived on Vancouver Island, Fort Victoria had just lost their teacher, and so Barr was put into service by James Douglas to became the new teacher for the school within the Fort. Charles Clarke was subsequently chosen by Andrew Colville and brought from England to teach, when a suitable Scottish candidate could not be found.

Andrew Colville, the Governor of the Hudson's Bay Company in England sent Kenneth McKenzie a letter on the 10th of February, 1854 about his search, and what had to be done in preparation for the arrival of the teacher. "The schoolmasters land will have to be cleared for him, leaving a proper portion in wood, but not less than 2/3 or 3/4 in a state of useful pasture or arable- and he and his family will be entitled to maintenance until the land can be delivered to him in this condition and until he can get crops for his support..." (A/ E/M19/ C72) With the farm still in the process of being established, none of the preparation was complete, resulting in Mr. Clarke having to help build his own schoolhouse.

Mr Clarke, for his first two years at Craigflower was considered a very suitable teacher, and McKenzie remarked on the fact that he was the first of the two teachers to set up a public examination of the pupils. In the 1850s the public examinations were big events, and James Douglas would even attend to see the pupils' progress. Robert Barr, the teacher at the fort school did not have an examination for his pupils, and was looked down upon as not being as good a quality teacher as Clarke.

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Craigflower Schoolhouse's first class with parents and families
19th Century, circa 1855
Craigflower Schoolhouse, Saanich, Victoria, Canada

Credits:
D-03648

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Craigflower Farm taken from the Gorge
19th Century, circa 1860
British Columbia Archives

Credits:
A-02935

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The McKenzie family were known for their large dinner parties with dancing afterwards. They would invite the nearby naval officers from Esquimalt Habour, as well as the other wealthy Victorians, such as Dr. John Helmcken, who they believed would make good company. One of these individuals who often visited these parties was Robert Burnaby, who attempted to court the oldest McKenzie daughter, Agnes. With the shortage of European women on the colony the McKenzie girls went to the family's dances at a younger age than they normally would back in Scotland, starting at as young as eleven years old. Agnes, Kenneth McKenzie's wife, took a little convincing before consenting to allow them to partake at such a young age.

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Picnic party at Craigflower Manor
19th Century, Circa 1860
Craigflower, View Royal, Victoria, Canada

Credits:
A-1441

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Edmund Hope Verney, a Royal Navy officer in based in Esquimalt, wrote home fondly about the Christmases he spent in Craigflower Manor.
In Christmas 1862 in this letter to his father he describes his experiences at the farm:

At 5pm I went up to dine with the McKenzies of Craig Flower: here was assembled a large party; dinner was followed by toasts, not forgetting "absent friends", toasts were followed by songs, songs by tea, tea by charades, charades by dancing, dancing by blind-man's-bluff, and blind-man's bluff was the entertainment followed by all. The amusements of the evening were sprinkled with negus, and the crannies were stopped with Scotch cake and bun: then warmed with hospitality and genial heartiness, a cement of friendship was run in, which at once took a natural polish. The first yawn was observed on the countenance of the smallest child at about 12.25, and at 1.15. I was in bed on board the "Grappler": there were no signs of breaking up when I left, and for all I know, they may be dancing yet.
( Vancouver Island Letters of Edmund Hope Verney, 110)

This was a very typical description of the parties at Craigflower, as the residents were often partying and drunk. Many Victorians were not sure of what to make of this farm outside of the city where there were men working in kilts and known for their heavy drinking, even while at work!

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Robert Burnaby, after which Burnaby, British Columbia was named, spent a lot of his time visiting Craigflower Farm. His letters give an insight into life at the McKenzie house. Burnaby fondly remembered his time at Craigflower, and even attempted to court the oldest McKenzie daughter, Agnes. He often spent evenings and holidays at the farm, such as during Christmas.

The following are two exerpts from the book Land of Promise, where Burnaby describes in his letters two of his holidays spent at Craigflower:

23rd December 1859
I am to spend Xmas eve and day with the McKenzie family about whom I have written you and a jolly time we shall have, he is the soul of jovial hospitality and his house is a regular specimen of a Colonial Farm House, a large family; the eldest about 18, two pretty daughters, and one fine boy about 13; all handy and always hard at work, in dairy, kitchen and house; waiting at table etc. for servant excepting Indians are rare to get and too expensive. (Land of Promise, 128)

6th January 1860
"I am ashamed to say with the connivance of the young ladies, we put the clocks and watches on about 2 hours, so that when midnight came, with songs and fluting, even dancing also, and we kept the morn alive until 4 o'clock." (Land of Promise , 130)

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After 1860 it was clear that the farm was not going to make a profit, and so the McKenzies were losing interest in staying at Craigflower. So in 1866 the McKenzie family moved to Lakehill (Christmas Hill) Farm, which had been bought in 1856 by Kenneth. Lakehill was a sheep farm, and it became the McKenzie's permanent residence. Three of the children, Agnes, Kenneth and Wilhemina (Goodie) never married, and stayed the rest of their lives at the Lakehill Farm. When the family left Craigflower they took their belongings from the farm with them, and it was from Lakehill, in 1928, that many of the McKenzie items were donated to the Craigflower Schoolhouse Museum by Goodie McKenzie.

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The McKenzie Family
19th Century, circa 1870
Lakehill Farm, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

Credits:
A-01444

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Lakehill Farm, the McKenzie's last residence in Victoria
19th Century, circa 1885
Craigflower, View Royal, Victoria, Canada

Credits:
A-01442