Vancouver’s lions wouldn’t be standing guard at the bridge if it weren’t for an Italian sculptor.
Vancouver is Awesome – Vancouver is a city built on immigration.
While First Nations people have been living in the area for thousands of years, and early settlers primarily came from Great Britain, many other cultures have become integral pieces of the local culture. One significant population that’s been here since the founding of Vancouver are Italians.
While no streets or parks carry Italian names, there are more than a few signs of Italian culture and influence around the city, historical and current. Here are a few things you (probably) didn’t know about that.
1. The Lions Gate Bridge lions were designed by an Italian-Canadian sculptor
The Lions Gate Bridge is adorned with a pair of noble lions on the south end, really leaning into the bridge’s name. The pair are probably the most well-known pieces of work by Charles Marega.
2. Vancouver’s Little Italy wasn’t always on Commercial Drive
These days the heart of Italian culture in Vancouver is often considered Commercial Drive, where several Italian businesses have been going for years.
However, that’s not always been the case. When the major wave of Italian immigrants made their way to Vancouver many settled in Strathcona.
3. The City of Vancouver apologized for mistreating Italian-Canadians during Second World War
Earlier this summer Vancouver’s city council apologized for actions taken in the early 1940s.
While the internment Japanese-Canadians is well known, a similar thing happened to a smaller extent to Italian-Canadians, including 33 Vancouver residents who had connections to the Fascist Party of Canada. They were rounded up and transported to internment camps out of the province.
4. Vancouver has an Italian Garden
Tucked up in Hastings Park is ‘Il Giardino Italiano’, or ‘The Italian Garden,’ based on traditional Italian gardens.
Created in 2000 it has a variety of parts to it, including an ‘Opera Walk,’ sculptures and fountains (with sculpted spouts). There’s also a ‘feast area’ and Bocce courts.
5. A Metro Vancouver cyclotron uses Italian magnets for clinical nuclear medical diagnostics in the Pope’s hospital
The Agostino Gemelli University Policlinic is the second largest hospital in Italy; located in Rome, it’s the hospital used by popes, and in 2004 the Pope was involved in purchasing a very specialized, multi-million dollar piece of equipment, an Advanced Cyclotron Systems Inc. cyclotron, according to Baldan.
