Island Lecture Series: Memories of Osland: a historical Icelandic village in northern British Columbia
The Island Lecture Series and the Vinland Society present a talk by Dr. Helen Kristmanson, "Memories of Osland: a historical Icelandic village in northern British Columbia." The Island Lecture Series will be held on October 21, 2025, at 7 pm, in the Faculty Lounge, SDU Main Building Room 201, 91福利在线你懂的.
Hidden along the Skeena River's sylvan shores are the remains of a small historical village known as Osland. Settled by Icelanders who migrated west between 1870 and 1914, Osland was part of a thriving network of communities that formed an economic hub supported by the fishery and canneries. Today, though a few families preserve their ancestral houses at Osland, these historical buildings are interspersed with the fading remains of those long gone. This presentation draws on a range of primary sources, including memories gathered about thirty years ago from Osland's children and grandchildren.
Dr. Helen Kristmanson was the Island's first provincial archaeologist, serving in this role from 2009 until 2021, when she joined the L鈥檔uey team as Senior Archaeologist. L鈥檔uey is an Epekwitk-based initiative focused on protecting and implementing the constitutionally entrenched rights of the PEI Mi'kmaq. Helen is an Institute of Island Studies Executive Committee member at the 91福利在线你懂的, past president of the Canadian Archaeological Association, and sitting president of the Vinland Society of PEI. Current scholarly research includes an examination of the underrepresentation of historical Mi鈥檏maq archaeological sites on Epekwitk through collections, archival, and field research. Helen descends from Fri冒rik August Kristmansson and El铆n Jonasdottir, first-generation Osland settlers, and Gu冒mundur Bjornsson and Thorbjorg Gu冒ny Bjornrdottir, also vesturfarars, who settled in southern British Columbia. In her spare time, Helen researches Icelandic and Scottish history.
The lecture is free, and all are welcome. For more information, contact Laurie Brinklow at 902-894-2881 or brinklow@upei.ca.
