The museum is located in the Roe House, which is part of an original Pender homestead. Robert and Margaret Roe, three sons and one daughter emigrated from Scotland to Victoria, BC in 1896 and came to Pender a few years later. In 1906 they bought over 600 acres of virgin land on Otter Bay and began the hard work of clearing 30 acres for their farm, which they named Roesland. Bert Roe, age 12 at the time, recalled years later that “we had to fight our way ashore through the interlocking branches of the trees”. [use this as a sidebar type pull quote]
The family built their permanent home in 1908, a “kit” house ordered from a Vancouver Island lumber company. All the pre-cut lumber was delivered to Roesland by barge and put together on its log base in about a week. Total cost for the three-bedroom house: $589.62.
In 1912, the Roes casually rented out their original cabin to vacationers. Its popularity suggested a new business venture. By 1917, Roesland was billing itself as a farm-resort, eventually expanding to some 15 cottages under the banner of Roesland Resort. Many families returned year after year.
Bert and his wife Irene married in 1927 and built their own home on the property. (It had to be demolished in 2003.) They expanded and diversified the farm and resort business, and by 1935, the farmhouse had become a hall for guests to enjoy games, music and reading. In 1971, the property was sold to David and Florence Davidson. They continued the warm, hospitable and family nature of the resort until it closed in 1991. Roesland was transferred to the Gulf Islands National Park Reserve lands in 2003 [check].
