Museum Moments: Early Ukrainian Immigration to Chilliwack
Some fought for Canada.
Some were imprisoned by it.
And they were from the same community.
More than 150,000 Ukrainians came to Canada during the first wave of immigration in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Many were farmers seeking land and opportunity. Others found work in mines and on railways, helping build the country’s infrastructure.
But the welcome was complicated.
During the First World War, over 5,000 Ukrainian Canadians were labeled “enemy aliens” and sent to internment camps. At the same time, thousands of Ukrainians served in the Canadian military. It’s a part of Canadian history that is not always widely known.
Here in Chilliwack, Ukrainian families built strong roots. In 1948, the Ukrainian Hall opened — funded through concerts, carolling, and volunteer labour. It became a place where culture, language, music, and dance could be preserved and passed on.
When Ukrainian identity was threatened abroad, it survived and flourished here.
Today, a fifth wave of Ukrainian newcomers continues to arrive in Canada. The story is not something locked in the past. It is ongoing.
The travelling exhibit “Canada, We Are Here!” is on now at the Chilliwack Museum. Admission is free, and it offers a powerful look at resilience, culture, and community — right here in our own backyard.
History feels different when you realize it happened on the same land you drive past every day.