All in a Few day's work...

Felling, limbing, and bucking Douglas Fir and Western Red Cedar into transportable lengths was a time consuming, labour-intensive job. 

A Little Family History...

Since the mid 1800's, the Whalen family was part of the Canadian landscape. Emigrating from Ireland in the 1840's to Collingwood, Ontario, and then to Fort William (Port Arthur) in 1880. The head of the family, James Whalen, began a business empire that included mining, ship building, logging, saw-milling, and pulp and paper. 

It was the forestry side of the business that brought the four Whalen brothers to British Columbia where they were involved in three pulp mills and various logging and saw-milling operations until the 1930's. 

Leonard George Whalen was born in Vancouver, B.C in 1911, the son of William (Bill-Bill) Whalen, one of the four Whalen brothers who owned and operated the mills of Whalen Pulp & Paper Company. 

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Right: A-frame and donkey engines on the water used for winching logs from the shore and positioning them in a 'boom' of logs that will be towed to a sawmill or pulp mill.

Below left: Len Whalen's father William "Bill Bill" Whalen, one of the four Whalen brothers who owned and operated the mills of Whalen Pulp &Paper Company. 

Below top right: The crew of 'Rangitangs' at the Whalen-O'Malley camp in Noootka Sound, Vancouver Island. Len Whalen is third from the right.

Below bottom right: Seagull eye view of Albert Moore's float camp in Winter Harbour on northern Vancouver Island ner Port Alice - site of an original Whalen Pulp & Paper mill. 

  • Wood Fiber Mill and Lumber Yard

    Mill Creek, BC

  • Port Alic Pulp Mill

    Port Alice, BC

  • Swanson Bay Pulp Mill

    Swanson Bay, BC

Want to learn more about the life of The Rangitangs?

Coming soon: The Rangitangs: Life on the Edge book!

A collection of tales, paintings, and cartoons that will bring you closer to the true Rangitangs and their experiences working the float camps of British Columbia. Inside will feature many stories about those who inspired The Rangitangs as well as prints of the paintings that brought them to life. Reserve your copy now!