Hamilton Elementary School (formerly Trites School)
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Hamilton Elementary School in 2004. |
Hamilton Elementary School (1934- ) began as Trites School (1910-1934), which was located on Westminster Highway and No. 7 Road, and which had been named after Frank N. Trites and Wycliffe Steves Trites, a couple of Steveston businessmen who became municipal councillors during the early 1900s.
In 1933, the school was relocated to No. 9 Road and Westminster Road to better serve the children of the Japanese community in east Richmond and Queensborough. It was at this juncture that the school was renamed Hamilton. The school was relocated again in 1959 to Gilley and Westminster Highway and eventually moved into a brand new school located at 5180 Smith Drive in October of 1995.
Alexander Hamilton (1885-1939) moved to Richmond in 1926 and became one of the early pioneers in berry farming. During the 1930s, he served on the school board and in 1932 met with a delegation of Japanese speaking parents and consented to move Trites School further eastwards to better accommodate the needs of their children living in east Richmond. This relocated school was named in his honour.