Catherine Bauer
Biography
Catherine Bauer (nee Lowe) was born on June 3rd, 1958 and raised in North Vancouver. Her family home was located at 17th Street and Grand Boulevard, in a house that has since been demolished. Snapshots taken by her parents document her upbringing alongside the Boulevard. Through her teens and into her 20s, Catherine lived in many different North Van apartments and houses; her first place was on 18th Street. The 1970s were very social years for her and are now a source of fond reflection.
Grand Boulevard
“When I was in high school, they had a thing that they called the Coffee House. It was for teenagers and it was in the old gym at the Rec Centre on 23rd Street. Every Friday night you could go. It was a free venue for teenagers aged about 13 to 17. Oh, we’d party—we’d smuggle in mickeys and we’d be just a nightmare! And they’d have music playing, and the gym stuff was there so you could fiddle around on the ropes and all that. That was a great thing for us back then.
The people and places made it feel like home. You’d always say, ‘We’re going over town,’ like it was a whole different city over there. The bridge! That was it, we were our own place. Everybody knew everybody. There was the Lonsdale gang, I was a North Van High girl, and then there was the Valley Boys, and you’d have the Deep Covers… it was all districts, and we all knew about each other.”
