Historical Photos of the PNE

When the Pacific National Exhibition was launched in 1910, it was seen as a showcase of B.C. to Canada and the rest of the world. One hundred years on, its the summer entertainment highlight for almost a million visitors, as well as several PNE regulars

The announcement of the winner of a 1953 beauty pageant.
Image credit: PNE

Elvis Presley performs at Empire Stadium in 1957.
Image credit: Red Robinson

An outdoor performance by a younger Dal Richards.
Image credit: Vancouver Sun

Dal Richards grew up in Marpole and remembers riding in the back of a 1920s Chevy to the exhibition grounds, which seemed to be a long way out in those days. The 92-year-old bandleaders earliest memory of the PNE goes back to when he was seven.
I was her

PNE food stalls in 1930.
Image credit: Vancouver Public Library

Children enjoy traditional prize-stall winnings in 1956.
Image credit: PNE

A young fairgoer takes on a foot-long hotdog.
Image credit: Vancouver Sun

Jack Hunter’s hat has been his trademark for more than 30 years. “My surrogate son in Mexico sends me three new ones every year, and I always throw one of ’em up in the tree in front of my foot-long [hotdog] location at the PNE. I never see i

A scene from the midway in the 1950s.
Image credit: PNE

A group of visiting monks dare a rollercoaster in the 1990s.
Image credit: PNE

A young driver gets a taste for the road at the bumper cars in 1976.
Image credit: PNE

Mike Seneviratne started working at the PNE in 1972 on a bottle ring toss game. It was his first job. He liked it so much he decided to stick around; today, the 49-year-old is director of operations at Playland, responsible for capital planning, attractio