Canadian Sikh Heritage | Bhagat Singh Dhaliwal
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31 Oct Bhagat Singh Dhaliwal

Posted at 18:37h in Pioneer Interviews by

Bhagat Singh Dhaliwal was born on September 15, 1883 in the village of Channanwal. Records indicate he was one of the earliest Sikh pioneers to have come to Abbotsford as came to Canada before 1905. Bhagat Singh and his wife Harnam Kaur (who came to Canada in 1923) lived on a two acre farm on South Fraser Way in Abbotsford. Having an excellent command of English both written and spoken-it allowed him to help fellow pioneers settle in the Fraser Valley. He was also one of the 20 Sikh pioneers who provided funds for the building of the Abbotsford Sikh Temple. He was also a member of the Khalsa Diwan Society in Vancouver.

In the early 1920s he is mentioned in the book “Sikhs of BC and California” to have given vital medical attention to a fellow millworker who had collapsed unconscious. In 1932, he sponsored his nephews Hari Singh Dhaliwal and Paul Singh Dhaliwal to join him in Abbotsford.

In 1936, he decided to visit India however he became ill on the journey home forcing him to vacate the ship at Hong Kong where he soon passed away at 52 years of age.

(This narration has been taken from the Khalsa Diwan Society, Abbotsford, B.C., Canada: Celebrating 100 Years special commemorative book).