MEMBER SOCIETIES

Member Societies and their secretaries are responsible for seeing that the correct address for their society isup-to-date. Please send any change to both the Treasurer and Editor at the addresses inside the back cover.The Annual Return as at October 31st should include telephone numbers for contact.

Members’ dues for the year 1990 - 91 were paid by the following Societies:

Albemi District Historical Society - Box 284, Port Albemi, B.C. V9Y 7M7Arrow Lakes Historical Society - Box 584, Nakusp, B.C. VOB 1 ROAIIm Historical Society - Box 111, Atlin, B.C. VOW lAOBumaby Historical Society - 6501 Deer Lake Avenue, Bumaby, B.C. V5G 3T6Chemainus Valley Historical Society - Box 172, Chemainus, B.C. VOR 1 KOCowichan Historical Society - P.O. Box 1014, Duncan, B.C. V9L 3Y2District 69 Historical Society - 625 Pym Road, Parksville, B.C. V9P 1 B6East Kootenay Historical Association - P.O. Box 74, Cranbrook, B.C. V1C 4H6Gulf Islands Branch -BCHF- dO Wilma J. Cross, RR#1, Pender Island, B.C. VON 2M0Koksilah School Historical Society - 5203 Trans Canada Highway, Koksilah, B.C. VOR 2COKootenay Lake Historical Society - Box 537, Kaslo, B.C. VOG 1 MOKootenay Museum & Historical Society - 402 Anderson Street, Nelson, B.C. Vi L 3Y3Lantzville Historical Society - do Box 274, Lantzville, B.C. VOR 2H0Lasqueti Island Historical Society - Lasqueti Island, B.C. VOR 2JONanaimo Historical Society - P.O. Box 933, Station A, Nanaimo, B.C. V9R 5N2North Shore Historical Society - 1541 Merlynn Crescent, North Vancouver, B.C. V7J 2X9North Shuswap Historical Society - Box 22, Celista, B.C. VOE 1 LOPrinceton & District Pioneer Museum & Archives - Box 687, Princeton, B.C. VOX iWOQualicum Beach Historical & Museum Society - 444 Qualicum Road, Qualicum Beach, B.C. V9K 1 B2Salt Spring Island Historical Society - Box 1264, Ganges, B.C. VOS 1 EOSidney & North Saanich Historical Society - P.O. Box 2404, Sidney, B.C. V8L 3Y3Silvery Slocan Historical Society - Box 301, New Denver, B.C. VOG 1 SOSurrey Historical Society - 8811 - 152nd Street, Surrey, B.C. V3R 4E5Trail Historical Society - P.O. Box 405, Trail, B.C. Vi R 4L7Vancouver Historical Society - P.O. Box 3071, Vancouver, B.C. V6B 3X6Victoria Historical Society - Box 5123 Stn. B., Victoria, B.C. V8R 6N4

AFFILIATED GROUPS

Fort Steele Heritage Park - Fort Steele, B.C. VOB 1 NOThe Hallmark Society - 207 Government Street, Victoria, B.C. V8V 2K8Nanaimo Centennial Museum Society - 100 Cameron Road, Nanaimo, B.C. V9R 2Xi

Publications Mail Registration Number 4447

Published winter, spring, summer and fall by the British Columbia Historical Federation, P.O. Box 35326,Station E, Vancouver, B.C. V6M 4G5. A Charitable Society recognized under the income Tax Act.

SUBSCRIPTIONS: Institutional, $16.00 per year; Individual (non-members), $10.00; Members of memberSocieties — $9.00; For addresses outside Canada add $4.00.

Financially assisted by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs, Recreationa nd Culture, through the BritishColumbia Heritage Trust and British Columbia Lotteries.

Back issues of the British Columbia Historical News are available in microform from Micromedia Limited, 20Victoria St., Toronto, Ont. M5C 2N8 (416) 362-5211 • Fax (416) 362-6161 • Toll Free 1-800-387-2689— Micromedia also publishes the Canadian Magazine Index and the Canadian Business Index.

Indexed in the Canadian Periodical Index.B C Historical News Summer 92

BRITISH COLUMBIA HISTORICAL NEWS

Volume 25, No. 3 Journal of the B.C. Historical Federation Summer - 1992

EDITORIAL CONTENTSFeatures PageHow successful are theme issues? Readers

occasionally mention them; friends of the mag- A Tale of a Packer 2urine contribute works to them. We sought to by Carle Jonesattract new contributors, and to inspire writersby suggesting a favorite topic. The issues on Cariboo Gold Rush 3“Women”, “Education” and “Because of the by T.Don SoleWar” drew many responses. A B.C. HistoricalNews supporter in Kelowna assembled the The Chilcotin War 5manuscripts needed for the “Okanagan” issue. by Winston A ShilvockIt rook far more time and effort than anticipated to fulfil our objective. Some stories were War Bride in the Chilcotin 7already in hand when the theme “B.C.’s Coast by Anthony P. Farrand Islands” was announced, enabling us to Peace River Pioneer 10present works from previously unknownwriters, by C. J. St. CyrTompkinsThe word “Cariboo” suggests many fascinat- The Coastal Princesses 14ing scenarios, yet our appeal for presentations

by residents in that district was heeded only by by Daphne BaldwinBranwen Patenaude. Don Sale, with his vested Quesnel Forks 18interest in the Cariboo, made sure that at least by Marie Elliotttwo parts of the history were presented. Winston Shilvock, Marie Elliott and Tony Farr Forgotten Cariboo Entrepeneurs 20kindly prepared their look at happenings in the by Branwen Patenaudedistrict in fairly recent years as well as pioneertimes. We also introduce a new name, l.,onna Old Time Cariboo Dances 22Kirkpatrick. Kirkpatrick, in Calgary, holds a by Lonna Kirkpatrickwealth of well written material telling of her The Saga of Louis LeBourdais 25ancestors in the Cariboo; we look forward tosharing other episodes with you in future. by WirLston A. Shilvock

Readers — do you have suggestions/requests Remembering the P.G.E. (B.C. Rail) 27for future topics? Write to your editor, or by T. Don Salewrite FOR your editor to share a favorite The American Rush 30bit of history. by Gerri Young

Naomi MillerWRITING COMPETITION 1991NEWS & NOTES

COVER CREDIT

Two names which are unmistakably woveninto the fabric of Cariboo history are Francis(Frank) J. Barnard and J. A. “Cariboo”Cameron.

F.J. Barnard, left, was founder of Barnard’sExpress, commonly known as the Cariboo BXExpress Company. At first Barnard, on foot,carried letters between Yale and Cariboo, a distance of 380 miles. Later he used ponies, andwhen a road was completed, stage coaches. Hewas a member of the legislature, sitting for Yale1866-87.“Cariboo” Cameron made a major gold find

in August 1862, the site of which becameCamerontown, near Barkerville.

Photos from the ‘Builders of British Columbia’series compiled for the British Columbia Centennial 71.

Manuscripts and correspondence for the editor are to be sent to P.O. Box 105. Wasa, B.C. VOB 2K0Correspondence regarding subscriptions is to be directed to the subscription secretary (see inside back cover)

Printed in Canada by Kootenay Kwik PrintCranbrook, B.C.

3233

CONFERENCE ‘92 AT BURNABY 34

BOOK SHELF 36

Alex Lord’s British Columbia 19 15-1936 36Review by Gerry Andrews

Mutual Hostages: Canadians & Japanese During W W II 37Review by Gordon R. Elliott

Canadian Pacific Railway Stations in B.C. 38Review by Melva Dwyer

Writing in the Rain 39Review by Barry Gough

Helen Dawe’s Sechelt 39Review by Bill McKim

1 B.C. Historical News Summer 92

A Tale Of A Packerby Wm. CaneJones

A Packirain wearily plodded down a trail rough. narrow and steep,A route pocked with many a hazard

Causing nightmares when the Packer sought sleep.Sixty miles of that tortuous trail, from Quesnel to Keithley Creek -

To that goldrush camp where big nuggets layLike coconuts in a heap.

The Paniers and Sawbucks were loaded, tied with a Diamond Hitch,Filled with the goods and belongingsOf those who would soon strike it rich.

Between two Mules a load was slung on poles strong, slender and green -An old fashioned upright piano

To grace the abode of a Queen.

In a moment of weakened willpower he’d taken the lob. She was sureThat such an adornment would add a great deal

To the lure of her ‘Parlour d’Amour’

As they inch down the stemwinder switchback the loose shale slips and rolls,The Packer’s heartfelt invectives

Must have seared those Mulish souls.

They sweated through mud and through sand till they got to their journey’s endWhere the tinkling Hanky Tank tunes

Soon gladdened the hearts of the men.

The Packer’s voice is boastful as he savors his mountain brew.He has proven once more what Mule strength,

M answeat and Savvy can do.

He’s a vanishing breed though he lingers. As I watch him I wonder whyTill he says, Gol Dang it, Sonny,

You know I’m afraid to die.

Only with age comes wisdom. A strong young man is a fool -And, Sonny, I know where I’m goingThat I’m sure to join them two mules.”

The writer insists this is based on fact. He was a Packer in theCariboe in the 193Os, and now resides in Creston.B.C. Historical News - Summer 92 2

The Cariboo Gold Rush

by TD. Sale

The discovery of gold in the Cariboofirst became known as far back as 1852when some Indians came to the Hudson’s Bay Company post at Alexandria.The young clerk Donald McLean supplied goods in return for gold that hadbeen discovered in the Thompson Riverarea near Nicomen. McLean reportedthe find to Governor James Douglaswho tried to suppress the knowledgesince the fur trade would be seriouslydisrupted by the inevitable rush of goldminers.By 1857 Donald McLean had become

Chief Trader at Fort Kamloops. Meanwhile sporadic gold finds had occurredby miners panning the Thompson andLower Fraser Rivers. One particularlylucrative find was made by John Houston in Tranquille Creek which flowsinto Lake Kamloops. Approximately$600,000 had been taken from theseriver areas by the ‘lucky ones’ fromamong the estimated 30,000 minerswho had flocked into New Caledonia by1858.Mass gold mining had begun on the

sand bars of the lower Fraser River. In1858 alone sixty-seven ships, many ofwhich were unseaworthy, had steadilytransported overloads of miners fromSan Francisco to Victoria where theyhurriedly purchased a mining licenceand supplies. They then arranged transport by canoes, rafts, and any otheravailable means of conveyance to themainland and up the Fraser River as faras Hope. For many months both theOtter and the Beaver were kept busyplying between Fort Victoria and FortLangley with overloads of gold miners.For countless centuries erosion on the

Fraser River had carried many tons ofsoil in which much fine gold was located. Sand bars were built up at the manytwists and turns of the Fraser Riverwhich made its final deposit by building

up Lulu Island and Sea Island at itsmouth. Some thirty sand bars had beenbuilt up between Hope and Yale and afurther fifty sand bars were located between Yale and Kumcheen (now knownas Lytton) where the clear waters of theThompson River join the muddy watersof the Fraser River. It was on these sandbars that the gold miners first stakedtheir claims and began panning for thefine gold.On November 19, 1858 James Doug

las became Governor of the mainlandcolony of British Columbia at FortLangley in addition to his duties asGovernor of the colony of VancouverIsland. To help maintain law and ordera company of 150 Royal Engineers under Colonel Richard Clement Moodycame from England and set up theirheadquarters at Sapperton (New Westminster). Their additional task was touse their expertise in surveying and roadbuilding. The arrival ofJudge MatthewBaillie Begbie ensured that law and order would be enforced amongst theminers.Most gold miners set out on foot with

as little as one change of clothing, aknapsack containing a few essentials, asupply of bacon, beans, flour, rice, saltand tobacco. At the nearest Hudson’sBay post they may have purchased apick, shovel, ladle and wire screen.When gold was discovered in Wil

liams Creek in 1860 the Cariboo goldrush moved to the headwaters of theFraser River. Streams or creeks producing a good yield of the precious metal inthe upper Fraser River of New Caledoha included such names as Antler,Keithley, Nelson, Lowhee, Lightning,California, Grouse, Goose, Salt Spring,Snowshoe, Jack of Clubs, and LastChance.A single mining claim was a square

piece of ground 100 feet wide from

bank to bank of a creek or stream. Eachclaim had to be registered with the District’s Gold Commissioner and wassubject to the approval of the Governor.Disputes were usually settled by theCommissioner who was also a Justice ofthe Peace.Life amongst the miners in the gold-

fields was very rugged and most of themworked like slaves to eke out a bare existence. They jokingly referred to theireveryday food of bacon as Cariboo Turkey an.1 beans as Cariboo Strawberries.Fresh or smoked salmon was occasionally available from the local natives.Winter temperatures often dropped to20 degrees below zero on the FahrenheitScale (-30 degrees Centigrade). Sometimes the reading dipped to minus 30°F(-35°C).The climate as a whole was dry and

exhilarating. A common treatment forfever was six grains of sulphate of quinine every day until completelyrecovered.Unusually large “strikes” were made

by ‘Dutch’ Bill Deitz in February 1861,Billy Barker in early 1862 and CaribooCameron in August 1862. The townsof Richfield, Barkerville and Cameron-town mushroomed in size withBarkerville becoming the largest citywest of Chicago and north of San Francisco. The actual yield of gold from thisarea of the Cariboo was close to 95 million dollars.Meanwhile on orders from Governor

James Douglas in 1861 the CaribooRoad was in process of being built bythe Royal Engineers and other contractors. It was to be 18 feet wide andextended from Yale to Barkerville. The480 mile project was completed in1865.Before long the famous Barnard Ex

press Coaches (better known as BXCoaches) began travelling the newly

3 B.C. Historical News - Summer 92

constructed Cariboo Road. These the lucky ones. Except for a few mulescoaches were usually drawn by six horses(two leaders, two spanners, and twowheelers) specially selected for their task.Horses were changed on the average ofevery thirteen miles hence the numerousMile Houses which were located alongthe Cariboo Road. In 1865 these coaches carried an estimated 1500 passengersand gold worth nearly five milliondollars.In addition mule trains plodded up

and down the Cariboo Road at the rateof 15 miles per day. Each animal carried from 150 to 200 pounds of freight.Perhaps the most famous ‘mule skinner’was Cataline (Jean Caux). It took amonth to cover the 480 miles.During 1861 inflation hit the cost of

necessities such as follows: 1. Flour rosefrom 25 cents per pound to 70 cents, 2.Beef rose from 12 cents a pound to 50cents and 3. Beans rose from 30 cents apound to 90 cents. A mining panwhich was worth only a few centsreached the 8 dollar price. Picks andshovels (without handles) brought 6 dollars each. With handles the price rose toseven dollars and fifty cents for eachitem. Gold dust could be exchanged for,oods at the rate of 17 dollars per ouncer sold for a maximum of sixteen dollarsand fifty cents cash.Much of the gold located in the upper

Fraser River area tended to be rathercoarser and in the form of nuggets ascompared to the fine gold recovered bypan washing on the sand bars of thelower Fraser River. Digging for golddown to bedrock handsomely rewardedsuch miners as Billy Barker, ‘Dutch’ BillDeitz and Cariboo Cameron. Flumes,sluice boxes and rocker washers were often constructed to assist miners insurface mining while the bedrock minersresorted to raising the dirt to the surfaceof the hole by means of a rope andbucket.The melting snow on the surrounding

high mountains often caused the rivers,streams and creeks to rise and wash outsuch homemade devices. Even theprimitive roads and trails were totallysubmerged during the run-off season inthe late spring (end of May).Broke, discouraged and hungry many

of the unlucky goldminers were forcedto hire themselves out as ‘packers’ for

other pack animals were of no use formuch of the year due to the rough terrain and frequent inclement weather.In September 1868 Barkervile was

completely destroyed by fire. Like aphoenix, within six weeks Barkervillebegan to rise from among the ashes.Life around Barkerville during theheight of the Gold Rush was of a typicalmining frontier type town with all thevices which included drinking, gambling, and sporting houses. By 1869the Anglican Church minister, Rev.James Reynard, had persevered againstgreat hardships and had built St. Saviour’s Church which still stands today atthe entrance to the restored Barkervilleof yesteryear.It only remains to state that many of

the Cariboo gold miners took advantageof the Pre-emption Law of 1860. Thusthese ex-miners became the founder ancestors of many of today’s CaribooCattle Ranches. The main terms of the1860 Preemption Law were:

1. Oath of allegiance to thesovereign.

2. Parcel of 160 acres of CrownLand.

3. Payment of two dollars recordingfee to the nearest magistrate whoissued a certificate of possession.

4. Permanent improvements were tobe at the rate of two dollars andfifty cents per acre, or an overalltotal of four hundred dollars onthe 160 acres (quarter section).(No time limit for theimprovements was imposed - thiswas added at a later date).

5. First right to purchase at onedollar per acre.

6. Mineral rights were NOTincluded.

7. First right to purchase adjoiningCrown Land at one dollar peracre.

The elusive search for gold in the Cariboo continues from time to time bylone prospectors and by big companyoperations down to the present day.

TD. Sale was a teacher in the Cariboo priorto W Wil. He is a B.C. history buffwith a special interest in the Can boo.

“Adveilisin” Ircm the 18CCA[113CC S[frTI%A[courtesy of Barkerville Archives

“The Cariboo Sentinel.”

GEORGE WALLACE, Paoratton.0ca—DAaxEltVlLLE, wluJAwI Cam, Caio.

Subecriptlon, $1 per week,(Tncluding cost of delivery,) Payable to Ito, Carnot.

THROUGII TO TALE 1116 1-2 bATS.EXPRESS FREIGILI’ ANT) PASSENGER

LINEStages and Saddle Train!tpnE MOST EXPIDITIOUS AND ECONO)4ICAT% AI well ss the most c”miortable mod• of travel U th.lower country Ia 17 thIs lineSADI)tE TItAIS l’av, Itichfleld on )(olsnAm ant

Tnuaet,avs at NOON, in time to catch the STAGE atUottonwoo’L for Quo.uel Mouth and the steamer forSoda Cek. BARNAIU)’S 51A051 lciv Soda Creekevery Mo.soay aol TIwISOat at Si. so. The Th,iriday’s hInge will lay over at Ik.aia’a, 111 mIte poet, and

Vat Cu’.rrn for reet; the Monday’s Stage at Ctz”ro,OSLY both arriving at sale in Usso to catch th. steam.era for New Wes tiialnt.r.j- Through Tickela may be obtained at hi Oc.

In Richilall.

Steamer “Enterprise,”J.eavca SODA CREIK Ibr QUESNEL.

MONDAY AND THURSDAY MORNINGS,AT DAYLIGHT,

Leavee QUESNKL for SODA CREEK.WEDNF.SDAYS SATUIU)AYS AT 4 A. M

Importa.ntto Minors!The undersigned Ia prepared to

CLEAN BLACK SAND, BLOWINGS ANT)PANNINGS,

On Coinmiasin, or will purchase any quantity on tiiMOST Lsosaai. Thas, at the

Reading Room, Cameronton.Suhcriher is uow weD known on Williams Creek, endfrom the conlilenco. rsjx.sed Irs bins last Fall in theabove ln,inww, he hopes to roeelve the patronage 01the Mining commanity the ensuing ve,a’n.

a JOUN BOWRON

BARNARD’S EXPRESS-FOR-

LILLOOET AND YALE,cosaecrzao wins

DIETZ & NELSON’S FOR V ECTORIA.Wift arrive at Riehfleld on Wvosis’isay and Stua.ycud el,oe on Moyt,*ys and Tnuoav . at NOON, enveyng Treasure, Letters and Valuabi s for ALL l’AltTi01’ TI45 WORLD,

. 3. BARNARD.

EXPRESS FROM WILLIAIS CREEKNeighboring Creeks and Gulches.

JOSEPh C. SL’OONER will run an ExpressRsuusaRiv, in coamcli’n with Barnrd’n lspro.s,fr”m Williams Creek toGrouao, gtoveiss, flegga, Antler,Cuiniugisam, ant }Csdthk’y Cr0 ks.letters, Ac., lobe left at Zxpross 0111cc, Ricbfleld,

or John Rule’s, 1trkervllie. V

EXPRESS FREIGHT.TUE RATES FOR flthGll? b)’ the Rugs taoa Yal. II to P.ichileld will be

to 25 lbs. . . . $101) 7526t01001b’s . . .ovcritlU1l. . .

Tnaooa En v oars.F. 3. BAItNAIW:

B.C. Historical News - Summer 92 4

The Chilcotin Warby Winston A. Shilvock

Compared with the United States,Canada had few bloody encounters withthe red man as the white maninexorably pushed his way across thecontinent. However, in 1864 BritishColumbia experienced a deadlyconfrontation which became known asthe Chilcotin War.The story begins when Alfred

Waddington commenced building aroad from the head of Bute Inlet tocross the Chilcotin to Barkerville,cutting 175 miles from the currentVictoria-Barkerville route via theCariboo Wagon Road.An initial survey-pack trail followed

the Homathko River for 40 miles wherea small ferry, manned by TimothySmith, was required to cross the river.On April 29 three Indians approachedSmith asking for food. Food was ascarce commodity in the whole regionand the natives in general were vergingon starvation. Smith must have refusedthem help for the trio assaulted andkilled him. Taking only food theyheaded east along the trail.Ten miles ahead was the main body of

road workers — 12 whites and 16Indians. Travelling during the night thethree Indians caught up with the groupshortly before dawn and while the whitemen slept the Indian workers wereprevailed upon to join the first three. Ittook little convincing for they had beenreceiving meager rations and werehungry and in an ugly mood. At thefirst light of dawn a quick attack was

made and nine men lay dead. In thehalf-light three escaped - Mosley,Petersen and Buckley.In the meantime, four miles eastward,

superintendent Brewster and three menwere blazing a trail for the main gang tofollow and were unaware of themassacre that had just taken place totheir rear. The Indians soon caught upwith them and it didn’t take long todispatch the four unsuspecting men.This time the Indians concealed some ofthe implements they captured but, asbefore, took only food with them.News of these successful forays spread

quickly via the “moccasin telegraph”and soon the raiding party grew to 30men led by Chief Tellot. With all thewhites in the area disposed of, theIndians headed over the Cascademountains for Puntzi Like. On the waythey came on the home of a settlernamed Manning and finding himnearby killed him. The number of deadwhite men now totalled 15.While all this was going on a supply

pack train led by Alexander McDonaldwas heading from Bentinck Arm tomeet the work crews at Puntzi Lake.He knew nothing of what hadhappened but an Indian womanaccompanying the group learned, asonly the Indians were able to do, of theevents and warned that an attack couldbe expected. McDonald thought thewarning a matter of hocus pocus andtravelled on. It wasn’t long until theIndian warriors, numbering 50 odd,

attacked from ambush and in quickorder killed the Indian woman, threepackers and McDonald. Althoughwounded, five men escaped.News of the first massacre didn’t reach

Victoria until May 14. The next day 28volunteers under the command ofChartres Brew, Chief Inspector ofPolice, left on H.M.S. Forward for ButeInlet intending to travel eastward intothe Chilcotin. However, they found theroute too difficult and after a fortnightreturned to Victoria. This delay causeda rethinking of strategy and it wasproposed to have forces advance into theChilcotin from the Cariboo on the eastand from the coast on the west and meetup at Puntzi Lake.Accordingly 50 men were organized in

the Cariboo under the command of“Judge” William G. Cox and leftAlexandria on June 8. When Coxarrived at Puntzi Lake four days later hewas dismayed to find that no forces hadarrived from the coast and he was aloneto face a multitude of hostile Indians.He quickly built a small fort on a slightrise and prepared for the worst.He realized his main hope was to

placate the Indians long enough forreinforcements to get to him so the nextday he sent Donald McLean to seek outChief Alexis and ask for a pow-wow.McLean was one time a Chief Traderfor the Hudson’s Bay Company atKamloops, and while a rembunctiousindividual, was generally regarded asfriendly by the Indians. Chief Alexis was

A’fred Waddington Chartres Brew DonaldMeLean

5 B.C. Historical News Summer 92

the most powerful and influential of allthe Chilcotin Chiefs and if consideredto be not entirely on the side of thewhite man was at least not unfriendly.McLean found Alexis and his band at

the junction of the Chilcotin andChilko rivers and although the Indianswere armed and restive he prevailed onAlexis to come to a meeting with Cox.However, before this good news couldbe conveyed, Cox stupidly attempted afoolhardy manoeuvre. He sent out ascouting party which a half mile fromthe fort ran into an ambush and had toretreat. This ended any chance for apow-wow and Cox was obliged tohunker down and wait.It wasn’t until June 13 that the

western party of 38 men was organizedand, again under the command ofChartres Brew, left New Westminsteron H.M.S. Sudej, this time to take theBentinck Arm route. Thenewly-appointed Governor FrederickSeymour accompanied the group to seethings first-hand.When the Arm was reached on June

24 the invading force ran into the fivesurvivors of the McDonald massacreand learned for the first time of thatevent. This news caused Brew to makea slow, cautious advance and it wasn’tuntil July 7 that he met up with Cox atPuntzi Lake.The white men now numbered 90 and

forays were made to attempt to locateand take on the Indians. On one ofthese, Donald McLean, although anexperienced woodsman, briefly let downhis guard and a camouflaged Indiankilled him with a bullet through theheart.No other encounters were made and

when Brew heard that the murderers hewanted were hiding near the coast heleft with his men to seek •them out.When the search failed he returned toVictoria.Cox held his position at the fort and

gradually the Indians began to relenttheir hostile attitude. One day ChiefAlexis presented himself to GovernorSeymour and carried with him amessage from the rebel chiefs Tellot andKiattasine who offered to ceasehostilities and give themselves up. Coxsaid he wished to make friends andwould guarantee the Indians safety ifthey came peacefully, so a meeting was

arranged for August 11.True to their word chiefs Tellot and

Klattasine and six of their followersalong with Chief Alexis and his bandarrived in good faith. But all thewanted men weren’t there. McDonaldhad killed one, two had committedsuicide and ten had taken to the hillsand vanished.As soon as the meeting began Cox

broke his word of friendship andguarantee of safety and ordered his mento surround the Indians who werecommanded to lay down their arms andsurrender as prisoners. The Indianswere stunned by this act of treacherybut in a stance of defiance and scorn,Chief Tellot is reputed to have smashedhis rifle against a tree and standing withhis arms folded across his chestexclaimed, “King George men are allgreat liars.”Thus, through duplicity, eight of the

wanted men were captured. Underheavy guard they were taken to QuesnelMouth (Quesnel) and kept in jail untilSeptember when Judge Begbie arrivedto conduct the trial. Two of the Indiansturned Crown witnesses, one wassentenced to life in prison but laterescaped and five were hanged. Thebodies were buried in unmarked graveson the bank of the Fraser River.During the Chilcotin War which

lasted from April 29 to August 11,1864, 20 white men lost their lives. Nocount was kept of the number ofIndians killed and it’s interesting tonote that while the Indians werelabelled as murderers, no suchappellation was attached to the whitekillers, none of whom were ever charged

or brought to trial.Opinions vary as to why the conflict

started but historical evidence appearsto favor that it was the unfair treatmentof the Indians by the white invaders,culminating in near-starvation thatbrought things to a head. As the whiteinvasion progressed into Indian landstheir way of life and ability to live offthe land rapidly began to disappear.Waddington’s intrusion and his men’scallous disregard of the Indians’ needfor food proved the final straw.In every instance of a raid and

massacre, it should be remembered thatonly food was taken and tools,instruments and money were leftbehind. It thus seems thatindiscriminate plunder wasn’t a motive.Starvation breeds drastic action.Although Judge Begbie hanged five of

the Indians, he apparently felt for theirsituation for during the trial he stated,“The treatment of the Indians,employed in packing, received at thehands of Brewster and his party was atonce calculated to arouse their cupidityand provoke their vengeance.”Only 40 miles of Waddington’s road

was ever completed and by a quirk offate he died of smallpox in 1872 just tenyears after the same white man’s greatkiller had ravaged the Indians.The Chilcotin War is now an almost

forgotten event in British Columbiahistory but two reminders of it remainin the names of Mount Waddingtonand Alexis Creek.

We are grateful to Winston Shilvock frrsuggesting, then researching this topic frr ourCariboo issue.

\4FORT GEORGE

BARKERVILLE\,

ALER0 BELLACOOLA

- SOEA CREEKR WILLIAMS LAKE

R.E*RASEflOEE

ILL

=NA AIMG EWJESTMINSTERFORT LANGLEY

B.C. Historical News - Summer 92 6

War Bride in the ChilcotinbyAnthonyP. Farr

In 1793 Alexander MacKenzie was thefirst white man to see the 8000-square-mile Chilcotin Plateau, a region of forest, lakes and open range extending atan elevation of some 3000 feet from theFraser River to the Coast Mountains.This is magnificent country for fish

and game. Paul St. Pierre, former Chilcotin MP and author of the ‘CaribooCountry’ series of TV plays, compares,not wholly in jest, a 6-in, long fish ofeastern Canada with those found in hisriding which also measure 6 inches - between the eyes. It is in this part of B.C.that the life of the pioneers comes closest to living memory and where thepeople of the mid-2Oth century facedconditions not very much changed.Here is a glimpse of this life, seen

through the pen of Mary, a war bridewho left London to share the fortunes ofa rancher - guide near Tatlayoko Lake -an Indian name meaning ‘Rough Water’- on a 160-acre farm raising a hundredhead of Herefords. Mary’s story is inthe form of selections from letters to another immigrant in Vancouver.All measurements in the text have

been retained in Imperial units or Fahrenheit degrees. The use of metric unitswould be an anachronism and deviationfrom the actual words of Mary’s letters.

3 August 1958We’ve had some hot weeks lately, close

to 90°, though I can still see snow onthe peaks from my kitchen window.Most summers we get frosts about oncea month usually when the moon is full,but this year everything is early. Hayingis almost over, when normally we havehardly begun.I arrived eleven years ago in midwinter

and did the last twenty miles by horseteam and sleigh. At beef time the rancher drove their cattle to town on foot andit took seventeen days.We lead a simple life, eat moose and

deer meat, keep chickens, grow vegetables, have a cow for milk and do all ourshopping by mail order. There is noelectricity; our nearest store and tele

phone is 21 miles away and our nearestdoctor is at Williams Lake, 180 mileseast. We have three boys: Stephen,nine; Ross, six; and Glenn, 18 months.Our closest neighbours are 11/2 milesdown the Homathko River which runsright by our house. We have a littleschool three miles up the valley andthree miles the other way is the northend of Tatlayoko Lake.

25 October 1958A week ago Jenny down the road had

a frightening experience. Her husbandwas away, on a guiding trip. It was still,peaceful weather. Suddenly Jennyheard one of their pigs squealing frantically. She rushed over to the pen and abig black bear jumped at her. Jennyscrambled up the nearest tree. Luckilyit was a sapling about four inchesthrough and too slender for the bear toclimb. She began to scream every namethat came into her head and the bearkept slapping at the tree, causing it tosway wildly with her in the branches.She tried to climb higher and thebranch broke beneath her foot and lefther dangling above the bear. From timeto time it left her alone and went backto eating the stomach out of the pig,which remained alive and squealing forover an hour. Every time Jenny triedscreaming, the bear came back to thetree; so she decided to stay quiet. Shehad no coat on and after a couple ofhours it began to get dark. The bear bythis time was so full of pig that he waspanting, and he covered up the remainswith leaves, then lay down to sleep.Jenny crept down the tree and ran tothe house. Next day she looked ill withshock and her legs were an awful messof deep scratches and bruises from thetree. Several people have since tried toclimb the tree she was in, but no onecan.Jenny and I will have the job of mak

ing all the popcorn balls for the kids’Christmas party.

22 August 1960The weather has turned cold and I’m

afraid we shall have to make silage of theremaining three hay fields. We are notvery expert at this silage business yet.It’s messy looking stuff, and I can’tblame the cows for not eating it. I decided that either our silage was spoiledor our cows are too fussy, as other farmers claim their cattle gobbled up theirsilage greedily.

30 December 1960My husband Ken has to go to Vancou

ver. I’m not looking forward to beingalone at this time of year, and I alwaysfeel a wee bit panicky when I see thefrost inside the house, and the kids’clothes frozen to the wall, and us stillfrantically stoking the fires to drive itout again. He plans to start building anew house this spring.We had forest fires all around us this

summer. They spread for miles chasingall wildlife before them. Some visitorsalmost got trapped in the canyon by afire, and they backed their car all theway out and came in on the old road,which is really just a boulder-strewntrack. They said that living in the citythey couldn’t really picture how bad thefires are. One fire came a little too closefor comfort. It began after dark and thewhole mountain-side looked like a cityat night. We got all ready to leave butthe men managed to cut a firebreak justin time. The biggest lumber merchantsin Williams Lake want to include Tatlayoko Lake in their work circle.There’s only one consolation I can seeand that is that we shall get forest fireprotection.Work on the new house is all in my

head. Ken is too busy keeping the ranchgoing. Home is just a shelter.Stephen has a small trapline this year

to earn a few dollars. He has three lynx,a coyote and a lovely big mink. Glennis his usual pesky little self, and this isthe month of Knocked Over accordingto him

7 B.C. Historical News . Summer 92

5 January 1962My sister in England got married in

October and from the list I sent her ofpossible presents she chose a wool comforter. I groaned - she can’t possiblyknow the work involved - cutting thewool off a fleece, then washing, drying,teasing, carding and finally sewing itinto cheesecloth. Now there’s only theouter cover left to do.

1 October 1962Ken has been getting very deaf this

year and the doctor in Williams Lakesent him down to Shaughnessy Hospital. I can no longer mutter things undermy breath to him, and he can’t hearbirds and squirrels when he is out riding, or horse bells or deer in the woods.We were building a root cellar when

he had to leave. We got the cementpoured for it, and he gave the kids a listof jobs to do towards it. I helped byshovelling earth over a 6-foot wall allday yesterday, and my muscles are protesting today.Well, I have to punch my bread down

next. Are you planning on coming upthis winter? Keep in mind our outsidetoilet - the torture rack.

29 December 196.2Ken can now hear again - thank heav

ens. The doctors did a complete cure.The river froze over in a very unusual

manner this year. It seemed to be covered with a sheet of clear glass, very frail,but upon examining it we found cracksand trapped leaves and twigs that indicated the ice was three to four inchesthick. Yesterday we walked down theriver on the ice and lay on it to watchlittle fish darting about in fear at thetribe of monsters staring at them.

16 January 1964Last summer we camped beside the At

narko River. We caught rainbow, DollyVarden and coho, and then we saw hugespring salmon leaping right out of thewater and sailing effortlessly over somerocks. They must have been three feetlong and a foot thick. I hastily reeled inmy line in case I caught one. I’d eitherhave to let him have the lot or go withhim.The vicious mosquitoes also impressed

me - enormous ones. All that swampand muskeg is a vast breeding groundfor those vampires. Too bad for anyonewanting to use the ‘bathroom’.

Glenn’s chief delight is the cat - agolden kitty named Leo, Goldie, OldYeller and Mr. Needles.I lose interest in the new house except

when Ross’s bed goes through the floor,or Glenn finds a toad hopping aroundthe bedroom, or the so-called bathroomis black with ants.

24 June 1964The other day Ken and I took a case

of dynamite up the hill to blow outsome lengths of ditch. Afterwards weboth had blasting headaches - a common ailment when using dynamite.Ken, nervous of the caps, gave them tome to mind, and I had them in a breastpocket. When we got home, there werestill five caps left in a screw of paper,and, unknown to me, Ken took themout of my coat and put them on the table. After a brief lunch we lay down toget rid of the headaches, and after awhile I got up and made some tea. Icalled Ken and hastily snatched up allthe odds and ends of junk and stuffedthem in the fire - and, yes, those fivecaps went in too. We were sittingdrinking our tea when ‘BOOM!’ thestove lids all flew off the stove and agreat cloud of ashes and sparks andburning chunks of wood belched intothe room. Ken leaped to his feet praying, at least I guess he was. I kept righton sitting there - I remember thinking‘Good job I wasn’t standing there cooking’. It took a lot of elbow grease toclean the place up but the only damagewas a hole in the grates. I don’t thinkI’ll forget that day though.The house is progressing at last. We

have bought a mountain of buildingsupplies - pink plumbing and all.

12 January 1965On 22 December in sub-zero weather

I got my crew assembled and we movedinto the new house. I felt a traitor leaving the poor old house to freeze up allalone after sheltering us for eighteenwinters!

30 March 1965While I was down in Vancouver, I had

a letter from Ken to say that Glenn hadtaken his toy popgun up in the pastureto look at the traps he had out for squirrels. In one of them was a skunk, andGlenn cocked his trusty musket and wasabout to give him what for, but theskunk shot first and Glenn came home

to tell Ken he had been sprayed by askunk. As if Ken needed any telling.Ken said he used a 40-foot pole to gethis clothes off, and I was nervous offinding the whole house still reeking,but he had managed to get rid of thesmell. What became of the clothes I’venever investigated.

11 October 1965It got hotter than I’ve ever seen it this

year, up in the nineties. I only wentswimming once though, and once I fellin the river. I was helping that dopeyhusband of mine prime a pump that wasmounted on the end of a couple ofplanks. They weren’t fastened downand I teetered on the end that was slowly pitching me in the river and couldn’tdo a thing to save myselE Ken giggledlike a maniac.

25 January 1966Since Ken is chairman of the Centen

nial committee we had an invitationfrom Governor Pearkes to an old-timeball, but we had to decline. First, notenough spare cash, second, it’s in Victoria - too far away, third, it’s in Apriland we can’t leave the place in calvingtime, and fourth, it would be too lavishfor the likes of us country mice.

29 January 1966Christmas was a one-day affair for us,

as Ken had to go out to look for our lostbulls on Boxing Day. With two to threefeet of snow on the ground, he had waited till then, hoping for a thaw. Thethaw came, but then it rained and afrost followed, making the snow so solidand crusty that we could walk on top ofit. Stephen went with him, and theyfound the bulls in fairly strong condition, but it took them three days to getthem home, and the bulls’ legs werebadly cut by the snow crust.Ken now has the job of postmaster for

the valley, but with the ranch keepinghim so busy, I do most of the mailwork.

l4January 1967If the kids all go away to school, Ken

will be alone while I’m on holiday inSeptember and then when I come backI’ll take their place outside whenever heneeds help, such as with the cowboying.I rode down the lake last spring but riding is not my favourite sport and I wishthere was a more comfortable way ofdoing it.

B.C. Historical News Summer 92 8

One cold January morning (a mailday) Ken touched a turning power-takeoff shaft with a wet mitt, and it froze instantly to the metal. He came into thehouse and said “Mary, I’ve pulled mythumb off,” and he held up the evidence. There was a stump left from thesecond joint, but the skin had torn offclean from the base of the thumb. Iwanted to shut my eyes and tell myself Iwas in a dream. With the aid of twopeople who had come with mail, we gotthe pick-up truck ready and his handbandaged. I fed him a couple of 292’s.In fifteen minutes he was on the roadfor the doctor’s and then I got throughmail day with a sick lump in my stomach. The doctor had to saw off thestump of bone as there was no skin towrap around it. It is all healed now, andalthough he misses it a great deal (it wasthe right one), he is managing mostthings very well.

11 January 1969Last week it was really cold, down to

42 below, and we had an endless battleto keep things thawed out, since wehave gone all modern with the plumbing bit. When the pioneers just hadfrozen wild meat and dried foods and awater bucket, such extreme cold spellscame and went with scarcely a ripple,but these days everything is thrown intochaos.I see the south wind has begun to

blow. The heavy snow on the trees willbe shaking off soon and it will look lesswintry.

(Adaptedfrom an article in the Winter1971 issue ofThe Countryman and reprinted by kindpermirsion ofthe editor).

Tony Farr is a bard working member of theB.C Historical Federation and the Saltspring Island Historical Society.

9 B.C. Historical News Summer 92

Peace River Pioneer

by C.j St. Cyr-Tompkins

At age twenty-six, in November 1917Emily Tompkins, a war bride, motherof two baby boys, ages 20 months and 3months, successfully escaped the rationed conditions of England during theGreat War only to settle in the unimaginable, primitive conditions of the PeaceRegion of Northern British Columbia.It is hard to imagine the bustling sea

port of Bristol, England, an importantnerve centre for military supplies industries, where trams linked cities withinhours, where variety shows were plentyand the mild climate lended itself to orchards, as a proving ground for apioneer lady.In 1891 Emily (Emilia) was born to

Thurza and Fredrick Budd, a poorwheelmaker, in Bristol England. Shewas the eldest girl in a family of ten children, and due to depressed conditions athome, Emily was forced to work at theImperial Tobacco Co. at the age oftwelve.Ten years later, still working at the

same factory pasting cigarette packages,she met a Canadian soldier while on herway to a burlesque with a girlfriend.Philip Tompkins, a sergeant with the9th Battalion from Edmonton, Alberta,was in town with a special detail for amilitary funeral and was instantly attracted to Emily.“I didn’t like his mustache, but I fan-

cied him otherwise!” remembers Emily. “We wrote letters and when hereturned with shrapnel wounds gainedat the battle of Ypres, he proposed.”Emily still recalls his exact words: “Iwill not return to the front a singleman.For an entire month, Emily chased all

over town for the required signatures ofprominent figures vouching for hercharacter, and physical certification, requested by the military. “I had to taketime off work,” she said. “And at theend, the military moved too slow, wemarried without consent. Since Philipsent all his money to his mother inCanada, I even had to buy the weddingring!”On May 29, 1915, Philip and Emily

were married by the Justice of the Peacein Bristol. When the military discovered his civil marriage, he was strippedof his stripes and returned to the fronton the Continent.Little mail was received from the

trenches so Emily turned to the newspaper for grim reports on the battles,always checking the list of casualties.She continued her work at the factoryuntil late in her pregnancy. On March17, 1916, Eric their first child wasborn. During Philip’s leave, telegramswere dispatched to Canada.

The Royal Navy kept the civilian population of Britain immune from directattack except for the sporadic raidsfrom zeppelins concentrated over theEast Coast.“We rarely saw any aircraft, and when

we did, we went out in the streets tomarvel at those cigar-shaped flying machines. They appeared to have littlecontrol over the winds and their aimwas so poor they rarely hit a target.Most of their bombs exploded in farfields or the ocean,” said Emily.But the war at sea caused increasing

hardships on Britain who relied on imports for a high proportion of her foodand many essential raw materials. Emily had to deal with shelves in stores thatwere near bare with most of the cardboard boxes being dummies and line-ups for merchandise getting longer every day. The food ration couponspurchased very little with the inflatedprices and no choices.On August 18, 1917, Emily produced

a second son, Brian. While Philip wason leave he examined a live grenadewith a faulty pin and accidentally set itoff Three of his fingers on his lefthand were blown off and his right eyewas injured. The military advised himof his impending discharge and returnto Canada.Though Philip was born and schooled

in Brockville, Ontario, he had movedto Edmonton, Alberta, for work.While exploring the northern region ofthe province, he had fallen in love withthe Peace River country. A farm boy atheart, his love for the land was ingrained and his vision of his return toCanada included a dream farm in a vastunoccupied territory where he wouldshow Emily marvels of uncrowded andnatural surroundings. He promisedsomeday he would be a ‘Somebody”important in the history of his country.Emily, devoted to her husband, read

ied herself and the two babies for the10 day sea voyage to an alien landwhere everything was plentiful. Armedwith a bag of rags for diapers, she

Sgt Philip F Tompkins -1915. EmilyA. Budd- 1915

B.C. Historical News Summer 92 10

boarded the troop ship while her husband was convalescing in a medicaloutpost.Seasickness quickly took its toll and

Emily could no longer nurse her baby.Beer bottles were sterilized and condensed milk was fed to the infant. Theinfirmary attendant on the ship helpedthe distressed mother.“We were so sick,” recalled Emily.

“The dirty diapers went out the porthole

Late October 1917 Emily and the children, sick with dysentery, docked inMontreal, Quebec. As pre-instructed byher husband, they awaited his arrival atSue and Tom McNish’s (his cousin)home where they recuperated.Three weeks later Philip joined them

and the family boarded a train. Still frailfrom the sea voyage, Emily wondered ifshe would survive the interminable journey through an unending vastness ofuncivilized wilderness.“It took longer to get through the

province of Ontario than it took to crossEngland from Plymouth to London,”said Emily. “We were days passing fewstations through rolling land. Across frozen prairies covering stubble fields, thetrain slowly, ever so slowly, made its waynorthwest through wooded areas withsmall patches of open plains.”When they arrived in Edmonton, Al

berta, they were greeted by a cold snapwhere the British bride finally met hermother-in-law, Martha Tompkins. Emily’s welcome was rewarding but herexpectation of the city was a great disappointment. Compared to Bristol it wasonly a crude, small northern outpostwith only one main street.Her first introduction to primitive con

ditions was the outdoor privies lined upbehind the houses like sentry boxes atBuckingham Palace. Hanging the washoutdoors in the winter was anothershocking surprise. Clothes stiffened likeboards had to be carefully pried from theline to avoid tearing where they were fastened with a wooden pin. Used to atemperate climate in Bristol where thethermometer rarely varied made thismerciless weather cruel. Exposed tomercury drops to 60 degrees below zerovirtually made her a prisoner in her ownhome.Emily and Philip’s stay in Edmonton

was short. Philip looked to the ‘lastfrontier’ for his dream farm. The Peace

Region in northern British Columbiawas mostly a spill-over from the Albertaside and new settlers were attractedwith land offers of $1 0/quarter sectionfor homesteading. With the militarygrants and government loans offered after a tour of duty in the Great War,Philip enlisted the help of his brotherStuart to pool their resources. In August 1919, the brothers purchased asection of land at the junction of thePeace and Halfway Rivers, midway between Fort St. John and Hudson’sHope.Those were the days when Fort St.

John was still a trading post with thecompeting Hudson Bay and RevillonFreres. The fort had a government telegraph office and sub-land agency; apolice post; and the usual complementof cabins, warehouses and Indiantepees.It was a time when there were no

roads, only trails for horses, a time ofriver travel by sternwheelers. From1919 to 1929 the D.A. Thomas riverboat operating from Peace River Town,Alberta to Hudson’s Hope carried 100passengers and over 200 tons of cargo.It was not all clear sailing, often theboats encountered sandbars, changingwater levels, ice and spring run-offs thatcould delay delivery for days, evenweeks in extreme conditions.Emily had married Philip for better or

worse; she carried her burden in silenceand loyally served him, though shemust have questioned her sanity manytimes. It was a journey of 7 to 10 daysfrom Edmonton to the Halfway.Over swamps and bogs, the train

crept and crawled as far as Peace RiverTown, then the riverboat went up thePeace River to British Columbia’s Cadenhead’s landing. Because of theshallow water sternwheelers could notland at the Tompkins farm. Boats of20-30 feet with makeshift motors fromcar engines navigated the channel downthe Halfway River with little freightand few passengers. The pregnant Emily, wary of the small vessel, chose thehorse drawn wagon ride for the lastmile to her new home. It proved to bean extremely bumpy and taxing trial.At the confluence of the Peace and

Halfway rivers, the homestead was located in a land without habitation.Provision lists had to cover a sixmonths’ period because of the compli

cated travel to Edmonton. In those daysof undeveloped wilderness in northernBritish Columbia, it was an ordeal oftwo weeks or better each way to reachVancouver by rail via Peace RiverTown-Edmonton-Jasper-YellowheadPass, down the Thompson River pastKamloops.Philip and his family shared a four

room log house with Stuart and his wifeEdna. That winter was the coldest onrecord with an unusual amount of snow,and cattle freezing. Soon the two brothers engaged in serious disputes andparted with heated words, never toreconcile.The lack of medical services was a real

concern. In January of 1920 Philip putan ad in the Edmonton newspaper for adomestic and mid-wife to help Emilywith household chores and the deliveryof her babies. Emma Jensen, a singlemother from Sweden was interviewedand hired forsaking all previous ties.Emily’s first daughter, Alice, born on

March 26, 1920 is believed to have beenthe first white baby born in the region.Emma was a godsend, an immigrantfrom ‘The Old Country’ and her company, confident manners, and eventemperament proved indispensablethrough the years. According to Philip,Emily baked the best bread in the entireworld but could achieve very little culinary delights. Emma taught her how tocook ‘Canadian Style’.Just when Emily thought she had been

exposed to every cruelty of the backcountry — biting insects, extreme heat,

Emily leavesfor Grande Prairie on this steamer -1926 On shore are the hiredbana Pbiltt,Tompkins, DonakL Alice, Brian andEric.

11 B.C. Historical News Summer 92

frost in July, poison ivy, and wild animals — she met Indians . . . savages ontheir land by the river!In the summer, the Sikanni Indians

hunted and fished; in the winter, theytrapped and their yearly pilgrimage tookthem past the Tompkins farm, wherefor centuries they used the same trail tohigher grounds for the summer. InEngland, Emily had learned of savageswho massacred white people and for thefirst year kept herself and the babies barricaded in the house. How was she toknow them from the peaceful tribes?During lean years when winter had

been exceptionally hard the wild gamewas scarce. The Indians were nearlystarved living off the snowshoe rabbits,and babies could be heard crying whilethe squaws helplessly watched them die.Though Emily learned to keep a respectable distance between her and thecamping Indians, she did from time totime leave bits of food that she couldspare for the squaws to feed their children. Without a word spoken, thewomen communicated with motherlyinstincts.“They were proud people and never as

much as stole a chicken,” Emily said ofthem. “And some years were very, veryhard indeed.”While Philip and the hired hands

cleared and broke new fields and tendedto the beasts, Emily honed her skills incooking, churning butter, sewing anddarning. There was not a moment tospare and the days were not longenough.Fall brought the canning of wild meat

and vegetables to sustain the family forthe winter. Emma was a great help asEmily had no experience in these areas.After years of rationing in Bristol, thisabundance of food was overwhelmingand she gratefully grated, peeled, cored,jarred and cooked as instructed.Soon, dreaded winter was upon them

again, making already taxing tasks almost impossible. The drying of clothesnever ended. Once a batch was finallyironed and put away, it was time to startanother. Breaking ice for water andmelting snow was another daily burden.It took a pailfull of snow to yield approximately 4 inches of water.Socializing was not an issue; they weretoo tired to care.In 1922 Emily lost a baby at birth.

Later that year she received news of thedeath of her parents. They both diedwithin a year of each other. It was impossible to attend either funeral as theywere barely surviving — there was nomoney for a trans-Atlantic voyage. Heronly visible link with Bristol was the occasional letters from her sisters andbrothers.In 1923, on May 25th, Emily was

sowing the garden when she doubledover with abdominal pain. She went indoors to rest and James was bornpremature, only a few pounds. She suffered complications with the afterbirthand had to be sent to Pouce Coupe, theonly medical outpost in the North established by the Alberta Red Cross in1921.Philip took his wife down river on a

homemade raft of logs with a single rudder. “The river was swollen and thenight was very cold. Philip rigged ahutch of sorts with wool blankets insideto keep me warm,” she recalled. “AtRolla Landing we had to go by horseand wagon to Pouce Coupe. It was aterrible journey.”Emily received medical attention and

was kept there ten days awaiting a boatto return home. It was the only vacation she had had since her marriage.Emily never rode horses, leaving her

with only two alternatives: walking orusing a wagon with a team of horses.Roads, if any, were narrow, poorly keptand you risked your life on them. Youhad to clutch the seat and brace yourfeet against the front board to avoid being flung out as the wagon rattled andbumped. A wise traveler would keep acushion handy to buffer against violenceto be endured for hours as it was theonly way to get around. Every time itrained, the road became an impassablemud trench.On October 13, 1924, Arthur was

born in Pouce Coupe. Eric was eightyears old, Brian seven, and they wereunder the direction of their father learning farm chores and sampling his heavy-handed discipline. Emily never objected — he was the boss.Emily went almost two years without

having a baby, then made up for it.With the expected arrival of a baby atthe end of October, in September shewas forced to take the last sternwheelerof the season to Dunvegan where she

transferred to ground transportation forher destination: the hospital at GrandePrairie, Alberta. On October 30, 1926,she delivered twins: Margaret and Bill.She recalls that event well. “On the

trip back home, I sat next to the mailman, Ed Anderson, in a truck with thebabies bundled in a laundry basket nextto the mail and we had our first overnight stop at the Cutbank. The PeaceRiver was not frozen solid yet and wehad to transfer to a boat to cross the river — to a sleigh, then stayed overnight atFort St. John, at Mrs. Pickles the wife ofthe telegraph operator. The next day weswitched mailmen; Douglas Cadenheadtook us home with another overnightstop at Cache Creek, halfway to thefarm.1928 saw the opening of the first

school on the Halfway. It was a smalllog dwelling the size of a chicken coopwith a sod roof, and was named Forfarin honor of the settler from whom Philip had purchased the land.After school the older boys helped

their father with freighting down theHalfway River and met passengers offthe sternwheelers. Philip turned Emily’shome into a way-station, keepingabreast of progress and political events.The travelers stranded due to inclementweather or delays in secondary transportation stayed at the Tompkins farmuntil they could continue their journey.Some were settlers, others were lookingfor work; all were fed.With one cake of yeast, Emily made a

laundry tub full of bread batter. It tooka hired man to mix it. (In Bristol, Emily used to take her mother’s bread inpillow cases to the bakery down thestreet and picked it up after her shift atthe factory. Their hearth did not havean oven and the Budds did not have agas cooker until Emily was eighteenyears old.)On the farm, it took all day to bake

the week’s supply of twenty loaves.Controlling the wood stove’s oven was amaneuver in itselfwith the correct combination of dry and green wood. “Wehad to cook for tables of twenty at atime,” Emily recalls. “There were always hired men to be fed and bedded,our family of eleven, and travelers.”In 1929 Emma was plagued by terrible

headaches which led to her early deathon March 19, 1930, leaving the family

B.C. Historical News . Summer 92 12

shocked and Emily devastated. In September 1936, Emily’s first born, Eric,died ofpneumonia.1938 saw the construction of the

bridge at the Halfway linking Hudson’sHope and Fort St. John by road. Philip’s newly acquired sawmill, whichmeant more men to board and feed,supplied most of the lumber. It also introduced his sons to road constructionwith the filling of the approach to thebridge. Motor vehicles and road transportation revolutionized the areabringing in civilization, technology andgas explorations.The Tompkins family prospered

through the years with Philip’s amazingability to predict services and marketsand did fulfill his promise to Emily tobecome a ‘Somebody’. In the Peace Region of British Columbia, Philip becameknown as: “PFT the King of theHalfway”.Emily who enjoyed long walks to rid

herself of stress, was forced to a wheelchair with a stroke that paralyzed herleft side in December 1974. Formonths, she refused to speak or cooperate for recovery. No one could haveblamed her for giving up but her senseof duty to her husband, to honor andobey, must have been overwhelming because she did eventually snap back tolife.Emily remained loyal to her husband

even after his death in 1986, at the ageof 95. This pioneer celebrated her100th birthday on August 2, 1991 inthe midst of loving family and friends,surrounded with all the modern conveniences. The lady who lived from horseand buggy travels to spaceships has noregrets and finds today’s wife too spoiledand too impatient. She still has an excellent memory, loves shopping anddearly enjoys music and reading. Emily’s advice for a long productive life is:“Keep busy and keep your mouth shut.”

**********

The writer is currently researching WIlY!brides. She has won awards for earlier literaryworks, and is an inspiration to the Vernon Writera G,rntp.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. A History of Everyday Things in England 1914 -1%8;S.E. Ellacott — Batsford 1968.

2. The Last Summer — May to September 1914;Kirsty McLeod — Collins 1983.

3. Condition of England — Essays and Impressions;Lincoln Allison —Junction 1981.

4. Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother; Trevor Hall —Colour Library 1987.

5. Engjand in the Twentieth Century; David Thomson;Pelican 942. THO

6. Enqrdopedia Britannica.7. Weapons & Warlres Eneydopedia.8. War Brides ofWWII; “From Romance to Reality”;

Peggy O’Hara — Highway Bookshop 1983.9. Mrs. Milburn’s Diaries; An Englishwoman’s Day-to

Day Reflections 1939-45;Schocken Books; 940.53 MIL.

10. Peace River Chronicles; 81 Eye-witness Accounts ofthe Peace River Region of British Columbia;Gordon E. Bowes — Prescott Publishing 971. 187.

11. This Was Our Valley; Matheson Pollon —Detselig Enterprises.

12. WWI Brides — Letters from; Canadian National RedCross, Ottawa. Ontario; Veterans Affairs, OttawaOntario; Immigration Canada, Ottawa Ontario; BristolUniversity, England.

Most of the article was drawn from interviews with Emily and her fisinily.

13 B.C. Historical News - Summer 92

The Coastal Princessesby Daphne Baldwin

There are no Princess ships on theBritish Columbia coast now. The B.C.Ferries have replaced them. Nor werethe Princesses the first passenger shipsthere. However, as B.C. has alwayslooked to the sea, been explored and settled from the sea, it was ships thatbrought settlers, provisioned and serviced the often tiny communities upand down the coast. Before the adventof Hudson’s Bay men to trade and buildforts, Indians moved freely by canoethroughout coastal waters. Later, miners, in search of gold, took ship up theFraser and Stikine Rivers.The actual date of the beginning of

coastal shipping can be pinpointed asMay 24, 1827, when the Hudson’s Bayschooner Cadboro arrived on the Columbia River to inaugurate regularsupply and trading voyages. In 1836the Hudson’s Bay Company expandedtheir service with the Beaver, a steamdriven vessel which dominated the coasttrade until 1883. It was in that yearthat the H.B.C. fleet combined with thePioneer Line, which had operated a rivalservice, to form the Canadian PacificNavigation Company with the H.B.C.retaining a controlling interest. Then,in 1901, it was announced that the Canadian Pacific Railway Company hadgained control of the Canadian PacificNavigation Company. The Companywas wound up in 1903 and was succeeded by the B.C. Coast Service of theCanadian Pacific Railway.Three men dominate the history of

coastal shipping service in British Columbia. They are Sir James Douglas,Capt. John Irving and Capt. J.W.Troup. However, it was H.B.C. Governor Sir George Simpson whoconceived the idea to engage in coastaltrade rather than simply transport supplies and trade goods to the forts. TheCadboro arrived on the Columbiawhence Dr. John McLoughlin, incharge of the division, dispatched her tothe newly established Fort Langley onthe Fraser River. Conditions were haz

ardous, murder by Indians not unknown. Crews were hard to come byuntil the Hawaians, or Kanakas as theywere called, were recruited. In his dispatches to Governor Simpson, Dr.McLoughlin repeatedly pointed out thehazards of coastal travel, the hundredsofwar canoes carrying forty to fifty meneach and the inadequacy of the Cadboro armaments for defense. However, in1829, the Governor and Committee decided to pursue the maritime tradevigorously. From then until 1849, theCadboro remained a fixture on thecoast to supply the forts, provide disciplinary action and engage in activetrading.The Beaver arrived on the coast in the

spring of 1836 having left England 225days previously. From then until hersomewhat inebriated crew ran heraground on Prospect Point, Burrard Inlet, in 1888, she traded throughout thecoastal waters. Like all H.B.C. ships shewas armed, always kept in shipshapefashion with plenty of spit and polishand naval discipline. This was a tradition which in large measure carrieddown to the Princesses.By 1843, the decision to move H.B.C.

headquarters to Fort Victoria broughtthe coastal vessels under the control ofChief Factor James Douglas. In 1853the Otter, the first propeller-drivensteamer, arrived to join the Beaver inproviding transport for Douglas andH.B.C. officials for trading, exploringfor coal, maintaining order and generally conducting Company business.It is amazing to read with what appar

ent ease these small vessels, (Beaver 70ft.long and Otter 122ft.), travelled in allweather, often in the face of belligerenttribes. Douglas kept trouble to a minimum by strict law observance. Heacted promptly and did not hesitate tocall in the Royal Navy which, by 1850,was a presence on the coast. Beaver wasactually under charter to the Admiraltyfor eight years as a survey ship. She was

also a passenger vessel, albeit apparentlynot a comfortable one.With the coming of the Fraser River

gold rush in 1858-59, Douglas realizedthat there was a need for a passenger service to transport miners and freight tothe Fraser from Victoria. There was alsomoney to be made. By 1861 businesswas booming. Newspapers reported$1,500,000 in Cariboo gold dust wasdelivered by ship to Victoria betweenAugust 17th and October 3 1st. Moreships were both needed and purchased.One of these ships was re-named Princess Louise and ran from Victoria toNew Westminster. She was the first vessel to carry the title of Princess on thecoast but, fifty years later there was to bea line of them.The purchase of the Olympia, re

named Princess Louise was the result ofthe challenge made by Capt. John Irvingto the H.B.C. for traffic on the Victoria-New Westminster run. Capt. Irvinghad up-river sternwheelers which hadtaken over all traffic from New Westminster to Yale. Now he wanted thetrade from Victoria but the H.B.C. refused to co-operate. The fight was on tosee who could provide the better, fasterservice. Both parties looked to purchasespeedier vessels and, by means of a rate-cutting war, entice the passenger andfreight trade. Eventually the PioneerLine founded in 1862 by Capt. WilliamIrving, father of Capt. John Irving, combined with the H.B.C. fleet to form theCanadian Pacific Navigation Co. Ltd.in 1883.The river boat masters were a colourful

lot who honed their skills on the riversand straits of the north Pacific. Manygave their names to geographic featuressuch as Brotchie Ledge and WalbranPark but Capt. John Irving was the mostpersonally renowned. Six feet tall andwith a naturally reckless disposition, hewas already an experienced river pilot atseventeen. Self-confident, popular andgenerous, he became a leading figure onthe B.C. coast for the next thirty years.

B.C. Historical News Summer 92 14

He loved a party and conceived the ideafor coastal cruises which he captainedhimselE In 1873 he inaugurated a runfrom Victoria and up the Stikine in ashallow-draught steamer which he hadhad built in Victoria. This was in response to gold being discovered inCassiar. At the same time he renewedhis challenge for the Yale run. Cut-ratesreduced fares to 25&The incorporation of the Canadian Pa

cific Navigation Co. Ltd. in 1883 putan end to competition and allowed thecompany to profit from the great expansion of trade arising from theconstruction of the Canadian PacificRailway. It was a natural outcome tothe rivalry between the H.B.C. and thePioneer line. They had bested all rivalsin the Fraser River trade. In a way, aconnection with the H.B.C. remained asboth Capt. John Irving and his financialadvisor, RP. Rithet, had married daughters of Sir James Douglas. The shipswere kept busy on an almost non-stopbasis until the completion of the railwayin July, 1886, brought a drop in freight.In 1887 the Canadian Pacific Naviga

tion Co. decided to build two finepassenger steamers, the Premier and theIslander in response to the new passenger traffic generated by the completionof the C.P.R. It was also decided to enter the Puget Sound trade which wasbooming following the arrival of theNorthern Pacific Railway in Tacoma in1887. Herein lay the germ of the passenger service maintained by thePrincess vessels in the next century.Again rivalry, this time with Americaninterests, and not a little skull-duggery,ensued. Capt. Irving was never far fromthe forefront of battle to obtain passengers through rate reduction andexcellence of service.The Islander was a true forerunner of

the Princess ships in design and appointments. She was used, in additionto her usual run, as a cruiseship to Alaska. However, when news of theKlondike strike arrived, she left Victorialoaded with four hundred miners andsupplies bound for Dyea. The demandfor vessels increased and more keels werelaid as a result. Even the C.P.R. was enticed into providing vessels for theKlondike gold seekers. In so doing, theyfore-shadowed the inception of theirPrincess fleet. However, when the

Klondike rush subsided, ships of bothcompanies lay idle at dock. On January12, 1901, it was announced that theC.P.R had acquired control of the Canadian Pacific Navigation Co. Ltd.The man put in charge of the new

company was Capt. James W. Troupwho had been a river boat captain withCapt. John Irving. He had worked onsteamers in Oregon, then after returningto work for the Canadian Pacific Navigation Co., had built a new fleet ofsternwheelers for the Kootenay trade. Itwas he who in large measure designedthe ships as well as managed the Princess fleet.It is not the place here to go into the

dimensions nor the history of eachPrincess vessel. Suffice it to say that inFebruary, 1902, Swan-Hunter of Newcastle-on-Tyne, England, received anorder to build a steamer to service theVictoria-Vancouver run. She was thefamous Princess Victoria, perhaps thebest known of the Princesses. Like allthe subsequent steamers, she sailed fromEngland under her own steam by way ofCape Horn. Later ships were able touse the Panama Canal. The PrincessBeatrice soon followed her to the B.C.coast. Although Capt. Troup was not anaval architect, he had practical knowledge and a keen eye, a combinationwhich produced a remarkable line ofships.The Princesses were attractive ships

with their lower hulls painted black, the

main deck and superstructure paintedwhite. Their funnels were yellow with ablack band around the top and wore thered and white checkerboard emblem ofthe company. From the Princess Victoria onwards they were well-appointedvessels having caulked wooden decksworn smooth by the sea and by constantswabbing. The railings were of varnished wood, the brass bell and fixturesshone with vigorous polishing. The interiors were well-appointed, evenopulent, with velvet hangings in thepublic rooms and comfortable berths fornight travel. The dining saloons weresupplied with fine linen and heavy silvercutlery. The service and food were exceptional. Each vessel was different andher character was identifiable by herfunnels. The Princess Victoria hadthree distinctive upright funnels, narrower than any other ship, whereas thePrincess Beatrice had only one.By 1908 another rate war had broken

out with the Americans to oust thePrincesses from Puget Sound and capture the Victoria-Vancouver trade.Eventually both sides came to terms inorder to benefit from trade engenderedby the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Expositionin Seattle in 1909.Meanwhile, Capt. Troup ordered a

new flagship, the Princess Charlotte, alarger vessel with three stubby funnels.She did yeoman service on both the Victoria and the Nanaimo runs for manyyears. At the same time, the Princess

SS. Princess Elaine - postcard by Gowen, Sutton Co. Ltd.

15 B.C. Historical News - Summer 92

May, formerly the Hating had the distinction of being the first ship to havewireless installed.Three new ships, all having one fun

nel, joined the coastal fleet in 1911.The Princess Alice and Princess Adelaide were almost identical. These twoships had long service on the coast and,when they were retired after World WarII, they, like the Princess Charlotte became cruise ships for a Greek line in theAegean. The third vessel, PrincessMary was destined to sail B.C. watersfor forty years, largely on the Gulf Islands, Powell River-Comox run. Shebuilt up such a loyal clientele that, whenshe was retired from service, her aft superstructure was bought and became arestaurant which is still popular inVictoria.Later the two stack vessel Princess Pa

tricia arrived on the coast to take overthe Nanaimo run. She was a lightlybuilt ship and was never intended forservice beyond the Clyde. However, shesailed out under her own steam to undertake many years of service, latterly asan excursion boat.The next to arrive was the Princess

Sophia whose one funnel became familiar on the Alaska run. It was here, inLynn Canal, that she met her tragic endon October 26, 1918. She founderedon Vanderbilt Reef in heavy seas andsank after a day and a half wherein rescue vessels stood helplessly by unable totake off any of the passengers and crew.

Shortly afterwards the Princess Maquinna came out to serve the west coastof the Vancouver Island run. Later shewas joined by the Princess Norah.Both these one stack vessels were easilydistinguished by the derricks attached tothe forward masts to enable them tohandle deck cargo. Between them theyprovided the only means of communication and supply for the many isolatedcommunities up and down the coast ofVancouver Island.By the time the newest Princesses,

Margaret and Irene were ready for service, World War I had broken out.They were requisitioned and convertedto fast minelayers, their beautiful fittings stripped from them. The Ireneblew up in the harbour at Sheerness butthe Margaret had a long and successfulcareer in the Navy. Neither ship eversaw the B.C. coast.The boom in passenger service follow

ing the War led to two new, up-to-date,commodious ships being ordered in1925 at Clydebank. These were thePrincess Marguerite and PrincessKathleen which became a familiar sighton the Vancouver-Victoria-Seattle run.One surprising thing about these threefunnel ships was that they had spaceprovided for only thirty cars yet in1927, the Princess Elaine was built forcar traffic and, in 1923, the MotorPrincess had been built at Yarrows inEsquimalt as a car ferry.In 1928 Capt. Troup retired after hay-

ing built up a remarkable fleet of shipswhich were admirably suited for serviceon the rugged coast of British Columbia. They plied these often treacherouswaters with surprisingly few serious accidents. Inadequate navigation aids,hazardous tides and currents and the vagaries of the weather, particularly fog, allpresented potential danger to vessels onthe coast.Capt. Cyril D. Neurotsos succeeded

Capt. Troup and it was he who orderedthe Princess Elizabeth and the PrincessJoan in 1929 to inaugurate the nightrun between Victoria and Vancouver.This proved a very popular service withpassengers well into the 1950s. Rivalryappeared again, however, when the Canadian National Railway built their lineof Prince ships to challenge the Canadian Pacific Coastal Service. They wereused largely on the northern coastthough and as popular cruise ships toAlaska.When World War II broke out the

Princess Marguerite and the PrincessKathleen were commandeered as troopships. Service was maintained on thecoast although it put a great strain onthe remaining ships. After the war twonew ships were ordered. These were thePrincess Marguerite to replace hernamesake which had been sunk by enemy action and the Princess Patricia toreplace the first which had been sold.The Princess Kathleen had returnedfrom her war service unscathed. After afull overhaul and refitting she took overthe Alaska cruise service. Unhappily shemet her end in 1952 on the rocks ofLena Point in Lynn Canal with someloss of life.The days of these mini-liners were

drawing to a close. They were becoming inadequate for the needs of post-warpassengers most of whom wished totransport vehicles also. Although thePrincess of Nanaimo arrived in 1951,her service in B.C. waters was short.She was moved to the Bay of Fundy andbecame successively the Princess ofAcadia then the car ferry HenryOsborne.The last ship to join the C.P.C.S. fleet

was the Princess of Vancouver whosedesign allowed her to carry railway carsas well as motors. She continued in service between downtown Vancouver andNanaimo even after the advent of the

I

SS. Princess Mary postcard. by Gowen, Sutton Co. Ltd.

B.C. Historical News - Summer 92 16

B.C. Ferry Corporation fleet. The otherships which had grown old and were nolonger either serviceable or profitablewere gradually sold off as cruise ships forother lines, dockside restaurants or hotels, barges or scrap. The last, thesecond Princess Marguerite, wasbought by the Stena line and operatedon the Victoria-Seattle run as a casino.She is now out of service and for sale.An era ended with the disappearance

of the Princesses from the British Columbia coast. They had a proudbearing. They provided quality service,a touch of elegance, a sense of reliabilitywhich is unsurpassed to-day. The advent of air transport, labour demandsand changing values made the Princesses in effect redundant. They werebeautiflul, leisurely and comfortable buttheir speed could not satisf’ the demands of late 20th century living whenpeople prefer to get to their destinationsquickly, caring only that the vessel isreasonably safe but, first and foremost,fast.

Mrs. Baldwin grew up in Victoria but barmade her borne in Prince George since 1954. Shehas been chairman of the Prince George PublicLibrary Boara and served on the Provincial Library Development Commission.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Coates, Ken and Morrison, Bill The Sinking of thePrincess Sophia,Toronto, Oxford University Press, 1990.Hacking, Norman R and Lamb, W. KayeThe Princess Story, Vancouver,Mitchell Press, 1974.

Menu & ticket courtesy of the Vancouver Maritime Museum.

CANADIANPACIFIC RAILWAYCOMPANY

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,€v’ ,i€’fltW)” ..(/“

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R.S.V.P. TOJ. H. TAYLOR, BARQUET SECRETARY

VICTORIA, B.C.

17 B.C. Historical News . Summer 92

Quesnel ForksbyMarie Elliott

On the morning of October 12, 1880,J ennie Stephenson watched in horror as,one by one, fire consumed the buildingsin Quesnel Forks. The little village escaped a major forest fire in 1869 withonly the loss of the lockup, but this timeit would not be so fortunate. Jennie’shusband, Government Agent WilliamStephenson, was a veteran of the Barkeryule Fire Brigade and knew the dangersin a frontier town. Before leaving on histax collecting rounds a few days earlier,he had made certain that the water barrels on the roof of their home were full.But this precaution and the fact thatthey lived on the outskirts of the village,near the South Fork toll bridge, weresmall comfort. She was alone with twolittle boys and a teenage nursemaid,while the residents of Quesnel Forks —mostly Chinese miners — fought to savewhat little they could. Eventually,sparks ignited the shingles of her home,and a Chinese neighbour made liberaluse of the stored water. ‘When it was allover, only the Stephenson’s residence,the rebuilt lockup, and the South ForkBridge remained standing.Most of the destroyed buildings dated

to the earliest days of the Cariboo goldrush. In 1859, miners, tracing gold upthe Quesnel River, stopped to work thegravel delta at the Junction of the Northand South Forks (now called the Can-boo and Quesnel Rivers). A number ofentrepreneurs quickly applied for a tollbridge charter to connect the rapidlygrowing village with the trail to the Fraser River. Sam Alder and William Barrywon out, and their bridge was in placeby 1862, in time to serve the hordes ofminers and the packtrains that camethrough that summer on their way tothe gold fields.From the very beginning, government

officials were dubious about the futureof the village. In his report to GovernorJames Douglas in 1860, Gold Commissioner Philip Henry Nind thought thetown should be moved. There shouldbe a better location “. .. than a flat lying

between two swift rivers which can onlybe approached by terrific hills, is manymiles distant from pasture, and forcesthe trail to the mines, on which it isprincipally dependent, over a countrywhere no money or labour can evermake even a moderately good road.”Col. Moody of the Royal Engineers

refused to survey Quesnel Forks for atownsite, correctly predicting that theminers would eventually move on. Thewhite miners did continue up the NorthFork to Cariboo L.ake, and from therefollowed Keithley Creek to the Snowshoe Plateau, then down the other sideto Antler and Williams Creek. But intheir wake, Chinese miners moved intoQuesnel Forks, and this hard-workingethnic group were responsible for itslongevity.Oliver Hare, the first resident Govern

ment Agent, and a bachelor, foundQuesnel Forks very lonely in the late1860’s. and 1870’s. He was often theonly white man in the town and seemedcompletely unable to cooperate with theChinese miners. Eventually, his healthgave out and he died in Victoria in December 1876. Like his friend JohnBowron, Gold Commissioner at Barkeryule, William Stephenson was Canadianborn and married when he took overHare’s vacant position inMay 1877. Hare had described the GovernmentAgent’s residence, withadjoining lockup, as “thebest premises in town”,and possibly this was aconsolation to Jennie Stephenson as she settled into await her first child,Henry Allen, that August. Her second child,Gillespie Elliot, was lessthan a year old whenQuesnel Forks went upin flames in the fall of1880.If the 1881 Canada

Census is correct, then

the Keithley Creek/Quesnel Forks census area had the third largestconcentration of Chinese residents, afterVictoria and Nanaimo. Because Quesnel Forks was the supply centre for morethan 250 Chinese miners and farmers,many of the cabins, stores, and warehouses were rebuilt after the fire. Twomore fires in the 1880’s did considerabledamage to the commercial buildings,but the residents persevered.The peaceful routines in the little vil

lage were badly shaken up in the early1890’s, when corporate businessmen invested thousands of dollars in the placermines, creating a hydraulic miningboom. Executives of the Canadian Pacific Railway hired John Hobson, amining engineer from California, to supervise development of the Bullion PitMine. By 1900 this mine was describedas one of the largest open pit placermines in the Commonwealth. Despitemiles of ditches and pipelines, and thedamming of numerous lakes, there wasnever enough water to operate for morethan several months. Nevertheless, themine produced $350,000 in 1900, putting the Quesnel Mining section aheadof the Barkerville section in goldproduction.The increase in population forced Wil

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B.C. Historical News - Summer 92 18

ham Stephenson to rebuild the lockup,and to request an assistant constable tokeep order while he was ‘on the road”.The floating population enlarged evenmore when MLA Joseph Hunter, working as engineer for a London basedsyndicate, dammed the outlet of Quesnel Lake in 1896. It was an idea thathad been considered ever since 1860.Upwards of 200 men, working in shifts,managed to stop the flow of water inDecember 1897, in order that the bedof the South Fork River could be mined.To support the renewed interest in hy

draulic mining, the provincialgovernment replaced the rough trailfrom Quesnel Forks to 150 Mile Housewith a wagon road, and rebuilt theSouth Fork bridge so it could carryheavier loads and teams of horses. Entrepreneurs moved into Quesnel Forks,building large hotels, securing liquor iicences, taking a keen interest in theprogress of mining companies. Although the dam project proved a failure— the river bed was mined for only oneyear — the mining at the Bullion Pit continued until June 1907 when it was shutdown.Quesnel Forks went into a decline, re

viving slightly in the 1930’s with thereopening of the Bullion Pit mine. Butit never matched the activity of the1890’s, and after World War lithe village ceased to attract residents except fora few hardy miners. In 1948, the yearof the great Fraser River floods, the

South Fork bridge was washed out andnever replaced. A road had been cutthrough to Likely and Cedar Creek, using a bridge at the Quesnel dam site, inthe 1930’s. This also helped to putQuesnel Forks in a backwater.In recent years, the Likely Cemetery

Society has restored many of the gravesin the historic cemetery. Here you willfind markers for the pioneers who madeQuesnel Forks a special community, including William Barry, the toll bridgeowner, William and Jennie Stephenson,and their son Gillespie, and more than

twenty Chinese men and women.Wandering among the old cabins, or

along the river bank near the toll bridgesite, it is difficult to believe that in twenty years the ghost town of QuesnelForks will disappear forever. After morethan one hundred years of fighting theelements, the fragile buildings cannothold up much longer, according to heritage experts, and yet . . . one wishesQuesnel Forks could be frozen in time.For here, history is not served up on asilver (golden?) platter, fully interpreted.Instead, the setting is the merest suggestion — a line drawing that yourimagination and senses must fill in.Wondering how William and JennieStephenson or the Chinese residentscoped with isolation, or the excitingevents that occurred during their lifetimes, is a rewarding exercise, becauseyour memories remain with you long after you have left “the Forks”.Quesnel Forks is easily accessible, ap

proximately sixty miles northeast of 150Mile House by paved road, and then tenmiles by gravel road from Likely. Acampsite is maintained by the ForestService there, and you can spend asmuch time as you wish absorbing t