Billy Barker - Quesnel, British Columbia
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T0SHEA
N 52° 58.607 W 122° 29.330
10U E 534323 N 5869809
Billy Barker is in a nice landscaped area at the corner where the Quesnel Visitor Center is located.
Waymark Code: WM10XFK
Location: British Columbia, Canada
Date Posted: 07/06/2019
Views: 3
Billy Barker is a well known historical figure featured throughout Quesnel and the region. This wood carving of Billy Barker is a replacement of the original that is featured as a roadside attraction.
Quesnel celebrates Billy Barker Days each year in mid July with a parade, dances, amateur rodeo, fireworks displays, live music and nightly performances in the park, fun and games for the whole family. In 2019, will mark the 45th annual event and is B.C.'s largest free festival.
Billy Barker
When gold was found on Williams Creek in early 1861, Billy Barker was one of the prospectors who flocked to the area. With other English partners, he staked an unlikely claim on the creek "Below the Canyon".
Although they had to dig to a depth of 40 feet, they struck a gold deposit on August 17, 1862 which proved to be the richest in the Cariboo. The town of Barkerville grew up around the Barker & Co. claim.
This sculpture of Billy Barker was designed by Dwayne Davis and carved by Ken Sheen. It replaced an earlier chainsaw carving by Bruce C. Ollenburger, which was commissioned by the Billy Barker Days Society and presented to the City of Quesnel in 1978 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the incorporation of Quesnel.
Transcribed from sign