City of Rossland, Rossland - BC, Canada
Posted by: 
T0SHEA
N 49° 04.618 W 117° 48.139
11U E 441407 N 5436321
The small city of Rossland lies astride Highway 22/3B about 7 km. above and to the southwest of Trail, BC. It is barely 8 miles north of the British Columbia - Washington border up highway 22 (Highway 25 in Washington).
Waymark Code: WMH403
Location: British Columbia, Canada
Date Posted: 05/18/2013
Views: 3
The Person:
Had a man named Ross Thompson been paid in a timely fashion for work done in a sawmill in Bonner's Ferry, Idaho, the City of Rossland would still be where it is today, but bearing a different name. In the fall of 1891 Thompson moved north from Idaho and landed in the vicinity of much mining activity caused by the discovery of gold on what is now Red Mountain, just a few miles north of the BC-Washington border. He did a little prospecting then settled down, filing a pre-emption on 160 acres which was soon to become the town, then city, of Rossland.
In May of 1892 Thompson built a log cabin on his pre-emption and in May of 1894 he received a crown grant for the 160 acre pre-emption. He then decided that his land was best suited for habitation, rather than gardening or farming, and so began to have the land mapped and subdivided. Lots were sold quickly, all for commercial purposes, and for the first few years of Rossland's existence the majority of residents lived in the many hotels built in the town.
The Place:
It was decided to call the new town Thompson, in honour of its founder. Postal authorities, however, pointed out that at least one other "Thompson" existed in BC at the time so the name "Rossland" was settled upon, employing Thompson's first name instead of his last.
Mining activity increased over the next several years and by 1897 Rossland was home to over 7,000 residents, with 42 saloons, 4 banks, 17 law firms and countless hotels. The major mines - The LeRoi, Centre Star, War Eagle and Josie proved to be very rich, remaining in production for many years. Since the ore being mined contained substantial amounts of silver, copper and other metals, a smelter was built in 1895, down the hill in nearby Trail.
After the mines played out it would have been expected that Rossland would suffer the same fate as myriad other mining towns in the west, quickly becoming a ghost town. Rossland evaded this fate in part because of the smelter in Trail (by then importing ore from further afield) which provided employment for the newly unemployed miners, and in part by tourism.
Red Mountain, it turned out, had more to offer than gold and silver. It became the centre for a world class ski area which ably supports the city to this day. Rossland, an alpine city, has become a very popular year round tourist destination, known not only for its downhill and cross country skiing, but for sight seeing, hiking, fishing and mountain biking, being considered the mountain biking capital of Canada.
Much of the factual information herein was taken from the book "First History of Rossland" by Harold Kingsmill. The book was written well over 100 years ago and is online at the Vancouver Public Library.
Pertinent information vis a vis Ross Thompson is on page 3 - "Formation of the District".