Like all the mining towns of the area, Retallack grew quickly, then slowly died, becoming totally deserted a few short years after its inception.
The Place:
Retallack was a little mining town that came and went in the blink of an eye, with little fanfare. Retallack was also known as Bell Camp in the British Columbia’s Valley of the Ghosts. The town grew to a population of about 300 before the turn of the 20th century.
Relallack was also known as Whitewater when the K & S Railway came through in 1895. It later changed to Retallack in 1928, named after J.L. Retallack, a prominent businessman in the district and one of the original locators and owners of the Whitewater mine.
Retallack was the shipping center for several mines in the area and also had a saw and planning mill, which burned down in 1910 and was never rebuilt. The town once boasted three hotels, several stores, a barber shop, post office and school.
Mining activity in and around Retallack ceased in 1967. Since then, a few residents have remained and a small resort hotel is still operating. Two former mine buildings on the side of Highway 31A, and a nearby house foundation, are the most obvious reminder of Retallack’s once prosperous days.
At least one person, a J. Eaton, did well here, reputedly taking almost one million dollars of ore from the area.
The Person:
Born At Marazion, Cornwall, England, December 2nd 1865, Major John Ley Retallack died at Grande Prairie, Alberta on October 4th 1924. He is interred in Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver, BC. Serving in both the North West Mounted Police and World War I, Retallack became a prominent figure in the silver mining area of South Central British Columbia.
Apparently Major John Ley Retallack had received the vast majority of the mail addressed to the place, at the time named
Whitewater, so much so that the postal service decided to officially rename the town to
Retallack. Following are excerpts from a Nelson Star article, part of a series on West Kootenay/Boundary place names.
PLACE NAMES: Retallack
...Meanwhile, Major John Ley Retallack (1863-1924) and his associates leased the Whitewater mine. After fire destroyed the camp in 1910, they purchased the property. The fire also burned bridges and show sheds on the Kaslo and Slocan Railway, putting it out of business.
Retallack was secretary of a Kaslo syndicate that revived the line and leased it to the Canadian Pacific Railway. In recognition of his efforts, the siding at Whitewater was renamed in his honour. It was on the timetable by Sept. 27, 1914. According to Don Blake’s Valley of the Ghosts, Retallack “was such a prominent man for so many years and most of the freight coming up to Whitewater was for him and was addressed simply to Retallack.”
Retallack was in the North West Mounted Police during the Riel Rebellion and came to the Kootenay in 1889, where he was prominent in mining, banking, and townsite promotion. He served on Kaslo city council and twice ran unsuccessfully for MLA. After returning from World War I, he was named
BC’s first public utilities commissioner.
The Retallack post office opened on May 16, 1928 — four years after its namesake’s death — although the name Whitewater continued to be used as well.
From The Nelson Star![]()