Chicanery, Civility & Celebrations: Tales of Early Rossland - There's a Book About It on Waymarking.com

Waymark Code: WM16X18

Location: British Columbia, Canada

Date Posted: 10/21/2022

Published By: wayfrog

Views: 1

Kootenay history buffs have long savoured the storytelling talents of Ron Shearer, a retired UBC economics professor turned amateur historian. Now, in a randomly presented selection of stories, he takes us back to the mining town of Rossland in its heyday. And deliciously intriguing stories they are.

Travelling back to the 1890s and early 20th century with Shearer as our guide makes for a joyous and eventful voyage. In short, readable vignettes, he returns to the pioneer times of his hometown using a cast of characters that rivals the celebrated TV series Deadwood.

Like all good storytellers, he keeps us guessing as we learn what life was like in this sometimes-wild mining camp, soon to be nicknamed “Golden City,” with its drunken brawls, a red light district called the “tenderloin,” and the occasional shooting. First we meet Ross Thompson, the itinerant prospector that gave the town its name. Shearer tells of Thompson being shot over a stolen sewing machine. He survived to become “The Father of Rossland.”
Reviewed by Ron Verzuh
From the BC Review

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 preemption 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 preemption and in May of 1894 he received a crown grant for the 160 acre preemption. 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.

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.