Barriere and area - 1850 to 1938 - Barriere, BC - Timelines on Waymarking.com

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Barriere and area - 1850 to 1938 - Barriere, BC

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Posted by:  T0SHEA

10U E 700632 N 5672813

Housed in part within a one time Ranger Station, the North Thompson Museum showcases the history of the area from McLure to Little Fort and surrounding areas.

Quite an ambitious project for a town of less than 2,000 residents, the museum consists of the main "Ranger Station" building, a Trapper’s Cabin recreation, Country Store complete with living quarters, an outdoor shed housing antique farm equipment and a Livery Stable housing a portable steam engine, a 1925 threshing machine and a 1947 Farmall Cub tractor. Beside the livery stable is a motorized Adams road scraper.

Admission to the museum is by donation

Inside the Ranger's Station are displayed a plethora of artefacts of days of yore, as well as a timeline of the Town of Barriere, beginning in 1850 with the construction of a Hudson's Bay trading post at Little Fort and ending (for reasons unknown - it's REALLY long, perhaps they're still working on it) in 1938. Text from it follows.

1850
Paul Fraser, the Chief trader for the Kamloops Hudson Bay post, established a small trading cabin at the original site of La Traverse.
This trading post, which became known as Little Fort, was built on the east side of the North Thompson River and was staffed by two men.

1872
The Kamloops was the first steamer to travel the North Thompson River; it was launched in 1872 and was commanded by August Menanteau. It transported CPR surveyors and was in operation until 1878.

1886
John Freemont Smith took up land on the north side of Louis Creek in 1886 and openeda store and post office.

1891
The road was finished from Kamloops to Louis Creek.

1892
By 1892 John Freemont Smith had formed the Kamloops Coal Company to exploit the coal deposits at Chu Chua.

1893
The first person to settle in Little Fort was Antoine or Antime Lemieux. He built a trading post and store on the west side of the North Thompson River and became the first settler on the site of the present day village.

1894
Ore from the Homestake Mine was shipped to J.F. Smith in Louis Creek. J.F. Smith wanted to ship the coal from Chu Chua and the ore from the Homestake Mine to Kamloops by Paddle Wheeler.
The Queen was launched May 16, 1894. She made trips in May and June but in July the boiler exploded killing two of the eight man crew.
The Homestake Mine located in Squaw Bay shipped 20 tons of ore to the smelter in Everett, WA

1895
Unwins owned and operated an overnight stopping house for travelers called Lewis Creek House.

1898
In December 1898 fire destroyed Smith's building on the north side of Louis Creek. The family returned to Kamloops.
In 1898 hundreds of people passed through Little Fort on their way to the Klondike Gold Rush.

1899
Andre and Elmire Gaudreau bought the Lewis Creek House. In 1903 the Lewis Creek House was destroyed by fire.
A new building was constructed and with later additions it became a 12-bedroom hotel with a large dining room, a store and post office.

1900
In 1900 a daughter Ethel born to Ada and Napoleon Genier became the first white girl to be born in Little Fort.

1901
The first church services in the North Thompson Valley were held by Archdeacon Stephen Akehurst.
Records show that a school called North Thompson West started in 1901, 25 miles north of Kamloops, close to the site of present day McLure. It was the first school in the Lower North Thompson Valley.

1905
Blucher Hall on the northern end of the Louis Creek Valley was named in 1905 by its first postmaster Donald "Cap" Fraser.

1906
Wesley McTaggart opened a small store, beside the road close to South McTaggart Lake and offered meals and a place to sleep for travelers.
George Fennell's first mill in ChuChua was running by 1906. It was powered by water.
George Fennell purchased Lot 944 close to Dunn Creek that supplied water to turn the water wheel (obtained from a dismantled paddle wheeler) to run the mill.

1907
In 1907 George Fennell built a cabin, large barn, bunk house and store.
January 10, 1907 George Fennell also established a post office and George and his son Marston were in charge of its operation until it closed November 22, 1967.
The Adams River Lumber Company commenced operations.

1908
First official school at Little Fort. (Torn down later)
First school at Louis Creek held in a log church.

1909
In 1909 McLure was named after John McLure, born 1831, died 1907. He was an early rancher in the area.

1910
The Barrier River School was opened west of the Dunn Lake Road.
By 1910 Gilbert Genier owned and operated a store and hotel, which were situated on the east fiat of Leonia) Creek, not far from the Barrier River.
The first telephone system up the North Thompson was operating in the Genier Hotel.
The Hotel burnt in 1915 and the telephone switch board was moved to James Nelson's Hotel.
A road was completed on the west side of the river to Little Fort and stagecoaches could come directly from Kamloops.

1911
By 1911 a road existed from Mount Ode to Kamloops.
The first sawmill in Barrier was built.
St. John the Baptist Church in Chu Chua was completed in the fall and it was all new except for the bell, which was transferred from the original chapel to the bell tower of the new church.

1912
A School was built at Chu Chua (closed In 1957).
Cahilty Church was built by John Cahilty and a few neighboring settlers of the area, on land Jack donated.
The church was also used as a school.
The government provided a ferry at Little Fort so residents would have access to the coming Canadian Northern Pacific Railway and the station house.
The first village hall was built in Little Fort by Joe Spred.
George Graham ran a stage line and conveyed mail from Cahilty to Louis Creek, touching at Blucher Hall en route.

1913
By 1913 James Nelson was operating a large sawmill on the North Thompson riverbank to the south side of the Barriers River.
CNR station was built at Chinook Cove.
The first telephone service came to Chu Chua with the construction of the railroad.
George Fennell strung a mile of line from the railroad to his first store.
Joseph H. Latremouille hired Leighton Wade from Kamloops to build a hydro electric power plant on Three Mile Creek.
This meant electricity for the village of Little Fort.
The depression hit and the plant was sold at a loss. J.H. Latremouille and Sons, with Joseph Belanger, operated a mill on the banks of Lemieux Creek.
One of many mills in the Little Fort area.
Joseph H. Latremouille opened a small hotel in Little Fort.

1914
Barriere was officially named.
The name originated in 1843 from French Canadian Trappers who found the river barrier while trying to make trails to mines in the north.
The first Barriere Post Office was built.
Barriers Valley School opens (Later Forks School, closed in 1951).
A Power Plant was built on the Barriere River which supplied Kamloops with economical electricity.
This power plant accelerated East Barriere Valley development.
It provided employment from 1914 until it closed in the early 1950s.
By the time the rail line was nearing completion in 1914, Sandy Mann and the Northern Construction Co. prepared to expand their logging activities.
They were already operating the Seven Mile Mill. This mill was situated at the east bank of the North Thompson River, seven miles upstream from Kamloops.
The first post office in the McLure area was established and run by Arthur Connine.
It was the Fishtrap Post Office and was closed in 1916.

1915
The first train passed through Barriere in the fall.
Second school at Louis Creek was built two miles up Squam Bay Road (Closed in 1956).
19151-1916 George Fennell had a store built near the railway close to the CNR station.
1916
James Nelson had closed his sawmill by 1916 and established the first hotel in Barriere.
By 1916, three trains per week were passing through Barriere.
A new school was built at Little Fort.
First Chinook Cove school held in a church.
Barriere Powerhouse School opened for two years.
Squam Bay School opened.
Chinook Cove Ferry was officially established.
The Windpass mine at Chu Chua was filed for in 1916.

1917
Construction started on the First Cahilty School.

1918
A larger building was constructed for the Squam Bay School, which is the present day Community Hall.
In 1918, The Northern Construction Company established its base; It was located in the vicinity of Peterson Creek on the west side of the North Thompson River.

1919
McLure Ferry was officially established.
Jim Man Lee and family moved to Little Fort In 1919 and purchased the hotel.
The hotel burned down in 1922 and they established a store that is still being run by the Jim family today.

1928
Blucher Hall School opened
The Sacred Heart Catholic Church located in Little Fort became a Church in approximately 1928-1930.
It was originally built as a house in 1915.

1929
New Chinook Cove School opened (closed in 1966, reopened for the 1967-68 year to house grade one children displaced by the fire).
New Darlington School opened.

1930
In the early 1930s William and Ferdinand Schilling started a sawmill on DL 79 adjoining the family farms.
It consisted of a 110 hp Case steam boiler and engine for power and a 1920 Republic 3½ ton truck with solid rubber tires purchased from George Abear of Kamloops.

There were other sawmills in operation in Chinook Cove during this time period.
Karl Rosen with his brother Walter operated a nearby sawmill.
Frank Lachner with Joe Meeker operated another mill in Chinook Cove.

1933
The Squam Bay School was moved to a new location at the Homestake Mine.
Trites Woods, and Wilson of Fernie, invested large amounts of money into upgrading the Windpass Mine. A tramline was built and a second mine, called the Sweet Home Mine, was opened.

1934
The Kennedy Lumber Company reopened the Nelson Mill.
They sold out to the Vernon Box and Pine Co. and the mill burned in 1936.

1935
Fadear Creek Farmers Institute members built a hall near where Fadear Creek crosses the Louie Creek valley road.
The Homestake Mine reopened with a 40 ton mill, the Mine also leased an acre of land from Oscar Saunders at Johnson Creek for a power plant.

1936
In 1936 nine individuals put in $5 each to buy the cookhouse from a closed mining camp at Dixon Creek.
This building became the Chinook Cove Community Hall.
The Homestake Mine shut down.
The Twin Mountain Silver (Camoose Mine) opened.

1937
The Little Fort Women's Institute Charter was signed on March 27, 1937.
Residents towards the north of Chinook Cove established a post office.

1938
The Ferry at Chinook Cove Closed.