Now 112 years old, in 2024, the Salmo Hotel is certainly one of the oldest structures in the town. To our knowledge, it has been open continuously during that time. It now rents most of its rooms on a monthly basis, but still has a couple rooms available for nightly occupancy.
Silver was first discovered about five miles to the west of Salmo, at Erie, now pretty much a ghost town, causing the construction of the town of Erie beginning at the end of the nineteenth century.
Nearer Salmo, deposits of Lead-Zinc-Silver ores were discovered about 9 miles southeast of the town, above Sheep Creek, with development beginning in 1910. The first ore shipments were made to the Cominco Smelter in Trail in 1912, the year the hotel was built. Several different ore bodies were discovered and worked, with the last, the HB Mine, finally being closed for the second time in 1978.
The hotel stands on the corner of Railway Avenue and Fourth Street, unmistakable for its size, wraparound two storey verandah and somewhat gingerbread appearance.
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