Revelstoke History

Although Revelstoke’s history as a settlement is relatively brief, human contact in this region goes back to a time well before European contact. The Sinixt (Lakes) people lived in the Columbia Basin from north of Revelstoke to as far south as Washington State. The Sinixt were not nomadic, but did use their land base on a rotational basis, to avoid depletion of resources. They made significant use of the land in this area, and had settlements here. Other First Nations also used and traveled through this region, including the Shuswap, Okanagan, Ktunaxa/Kinbasket and Thompson nations.

Mackenzie Ave Circa 1912 David Thompson, mapmaker and explorer for the North-West Company, first came into this area in 1811, establishing Boat Encampment at the point where the Wood and Canoe Rivers meet the Columbia River at its northernmost point, north of the present site of Mica Dam. Thompson and his band of explorers first passed the site of present-day Revelstoke in September of 1811, traveling upstream from the mouth of the Columbia. From that time onward, the route by Athabasca Pass to Boat Encampment and then downstream to Astoria became the main route for travelers, commerce and mail between the prairies and the Pacific Ocean.

By 1860, gold was being found in paying quantities on the tributaries of the Columbia River and by 1865 the Big Bend Gold Rush was in full swing. Most of the activity took place along the creeks and rivers north of Revelstoke and towns sprang up at French Creek City, on the Goldstream River, and at LaPorte. French Creek City, laid out by surveyor Walter Moberly, was once a town of about 5,000 people, complete with stores, banks, hotels, saloons. Legend has it that one of the hotels boasted a large pool table and a grand piano. A small paddle-wheel steamboat, the SS Forty-Nine, made several trips between Marcus, Washington and LaPorte, 40 miles north of present-day Revelstoke. By the end of 1866, the rush was all but over, and miners were leaving the area. In a two-year period, approximately 3 million dollars worth of gold was taken out of the Big Bend district.

Development of the settlement now known as Revelstoke began in the 1880s, during construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway. Surveyor A.S. Farwell purchased land from the provincial government and laid out his town site, which he named Farwell. His grant was awarded around the same time that the CPR was filing their survey plan, which included the Revelstoke area. The main street of the new settlement was Front Street, on the bank of the Columbia River close to where the CPR bridge crosses. The young settlement was very much a wild-west town complete with hotels, brothels and saloons. The CPR disputed Farwell’s claim to this land and, refusing to deal with Farwell, located their station and yards east of his land, rather than on the low flat land next to the Columbia River (current Columbia Park region.)

In 1886, the CPR asked the federal post office department to change the name of the settlement to honour Edward Baring, Lord Revelstoke, whose London, England banking firm had provided the funds to ensure the completion of the railway. A court case between the CPR and Farwell delayed development of the town for many years, and it was 1897 before landowners could get clear title to their property. Also as a result of the dispute, there were two distinct business districts until well into the 1900s when more and more businesses relocated to “Upper Town” near the CPR station. The CPR encouraged businesses to locate close to the station, rather than on Front Street. Because of the extra freight charges involved in transporting goods from the station to “Lower Town” or Farwell, businesses began establishing themselves close to the station.

Revelstoke was incorporated as a city on March 1, 1899, fourteen years after the community had been established. The long delay was a result of the dispute between Farwell and the CPR, and the inability of the provincial and federal governments to agree on riverbank protection. Even after incorporation, there was an overlap of services, with two post offices and two fire brigades for the different sections of the town. By 1910, Front Street was seeing a downturn, as more businesses located near the CPR station. Three large hotels remained, along with a few stores, and the “Red Light” district. Revelstoke’s downtown, especially between Victoria and Second Streets from Orton to Boyle saw a lot of growth between 1900 and 1913. The country was in a recession by 1913, and World War I began in 1914, slowing growth considerably. Many businesses went bankrupt during the war.

On July 23, 1891, the Kootenay Smelting and Trading Syndicate opened the first successful lead smelter in Canada at what was then the end of Boyle Avenue. However, due to inadequate supplies of ore, the smelter soon ceased operation. As a result of erosion of the riverbank, the smelter slid into the Columbia River in September of 1898. The Smelting Syndicate had a grant of 320 acres of land in Revelstoke and they established a town-site that included Rokeby, Campbell and Boyle Avenues.

A downtown revitalization program in the 1980s saw the restoration of most of our heritage business blocks. The obvious pride in our history, as witnessed by our revitalized downtown, has attracted many visitors to Revelstoke as a cultural and heritage tourism destination.

The forest industry has always been a major part of the economy of Revelstoke. The first sawmill was established in 1890, and there have been sawmills and logging activity taking part in Revelstoke and the surrounding area since that time.

Revelstoke is located in a temperate rain forest and the tourism potential of the town was recognized very early on. Mount Revelstoke National Park was proclaimed a national park in 1914, at the urging of the local citizens. The surrounding peaks attracted mountaineers beginning in the 1880s, with over a thousand people each year staying at the CPR’s Glacier Hotel near the summit of Rogers Pass. Until 1940, with the construction of the Big Bend highway, the only way to travel east of Revelstoke was by railway. The Trans-Canada Highway through Rogers Pass was finally completed in 1962, making Revelstoke easily accessible by car.

Before the construction of the Hugh Keenleyside Dam at Castlegar in the 1960s, there was considerable agricultural activity in the region, with over 200 farms from Revelstoke to Arrowhead, about 50 miles south. At one time, Revelstoke was known for small berry production, with strawberries shipped across Canada. There were several farms in the Columbia Park and Big Eddy areas, as well as in what is now Arrow Heights. Mount Cartier was a large Ukrainian farming community at the base of the mountain and produced much of the hay and vegetables for the district. Standard Dairy, near the current baseball fields, and Hillcrest Dairy, at the site of the current Hillcrest Hotel, were two of the largest dairy farms in the area.

For more information on the history of Revelstoke and district, we welcome you to visit Revelstoke Museum & Archives. Explore the history of the area through our exhibits or browse through our collection of over 6,000 photographs and our extensive reference room and archives.