Location H
First Nations occupation of this immediate area stretches back over 3000 years according to recent archaeological excavations at historic Lemon Creek village and pithouse sites. Early explorers, prospectors and settlers in the Slocan noted First Nations encampments, watercraft, fishers and hunters. Local stories credit First nations people with showing rich ore deposits to lucky prospectors. Historic encampments are described with tipi-like reed shelters, typical of Lakes or Sinixt camps. Around Slocan Lake in the pioneer days many pictographs or rock drawings coloured with red and yellow ochre, white and black dyes were known on the cliffs above the Lake.
Although they may have, there is no direct evidence that they inhabited the south end of the Slocan Lake for long periods of time. There is evidence in pit houses lower on the Slocan River that does indicate more long term residence.
There are a few theories on how Slocan got its name, and the most widely accepted is that it comes from a First Nations word that means to “strike on the head” and reflects the harpooning and harvest of the abundant salmon fishery that once thrived in the Slocan system.
The last known interaction between the First Nations and the miners was in the early settlement years. Clarence Tipping told this story about the encounter: “There was a band of Indians living in the cabins on the lakefront. They were living there steady when we came in here. There was one of them was supposed to have stolen something, and I don’t know what it was now. And old Christie, the policeman, went down to arrest him. And he jumps on a cayuse that was packed and started out and he fired a shot. He never… fired over his head, never intended to hit him or anything. They all picked up and left after that and never came back.”
According to local papers, in 1892, the two miners that were the first to settle in this area were Billy Clements and Tom Mulvey. These two men were on the hunt for valuable minerals with which to make their fortune. It was a mere 5 years later that the Canadian Pacific Railway laid down track to make Slocan a hub of activity and by 1901, this small community became a City. Here is where all the action was – Main Street was designed as a four lane roadway to meet the future needs of the community. Prior to the railway, in order to travel to Slocan, a person would need to take a boat up the Slocan River or hike in by foot or on horseback. But once the CPR laid down tracks a person could travel by train from the south and by steamship from the north. Travel to all points in the Slocan Valley was made much easier.
The Slocan Lake became the extension for the railway and the CPR made regular runs from Nelson to Nakusp using this route. It was the most cost effective option for moving goods and materials to market. The SS William Hunter, SS Slocan, SS Sandon, SS Rosebery, and the Iris G were all commercial vessels over 40 feet in length that were at one time or another a part of the CPR fleet. The book, Early Boats on Slocan Lake by G. H. von Krogh, details these and many other vessels that plied the waters here.
On Dec. 22 1903, a CPR boxcar carrying an estimated 700 bullion bars from the Trail smelter went off the transfer slip at Slocan and into the lake, carrying brakeman Edward Connolly to his death. Most of the bars were soon recovered; subsequent salvage in 1929, the 1960s and 1970s probably recovered the rest. While most of the ingots salvaged were lead, popular lore continues to fuel the general belief that silver ingots or treasure are lost in Slocan Lake. The Legend of Lost Bullion lives on.
The Lake View Hotel (later called the Cumberland) was the first hotel built in Slocan and was built by Thomas Mulvey and W.R. Clements. It was a storey and a half and offered bunks rather than rooms for four years before being moved to make way for the grand Arlington Hotel. ” … was the only building on the prettiest townsite in British Columbia. It may be despised by the pilgrim of today, but it has friends among the hardy prospectors of other days who never tire of the stories of the hospitality and good cheer that it sheltered.” … “They never made any pretense of running a “first class” house. They paid 10 cents a pound for all provisions from Slocan crossing, and the table was provided with an abundance of game of all kinds, for which they charged 75 cents a meal – if you could afford it – if you didn’t you were welcome to the meal and got the glad hand just the same.” Slocan Pioneer 1 May 1897
In 1896, Neil Gething & George Henderson built the Arlington Hotel on the former location of the Lake View. An elegant three storey structure with a balcony and tower, it was by far the most famous and most photographed building of Slocan City’s Heyday. (Greg Nesteroff) With the completion of the picturesque Arlington at the corner of Lake Street and Main Street, Slocan City was suddenly a business and mining hub of the booming Slocan district. It saw brisk business throughout the silver rush.
In 1952, the CPR bought the Arlington Hotel for $400 and had it demolished. During this same era Slocan Mayor Clement Denison waged a successful campaign to remove the derelict buildings from Main St. in hopes of attracting development. Just missing the Heritage Conservation wave, he was quoted as saying: “When this place is cleaned up we’ll have one of the most beautiful towns in the district. The old buildings are too disreputable to keep any for their historical value.” Thus the impressive Victorian facade on Main St. met its end.
Main Street in the 1920s and 1930s was already showing age. Most buildings had been hastily built with green lumber. Maintenance was not being done and condition was going downhill fast. The flooding (c1930) didn’t help.
With the internment of over 4700 Japanese Canadians, the population of Slocan reached historic highs. Community and the uprooted had to deal with intense changes. The roofs of the decaying buildings were patched together one more time.
“We were among the first contingent to arrive in Slocan City and got to live in the hotel closest to the lake. We had a small room on the second floor at the back of the building. It must have been a grand building it its day … but the boards of the porches were so weathered and rotten that we weren’t allowed to run around on them … our building was filthy and cramped … ” David Suzuki, 1987
New Canadian newspaper says that 600 lived in the old buildings of Slocan, while other sources say that the Japanese Canadian population occasionally reached near 1000. Certainly Slocan and region had never been so busy.
Along with shelter in the old buildings, temporary tents were used for internees until three room shacks could be built between Slocan and Lemon Creek. By the end of 1942 … “residents had adapted themselves to lamps and candles, outside taps, double decker beds, green fuel, damp walls, community baths and winter snows. New Canadian 1943
In 1943 over 1000 of the 4764 Japanese Canadians in the Slocan were working; many in the bush on firewood or rail tie projects or as carpenters, social workers, clerks, teachers or farmers. And with changing government policy in 1945, Slocan becomes a “muster station”, where those “returning” to Japan awaited their shipment out.
While outlying camps were evacuated and the shacks bulldozed, moved or taken apart, many families moved into Slocan as “self-supporting”. They remained here, becoming an essential part of both heritage and community.
“The action of the Canadian Government of the day… was a black mark against Canada’s traditional fairness and devotion to the principles of human rights. We have no reason to be proud of this episode, nor are we…” Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson, 1964
The Arlington Hotel and Main Street
It is a great shame that the Arlington Hotel no longer stands. An elegant three storey structure with a balcony and tower, it was by far the most famous and most photographed gulding of Slocan City’s Heyday.” Greg Nesteroff, 2005
Construction – 1896
With the expansion of an existing hotel the picturesque Arlington at the corner of Lake St. and Main was suddenly a business and mining hub of the booming Slocan. It saw brisk business throughout the silver rush. Note the tower, turnings, gingerbread, wraparound balcony and other Victorian architectural touches. At right and below, mining men, capitalists and friends seem to think it accommodating, finished or not.
Main Street in the Glory Days
Looking down Main Street from the wharf in 1897. Final stages of rail construction show the CPR track approaching Slocan Lake. The large sign by the tower advertises the Queen’s birthday festivities. “The silver mines were open … and pack trains were leaving daily. On Main St. hotels, stores and other businesses were being erected at record breaking paces. At the end of Main, half a dozen boats loaded or unloaded daily at the crowded slip..” Bill Barlee, 1975
Eli’s Coming
On May 24, 1897, Eli Carpenter, the sixty year old co-discoverer of the Slocan Mining Camp, astounded spectators with his antics during Slocan’s epic Victoria Day Festivities as he walked a high-wire high above Main St. “He walked across from side to side of the street, forward and backward, and then gave an additional performance on a trapeze suspended from the rope”. Slocan Pioneer, 1897
This story has been often embellished; its various forms becoming staples of Kootenay folklore and legend.
(mural) 2001 mural: Liesa Polson et al, Photo: Tamara Koenig-Fraser
Artists’ rendering of Eli’s show, the Arlington and Main Street of old is part of a mural at the Visitor Information Centre at Springer Creek Campground.
Gradually Fading Grandeur
1942 – 1946 The Japanese Canadians
With the internment of over 4700 Japanese Canadians, the population of Slocan reached historic highs. Community and the uprooted had to deal with intense changes. The roofs of the decaying buildings were patched together one more time.
Main Street in the 1920s and 1930s was already showing age. Most buildings had been hastily built with green lumber. Maintenance was not being done and condition was going downhill fast. The flooding (c1930) didn’t help. The image above shows Main Street, high water and the famous boardwalks.
“What would it be like if all the people at the station could be rolled up into one huge person? The trees would be as tiny as toothpicks. He could cross the mountain in one leap. He could wade through Slocan Lake and it would be like stepping in a puddle.” Joy Kogawa, 1981
“We were among the first contingent to arrive in Slocan City and got to live in the hotel closest to the lake. We had a small room on the second floor at the back of the building. It must have been a grand building it its day … but the boards of the porches were so weathered and rotten that we weren’t allowed to run around on them … our building was filthy and cramped … ” David Suzuki, 1987
An Ignoble End
In 1952, the CPR bought the Arlington Hotel for $400 and had it demolished. During this same era Slocan Mayor Denison waged a successful campaign to remove the derelict buildings from Main St. in hopes of attracting development. Just missing the Heritage Conservation wave, he was quoted as saying: “When this place is cleaned up we’ll have one of the most beautiful towns in the district. The old building are too disreputable to keep any for their historical value.” Thus the impressive Victorian facade on Main St. met its end.
Credits – All photos not otherwise credited courtesy Slocan Valley Archives.
Use of research on the Arlington by Mr. Greg Nesteroff is gratefully acknowledged.
Research, design and interpretation by Ian Fraser & Associates.
Slocan – Diversity and Change
Although the mining rush and the Japanese Canadian Internment produced brief booms and exceptional short-term population influxes, the local economy since contact has also depended on the forest and natural resources of the surrounding area along with the self-sufficiency and agricultural initiatives of the pioneers.
Forests, Lumbering & Milling
Since the pioneer days Slocan has been the site of lumber mills supporting logging operations in the surrounding area. The mills and woods industry have provided employment opportunities, timbers, ties and lumber for industry and homesteader alike. Early hand loggers soon gave way to large corporate mills in the last half of the 20th century. By the 2981s most of the high-grade timber was overcut and the strong environmental movement was objecting to “business as usual”. In 2011 the Slocan mill was closed and demolished, ending over a half century of forest industry dominance.
(picture) from 2001 mural: Liesa Polson et al, Photo: Tamara Koenig-Fraser
(picture) Goat Creek Horse Logging, c1920
(Mill pictures)
The strategic location of Slocan at the junction of lake and river made it a transportation terminus enjoyed by successive mills. Both the Merry’s Mill and Triangle Pacific mills are shown above, with the track plan and barge transfer slips used until 1993. The aerial map at left show log booms on the lake. Riverdrives, flumes, peaveys, barges, tugs and booms were common to Slocan logging history.
Rock on Slowly
The characteristic surface enrichment of Slocan ore deposits, along with the ups and downs of metal prices, meant that the glory days of 1890s never returned. Brief flurries during WW1 and the high metal prices of the 1950s kept the miners’ dreams alive. Mines provided sporadic work but benefits often went to developers and owners from away. Local miners shown at portal below.
(picture)
“By 1906 only 327 miners were at work in the entire district, a loss of 50% from only five years earlier.”
Air Photo
(picture)
Treasure Dive
Below is a hard suited diver in search of the Lost Bullion of Slocan Lake.
(picture)
On Dec. 22 1903, a CPR boxcar carrying an estimated 700 bullion bars from the Trail smelter went off the transfer slip at Slocan and into the lake, carrying brakeman Edward Connolly to his death. Most of the bars were soon recovered; subsequent salvage in 1929, the 1960s and 1970s probably recovered the rest. While most of the ingots salvaged were lead, popular lore continues to fuel the general belief that silver ingots or treasure are lost in Slocan Lake. The Legend of Lost Bullion lives on.
Soil & Subsistence
Every Slocan Valley homesteader had a large kitchen garden. Over the years many have tried specialty crops. Cows, bees, orchards, mink, hemp, hogs and berries have all had their champions and their days in the Valley.
(pictures)
Slocan had annual Agricultural fairs every fall in the 1920s. Heritage images and community views are collaged above and at right.
Into the Future
With the closure of the waterfront millsite downtown, the repurposing of this spectacular large holding will inevitably influence the community’s future. Slocan is also exploring a micro-hydro plant on Springer Creek. Courtesy Slocan Village Council 2015.
Attracting new quality-of-life migrants, retirees, small businesses, and adventure tourists are also on the Slocan development agenda.
Post-Industrial Economy
“We had a single industry that really defined the town and now we are experiencing a transition into a new economy that’s post-industrial. Town council is ensuring that everyone can talk about what our future can be.” Slocan Mayor Jessica Lunn, 2015
Credits – All images not otherwise credited courtesy Slocan Valley Archives.
Research, design and interpretation by Ian Fraser & Associates.
Slocan Beginnings
First Nations Heritage
Slocan means to strike on the head and reflects the harpooning and harvest of the abundant salmon fishery that once thrived in the Slocan system.
At left, a reconstruction of a Slocan Narrows Kekuli. Note the furs, clothing, fish traps and sturgeon-nosed canoe as well as details of the pit home. At right is one of the earliest images of a Salish or Lakes summer camp.
First Nations occupation of this immediate area stretches back over 3000 years according to recent archaeological excavations at historic Lemon Creek village and pithouse sites, probably remnants of a winter village of ancestors to interior Salish hunter-gatherers. Early explorers, prospectors and settlers in the Slocan noted First Nations encampments, watercraft, fishers and hunters. Local stories credit First nations people with showing rich ore deposits to lucky prospectors. Historic encampments are described with tipi-like reed shelters, typical of Lakes or Sinixt camps. Around Slocan Lake in the pioneer days many pictographs or rock drawings coloured with red and yellow ochre, white and black dyes were known on the cliffs above the Lake. Clearly the Slocan has a rich First nations heritage.
The Centre of Slocan
(picture)
Historic Trueman photo of the wharf at Slocan in 1897 shows an auction for city lots prominently advertised. Also note the SS Hunter, a loaded scow or barge, various teams, two gentlewomen with parasols and an excellent turn-out of keen prospective bidders. The map at left, where every drainage boasts a pack trail and each rectangle represents a mining claim, shows “Peak Slocan”.
Transportation Hub
The back story on Kootenay mining development was the rush to get ores to the smelter and supplies to the mines. The CPR line up the Valley, the wharf and slip on the Lake at Main Street were all constructed in the 1890s in an effort to get Slocan ores to the smelter in Trail. The photo show the CPR steamer SS Slocan (launched 1897) at the wharf c1900. Development was sporadic and dependent on silver prices. The best years ended with WW1. Thereafter, producing mines became rare and development money for “prospects” was seldom forthcoming.
British Mining engineer John Ashcroft toured Slocan mines in 1908 to renew attention to the mining camps. He is shown with his party after returning from underground in a working Slocan mine.
Boom
Eli Carpenter and Jack Seaton discovered the first rich mines in the Silvery Slocan in 1891. Enriched ores and surface showings rapidly made the area a bright spot in North American prospecting, development and mining activity. In June 1892 Thomas Mulvey and Billy Clements recognized the junction of lake with river as an important terminus, established their camp there and began the historic development of Slocan. By 1892 the SS Hunter was providing freight and passenger service on Slocan Lake. Rapid development occurred from 1896 – 1898.
Twenty Years
1890s – Mining Rush
1892 – Land Grant to Arthur Dick
1892 – Lake View Hotel was built
1892 – SS Hunter (first propeller-driven vessel on Slocan Lake)
1893 – Springer Creek named by Billy Springer
1896 – Slocan’s First Newspaper; The Slocan City News
1896 – The Arlington Hotel built
1897 – C.P.R. Slipway at Slocan
1897 – First Train arrived in Slocan & the SS Slocan was launched
1898 – First Bridge Across Slocan River
1900 – First School House
1901 – First Orange Lodge
1901 – Slocan became a City
1901 – First Mayor – Archibald York
1903 – Slocan-Ontario Lumber Co.
1904 – Waterworks System
1906 – Crown Seized City for Debts
1910 – Merry’s Mill at Springer Creek
Where Horse Was King
Good horses and horsemen were in greater demand than miners in a world of rawhiding, teamsters, ore wagons, four horse or six mule teams, snow sleighs and switchbacks.
Credits – Research, design and interpretation by Ian Fraser & Associates.
Images not otherwise credited courtesy Slocan Valley Archives.
