History

Great places always have interesting histories and the valley??s lore is as colorful as its cosmopolitan, worldly residents. The rivers and the former great Pacific salmon spawning runs, which ended when the dams were built, provided local First Nations people with great quantities of food, so people have called the valley home for thousands of years. The rivers also brought Europeans to the region, beginning with legendary fur trader, cartographer and explorer David Thompson in 1807.

Thompson established a small settlement near Invermere and explored the Columbia and Kootenay valleys, searching for a route to the Pacific Ocean. He traded goods with the local First Nations people for large amounts of beaver and other pelts, which he transported back to Thunder Bay, Ont. before returning all the way back to this secluded Eden, nestled between the sawtoothed back range of the Rocky Mountains and imposing, ancien t Purcell Mountains. Thompson was the first white man to realize the wealth contained within the large, lush Columbia River Wetlands. Today the wetlands are a fertile wintering ground for elk, deer, moose and many other creatures, the wetlands span over 180 km and are the longest continuous series of wetlands remaining on the continent.

2007 marks the 150th anniversary of Thompson's death and the 200th anniversary of his first crossing of the Rockies to the mouth of the Columbia River to anchor a lucrative trans-mountain fur trade. For more information visit http://www.davidthompson200.org/

The Region has also been significantly influenced by the discovery and development of mineral resources. In the early 1860's, placer gold was discovered on the Wild Horse River approximately 16 km northwest of the present location of Cranbrook. Several thousand prospectors and entrepre neurs joined in this gold rush and the famous Dewdney Trail was constructed across southern B.C. linking Vancouver to the gold fields.

With increased settlement occurring as a result of the gold rush, conflicts between settlers and the indigenous Indian population grew.

To ease these tensions, a detachment of North West Mounted Police was dispatched to Galbraith's Ferry on the Kootenay River where a fort was established along with a permanent settlement in 1887. The Fort was later renamed Fort Steele after its first commander, Sam Steele. Fort Steele remained the dominant community in the Region until the development of other mineral resources and railway expansion bypassed it and created the growth centers of Fernie, Kimberley and Cranbrook.

Hist ory of Mt. Swansea

In 1924, Mt. Swansea was established as a B.C. Forest Service look out. A lookout structure was constructed in 1952 and removed in 1992. Follow this "Out of the Past" link" to find out why this mountain is called Mt. Swansea.