Invermere Bc Historical Tour
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1 WINDERMERE VALLEY 3 FIRST HOSPITAL 5 INVERMERE LIVERY MUSEUM The first Invermere Hospital was built in The Invermere Contracting Company, INVERMERE BC th The Windermere Valley Museum complex 1914 on 10 street. It was actually the third which was formed in 1912, constructed a HISTORICAL currently consists of eleven buildings, nine hospital in the District with the first two Livery on this site for horses that were of which are heritage structures. The main hospitals having been located in Wilmer. hauling ore from the mines on Toby Creek. TOUR building is the Lake Windermere Canadian Salary for staff was as follows: a Matron The Contracting Company had, as its Pacific Railway log station, built in 1914 received $40 a month; a nurse received $35 original shareholders, prominent local and originally situated in Athalmer. In a month; a cook received $35 a month, all citizens, R.R. Bruce, Alex Ritchie and included room and board; and a Doctor George Starke. In 1935, the Livery was PAMPHLETS 1975 a coal train derailed, hitting the station and damaging it extensively. The received $50 a month. At times it was converted into a garage repairing and AVAILABLE AT THE station was sold to the Windermere District difficult to staff the hospital so volunteers selling vehicles for more than four decades. MUSEUM Historical Society for $1.00. With funding were needed. Today the site is home to Birchwood from a Federal Grant, the remains of the Restaurant and Ullr (Ew lar) Bar. Patients paid $2.50 a day in a public ward station was moved to its present site and or, like now, more for a private room. restored. The other eight buildings in the HISTORICAL SITES After delivering a child, staying in the ***************************************** Museum complex have been relocated from maternity ward was $5.00 for 12 days. other sites in the valley; restored, if needed, PYNELOGS 1. Windermere Valley Museum and available to tour. The history of all the 6 2. Kootenay Lodge buildings can be found in a display at the ***************************************** CULTURAL CENTRE 3. Invermere’s first hospital museum. This building was constructed in 1915 for 4. Strand’s Old House Restaurant ****************************************** Robert Randolph Bruce and his bride, 5. Site of first Livery Stable 4 STRAND’S OLD HOUSE Lady Elizabeth Northcote. Tragically, 6. Pynelogs Cultural Centre 2 KOOTENAY LODGE Lady Elizabeth died before her home was RESTAURANT This home was built in 1912-1913 by A.J. completed. Her grave is immediately south 7. Fort Point Constructed in 1912 for Mr. and Mrs. Dobbie for B.G. Hamilton, a prominent of the building overlooking Lake 8. Canterbury House Alexander Ritchie, this house was businessman and later the valley historian. Windermere. Mr. Bruce moved to Victoria 9. Cleland House purchased about 1920 by Dr. and Mrs. Through his interest in archaeology, when he became Lieutenant Governor of 10. Canadian Bank of Commerce Filmer Coy. Dr. Coy, for many years, Hamilton discovered the site of David British Columbia in 1926. He donated the 11. Avenue A and McKay House served as the only medical practitioner Thompson’s trading post, Kootenae House; property, known as Pynelogs, to the between Golden and Cranbrook. In 1946, 12. Village Arts built in 1807, Kootenae House was the first community to be used as a hospital. Mr. and Mrs. Ian Weir purchased the 13. David Thompson and Charlotte trading post in southeastern B.C. Officially opened in 1937 as a memorial to Small Statue And Pot Hole Park house. Mrs. Weir operated the first Lady Elizabeth, the building functioned as Mr. Hamilton’s home, called ‘Kootenay kindergarten in Invermere from their home a hospital until 1956. It was then used as a Lodge’, is classed as a bungalow, and for many years. The Weirs sold the house Senior Citizen’s Home and later, a mental contains six rooms at ground level, three Windermere District Historical Society to Tim Strand who opened the restaurant institution. In May 1990, Pynelogs was rooms upstairs, and has a large basement. 250.342.9769 on the site. The restaurant features small reopened as a Cultural Centre, showcasing The original property boundary extended Box 2315 222 6th Avenue dining rooms named after the previous local arts and crafts. well beyond the site of the present-day Invermere BC V0A 1K0 owners of the building. [email protected] Alliance Church, and included a large https://www.windermerevalleymuseum.ca garden, barn and garage. 7 FORT POINT 9 THE CLELAND HOUSE 12 VILLAGE ARTS The original name of this point of land was The Dobbie and Cartwright Construction Built in 1911, this building originally served as a Canterbury Point. It became Invermere Point Company constructed this building for the hardware store, known as “Invermere when the town site was laid out in 1911. A well- Cleland family in 1924. The family home was Construction and Supplies Ltd.”, and was established golf course, opened in the same year. sold to Des Askey family in 1957. More recently owned by George Bennett and Frank Stockdale. In 1922, the CPR built a Lodge and cabins for the building housed “Myrtles”, a shop named In 1958 the building, after several owners, the tourists arriving on the Kootenay Central for Mrs. Askey and owned by her son Roger. In became a grocery store. Today it is operated by Railway. Then the CPR with the Hudson’s Bay 1992, Mark Hendrickson, an architect, a group of artists and crafts people, providing Company built a fort as a memorial to David purchased and renovated the building. In an outlet for their work. Thompson. It was then, that the area became recent years, this former home, has been a known as Fort Point. The tourist camp was restaurant with different names. The building to the north, was constructed as a later purchased by a group of local people who grocery store in 1912 by Mr. Goldie Stewart. In subdivided the land and sold each cabin ***************************************** 1919, Stewart sold the store to Mr. A.E. Fisher individually. In 1956 the Weirs bought the CPR of Fairmont. Renowned for his photography, Lodge and later gave it to the District of 10 CANADIAN IMPERIAL Mr. Fisher sold groceries but specialized in Invermere. In 2010 it was moved to its present cameras and film development. F.W. Hillier site overlooking Dorothy Lake. BANK OF COMMERCE worked for Mr. Fisher in 1927 and purchased This building was constructed by Nat Bavin for the business in 1946. In 1980, the Smith Below the Lodge site is a historically significant the Imperial Bank in 1928. It originally had brothers restored the building and opened a gift stump, which has burn marks from a campfire steps and an entrance off 7th Avenue. The shop. that was made by the explorer David Thompson latest renovations increased the size of the and his party when they first arrived here in building to twice the original floor space and **************************************** 1807. For detailed directions to the stump see moved the entrance to 13th Street. “On the Trail of David Thompson” tour. 13 DAVID THOMPSON AND ***************************************** ***************************************** CHARLOTTE SMALL STATUE 11 AVENUE A and McKAY and POT HOLE PARK The statue of David Thompson and his wife, 8 CANTERBURY HOUSE HOUSE Built in the 1920’s as a police barracks, the Charlotte Small, was erected in 2003 as a In 1910, Avenue A was a General Store owned centennial project celebrating the opening of the original interior of the building included a jail by Messrs.’, Pitts and Hankey. Hankey went with two cells for prisoners, a courtroom and valley and the pioneer families that followed. away to WWI while J.C. Pitts along with his For more information on the statue see “On the living quarters for the policeman. One of the daughter Gladys, continued to operate the first policemen to take up residence in the Trail of David Thompson” tour. business that included the Invermere Post building was Mr. Bob Pritchard. In 1962, the Office. Mr. Pitts died in 1935 and his daughter The Pot Hole in the park is a natural formation. RCMP moved to a location at the north end of continued to run the store and post office until Often called a “Giant’s kettle”, such formations Invermere. The old barracks still functioned as 1954. The building was eventually purchased can be formed while the surface is covered by a a courthouse and held the offices of the by Pat Bavin along with the McKay house. glacier. Water produced through the melting of Provincial Government Agent and the the glacier erodes rock and silt changing the Conservation Officer until 1982 when The McKay house was built in 1911 for James earth’s form and forcing underground streams construction of the new Provincial Building was Lorenzo McKay by Dave Bales. The house sat and rivers to form. Colored water released in completed. In 1987, the building was purchased on the banks of the Columbia River in Athalmer the “Pot Hole” has surfaced in Lake Dorothy! then later sold to Quiniscoe Homes. The till 1980 when it was moved behind Avenue A. building has now been restored to its former It was opened in 1981, providing more space for glory. shops and offices. Revised: 2018-06-06 .