A flat river bench on the southeast bank of the Thompson River inadvertently became the site of the town of Ashcroft in the mid 1880s. Known as the Butte Ranch, a property overlooked due to its inaccessibility, John C. Barnes and his partner William Brink took up several hundred acres in 1868. As construction of the CPR moved west in the mid 1880s, it became apparent that a northwest station point would be established on the east side of the Thompson River, and the Butte ranch became the logical location. While Billy Brink did not live to enjoy the benefits of the prime property, Brink's son-in-law Oliver Evans, did. As the first train chugged up the track, Barnes and Evans were busy surveying and selling town lots.
The town of Ashcroft created because of the railway in the 1880s (credit: BC Archives #D-00451)
Freight wagons heading north out of Ashcroft town. Once the railway was in place Ashcroft became the transportation hub of the BC Interior (credit: J.S. Thomson, Vancouver).
Roads and Pioneers
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All text and images
© Quesnel & District Museum and Archives unless otherwise
noted. Thanks to the B.C. Archives for permission to show various
images. Thanks to the BC Encyclopedia for permission to quote information
on the roadhouse communities. Thanks to the Living Landscapes Project,
the Royal British Columbia Museum, Ministry of Community, Aboriginal
and Women's Services for their support of site development.
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