When gold was discovered on Antler Creek, in the fall of 1860, by the miners John Rose and Benjamin McDonald, it caused a great stampede to the area, and very quickly the land was all staked. From there the miners, including William Dietz, Ned Stout, and Bill Cunningham, headed west and south to discover the myriad of gold bearing creeks in the general vacinity. One of these, a creek unaffected by the last glacial period, at the foot of Bald Mountain, proved to be the richest and longest lasting gold bearing creek of all. Named for Bill Dietz, the early miners on Williams Creek declared it to be "a humbug", but when miner Abbot dug though a layer of blue clay, he discovered strata of astoundingly rich gold. Soon the creek was completely staked, and when William Barker arrived in 1862, he was forced to take Ned Stout's advice and stake a claim below Blackjack Canyon, a most unlikely area, so he was told. There, at 52 feet below the surface, the Barker Co. made the richest strike ever. Another miner, John A. Cameron, made an even richer strike than Barker, soon after. As long as they were getting gold, the miners remained, but most miners left the area soon after they had made their fortunes. Most died paupers, including Billy Barker. Barkerville had its ups and downs through the years. During the depression of the 1930s when the price of gold doubled from $16.00 to $33.00 an ounce it caused a mining rush. In 1933 the Gold Quartz Mine at Wells, just 5 miles west of Barkerville, began operation. Since 1958, when Barkerville became a Heritage Park, the gold has been in the thousands of tourists who visit the site each year.
Barkerville around 1870 (BC Archives #F-07769)
Barkerville Pioneers
| Home| Lower Fraser| Fraser Canyon | Clinton | Barkerville | Text TOC | Indexes | Team |
|
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.
|