While the Lone Butte Historical Association (LBHA) was assembling Fran Enfield’s scrapbook for the northeastern wall of the Caboose Museum BC/Canada 150 project, we came across some interesting history with Fran’s research on early Lone Butte.
I would like to share some of her findings in this week’s column.
The railroad construction camp was established in Lone Butte in 1914, and was chosen because of the plentiful supply of water it could provide for the steam engines.
The first station house was built in 1915 but railroad construction was halted because of the first world war and was finally resumed after the war, in 1919.
In 1915, the first road from 100 Mile House, which was only a stopping house along the Cariboo Wagon Road, to Fawn Creek was built and the first post office in our area was opened there.
The water tower and the first railroad foreman’s house were both built in 1920, which is collaborated by our finding of the 1920 water licence in the provincial archives.
It is always exciting, as a historical association, to discover additional details of our earliest history regarding Lone Butte.
The LBHA held another garage sale on Saturday, Aug. 18 and raised almost $400.
More importantly, we cleaned out the water tower for next year’s centennial celebration of when the Pacific Great Eastern railroad reached Lone Butte.
Many people came through and enjoyed Dave Abbs contribution to the museum, which was a Lone Butte Community Club Minute Book from Nov. 11, 1945 to Oct. 1955.
The LBHA annual general meeting will be held on Monday, Sept. 17 at 7 p.m. in the caboose museum in the Water Tower Park. New members are always welcome and the yearly membership is only $5.
Hope to see you there.
