Part 15: Fort St. John, Chetwynd, Hudson Hope and area
If you happen to get into a discussion about the relative ages of Fort St. John and Hudson Hope, you had better have some time available. Both places were earlier located somewhere other than their present spots -- there were at least four Fort St. Johns up and down the river and on both sides of it. Hudson Hope was either there (but on the south side) when Simon Fraser stopped there in 1806
or it might have been there even earlier. Whatever the case, they both owed their early life to the Fur Trade and now look to energy production. Chetwynd, earlier called Little Prairie, is much younger and has always been dependent on the railway and forestry. These three towns are quite different from the quiet agricultural communities of Dawson Creek, Rolla and Pouce Coupe.
Images from the BC Archives collection can be found following these articles. Some articles have internal links to other images relating to the Fort St John, Hudson's Hope and Chetwynd areas. 15-01: Joe Letendre of Chetwynd
15-02: Wilkie Smith's Early Recollections of Chetwynd
15-03: Mr and Mrs Willie McLean of Chetwynd
15-04: Arnold Munch
15-05: Mrs. Marcelena Desjarlais of Chetwynd
15-06: Mrs H.M. Nicholson, Chetwynd Old-Timer
15-07: The East Pine Flood of 1939
15-08: The Allens of 'Shady Brook'
15-09: Early Days Around Chetwynd -- Eric Logan Remembers
15-10: Highlights of Chetwynd's Early History
15-11: The Upper Peace River
15-12: The Peace River Canyon
15-13: Some Hudson's Hope Old-Timers
15-14: The PGE Railway Arrives in Fort St. John, 1958
15-15: Flour Mill Opens in Fort St. John, 1931
15-16: Alexeis Gauthier
15-18: Taylor Flats to 1957
15-19: The History of Bear Flat
15-20: The Bear Canyon District
15-21: The North Pine Women's Institute
15-22: The North Pine Settlements
Recent History - 1998
BN15-01: Electoral Boundaries to Change?
BN15-02: Population Estimates for the Peace, 1998
BN15-03: Region's Population Grows (1998)
Recent History - 1999
BN15-04: Electoral Boundaries Commission in Fort St John
BC ARCHIVES PHOTOS: Click on the image to see a larger picture and on the Call Number for more information about it. All these images are the property of the BCArchives and are not to be reproduced without permission.
The main street of Fort St John in 1930. The raised sidewalks kept pedestrians out of the mud. Image courtesy BC Archives -- Call Number B-01532
This was the Fort Hotel in Fort St. John, sometime in the 1930's. Image courtesy BC Archives -- Call Number D-00866
Alaska Highway construction -- vehicle traffic in Fort St John in 1942. Image courtesy BC Archives -- Call Number D-00872
Outdoor hockey in Fort St. John in the 1930's. Notice the lack of a net or goalie equipment. Image courtesy BC Archives -- Call Number D-00910
The Post Office and Store in Chetwynd around 1950. The community was still known as Little Prairie at that time. Image courtesy BC Archives -- Call Number D-00989
The Revillon Freres, successful competitors with the Hudson Bay Company were located in these buildings at Fort St John (on the river) around 1910 when this picture was taken. Image courtesy BC Archives -- Call Number D-04315
North Peace old-timers HBCo Factor Frank Beatton, J. McDougall and Johnnie Beatton. The photo dates from the 1920's. Image courtesy BC Archives -- Call Number D-04305
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