EEE ee

THE WHLIAMS LAKE TRInDNE

BRITISH

COLUMBIA

Before the advent of the
Pacific Great Eastern
Railway into the Cari-
boo, long trail drives to
steel at Ashcroft were a
necessary evil to the
business of ranching.

This picture, taken in
1914, shows Norman Lee

of Hanceville, topping
the crest of the hill go-
ing down into Ashcroft,
which is seen in the
distance.

New Wealth Along Old Trails

The rich furs of the north were the first wealth to
be carried down the historic trails of Interior British
Columbia. Later the gold of the Cariboo spread the
word of this Province’s wealth to the world and once
again the old routes brought progress to Canada’s

western province.

Now, at the turn of British Columbia’s century,
ion lines follow the ancient paths,
carrying the riches of the Peace River country to
consumers of the Cariboo, Okanagan and Kootenay

natural gas transmi:

districts.
In its transmis:

Natural gas, the modern wonder fuel, has opened
up a new industrial empire in B.C. where business and
industry can escape the high cost of coastal locations
. . . where workers can settle in communities unsur-
passed in North America for friendly, comfortable

family living.

ion and di
Natural Gas Co. Ltd. has a $25,000,000 stake in the
future of Interior British Columbia.

tribution systems Inland

Redstone man
worked for H.B.C.

7] as clerk in 1890

Fact that he is the son of a prominent English

cler,

foreign languages,

Tanch

yman, educated at Heidleberg and speaks two
: receives passing mention when
you interview Edward Penrose Lee in hi
house at Redstone.
pride a document that proved he w

month to the Hudson’s Bay Company back in 1890.
The

carefully
paper hiring
nd Mr. Lee was paid
this monthly salary for clerk-
ing in the company’s Kamloops
store.

- preserved

was a

BUILT IN 1895

He had been here two years
then, coming out to the Chil-

cotin first at the invitation of

his brother, Norman Lee. Then
he went to Kamloops for his

brief fling at the store busi- -

ness, returning to the Chilcotin
to establish his ranch at Red-
stone.
today was built in 1895.

Among his memories of the
old days in the country he re-
calls the busy village of Soda
Creek, where whisky sold for
25¢ a glass, the same price as
a packet of needles.

WAGON ROAD

Travelling out to the Chil-
cotin, the first place on the
road after leaving the Soda
Creek ferry was the Salmon
Ranch. Twenty-five miles far-
ther on was Meldrum’s, and it
was another 25 to the Becher
place. Another 30 miles
brought you to Tom Hance’s,
and that was the end of the
wagon road. From there you
packed in supplies.

Ranching was far from a
lucrative business in those
early days, with the only stock
saleable being three-year-old
steers. These brought around
$18; and it was necessary to
drive them to Ashcroft, a trek
that took from 12 to 14 days.

BULLD OUTLET

The “way out” was made
shorter when Norman Lee
staked a man called Franklin
to cut a 50-mile road to Gang
Ranch property to connect up
with the ferry there.

At 87, “Young Lee” keeps
active and mentally alert by
doing a bit of work around his
ranch and spending a great
deal of time writing of the
early residents of the Chil-
cotin and life in those days.
When he first came to the dis
trict he was tagged with the
nickname ‘‘ Young Lee” so
people wouldn't confuse him
with his older brother, Nor-
man, and to this day he is
still called that by some old-
timers.

The house he occupies

EDWARD PENROSE LEE

Isnardy left
home for New
World at 14

One of the area’s earliest
settlers was Amedee Isnardy,
who was born in Nice, France
and at the age of 14 left home
for the New World,

He went first to Mexico,
staying there for a few years
before heading for California
in 1849. Ten years later he
came to British Columbia. He
recalls there were .only four
houses in New Westminster
when he arrived there.

Travelling the lake route, he
went through Lillooet and up
into the Cariboo. In 1862 he
established his ranch at Chim-
ney Creek. It was below this
ranch were travellers crossed
the Fraser to go into the Chil-
cotin, and at this crossing the
present suspension bridge was
built.

In 1900, a race track was
built on Becher Prairie, near
Riske Creek. A three-day
meet was held annually and
people came from as far away
as Redstone and Soda Creek.

“ind ted T three-day rest

sod-rook =
But he displays with
as worth $35 a

Page 1

HIGH LIVING COST

P

The ]
cause of

originate in the Cariboo.
In that city
1890's, Dota;

$12 a dozen ang
nd.

beet
pou! was $la

With"an eye to the profit to
be made, Chilcotin © rancher
Norman Lee §0t the idea of a
1200-mile trail drive to the
Klondike. Hig diary, to be pub-
lished soon, gives the detailed
account of the drive.

The drive got underway on
May 17, 1898 with 200 head of
cattle. Five cowboys, a horse
wrangler and a cook made up
the party, with 30 Pack and
saddle horses,

About the same time three
other: drives were on the way
north. Jim Cornell was about
a week ahead of Lew with 75
head, Jerry Grayelle had mov-
ed off three days earlier with
100 head, and behind Lee was
Johnny Harris with 200 head.

Lee’s account tells of almost
insurmountable odds in the
trek north, not all caused by
nature, _

ARTFUL INDIAN

It had been planned on
swimming the stock across the
Mud River, but when the party
came to the stream it was
found to be unusually wide at
the point where the trail met
the water. Subsequent investi-
gation showed that an artful
Indian who operated a ferry
there had dammed the river
farther downstream to force
travellers to use his conveyance
at the trail, Lee took, his drive
farther down the river and
crossed safely.

The drive made Hazelton

made. There was no ration on
rum there though, and several

igh cost of living in Dawson City was the
One of the most famous cattle drives to

‘and some of them became vic-

of the cowboys were in no con-
dition to hit the trail at the
end of the’ allotted time and
the rest was extended a further
three days.

The horses began to play out

tims of mud fever and lost
théir hooves. Most of the an’
mals died and the cowboys
were forced to continue the
drive on foot.

The Lee drive arrived at
Telegraph Creek on September
2 and there they found Jim
Cornell operating a butcher
shop as an outlet for his beef.

Lee’s plan called for driving
on to Teslin. Lake and there
slaughtering the beef and raft-
ing across the lake and down
the rivers to Dawson.

END OF DRIVE

On October 3, four and a
half months after leaving the
Chileotin ranges, Lee arrived
at Teslin Lake.

Here two rafts, 40 feet long:
and 16 feet wide were con-
structed and the animals
slaughtered. On October 17 the
rafts were loaded with beef
and the voyage started. They
sailed for two days without in-
cident but on the third day
disaster struck. A tremendous
gale got up and wrecked both
rafts.

The other two parties fared
no better. Harris was ahead
and missed the storm, but his
cargo was “frozen in” about
200 miles above Dawson and
was a complete loss. Gravelle’s
beef suffered the same fate.

Norman Lee returned home
without a cent, but his reputa-
tion was such that Vancouver
cyholesalers backed him and he
again built up his Chilcotin
Ranch.

“Arst

ORMAN LEE

Meldrum
one of firs
settlers

Meldrum Creek is named «
after Thomas Meldrum, one of
the earliest settlers in this part
of the country. There is no
record of the correct date of
his arrival, but as he came in-
to the country with William
Pinchbeck, it must have been
in the late 50’s or early 60’s.

Located about 20 miles
south of the Soda Creek ferry
Meldrum Creek was the “ gate-
way to the Chilcotin” up to
the time the Chimney Creek
route was inaugurated in the
1890's.

Meldrum was born on board
ship in 1828 when his parents
were en route to Canada. They
settled in Ontario and Thomas,
came west as a young man.

Before the bad winter of 1886
to 1887, elk roamed the Chil-
cotin in large numbers. -The
moosé was reported im
1914.

OMPTED DRIVE

Saga of cattle country
ended on Teslin Lake

Settled in
B.C. when

young man

Norman Lee, one of
the Chilcotin’s best-
known ranchers, came
to British Columbia in
1882, when he was a
young man of 20.

He had travelled
England in company with a
Rev. Horlock, and the two men
rode the CPR to its terminus
at Boston Bar and walked from
there to Nicola. At Kamloops
Rev. Horlock started the first
Masonic Lodge and young Lee
was one of the lodge’ first
four members.

from

He met up with E. P. Bay-
lift at Cherry Creek Ranch and
the two men pooled resources
and headed for the Chilcotin.
They’ settled first at Redstone
in 1884 on the site of the
present Bayliff ranch. When
his partner married, Norman
moved down the valley, buying
the present Lee Ranch from
Danny Norberg.

PAID IN GOLD PIECES

This earlier Norwegian
settler ran the store he had
built in the 60’s and the build-
ing still stands today, although
it is not used for the same pur-
pose. Norberg had one pecu-
liarity: he didn’t believe in
paper money, and Norman had
to pay him off in $20 gold
pieces. Because of this love of
gold money, coins were turned
up for years afterwards in old
tins and odd corners.

Norman Lee sold his hold-
ings in 1913, but the ranch
was not paid for and it was
in such a run-down condition

‘that he took it back’ in-1azg.

He died in 1937.

The British Columbia Centennial Committee
is proud to join the people of

Williams

Lake

in their celebrations of our

Province’s One Hundredth Birthday.