100 Mile House

100 Mile House, BC, incorporated as a district municipality in 1991, population 1886 (2011c), 1885 (2006c). The District of 100 Mile House is located in the South Cariboo region of south-central British Columbia on Highway 97, 458 km northeast of Vancouver.

Originally part of the territory of the Secwepemc Nation of the Interior SALISH, the community began in 1862 as a stopping house on the old CARIBOO ROAD during the CARIBOO GOLD RUSH. It received its name as it was 100 miles from Mile "0" at LILLOOET. Cattle ranching, still a major industry in the region, began around the same period.

In 1912 the marquess of Exeter in Britain purchased a large ranch surrounding 100 Mile House. His son, Lord Martin Cecil, took up residence on the ranch in 1932 and built 100 Mile Lodge to replace the old lodge. Today the lodge is used as a private dwelling for the Emissaries of Divine Light, a non-sectarian ministry Cecil became director of in 1954. In 1949, 3 brothers named Jens leased land from Bridge Creek Ranch and each built a house in 100 Mile House. This leasing agreement was repeated by many others until the village was incorporated in 1965 and the properties were offered for sale to the tenants. Cecil helped to plan the community and donated land for a park, a bird sanctuary at 100 Mile Marsh and land for most of the other publicly owned buildings the population enjoys today.

Today the municipality serves a wide region where ranching, lumber, mining and tourism supply the economic base.

Author JOHN STEWART Revised: KEN FAVRHOLDT

Links to Other Sites
BC Cities and Towns
Find the website for a specific city or town in British Columbia. Also features documents and reports about municipal government operatons in B.C. From civicinfo.bc.ca.

Community Profiles
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BC Geographical Names
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British Columbia Archives
Explore the fascinating history of BC through online digitized copies of selected government documents, manuscripts, maps, architectural plans, photographs, illustrations, audio and video files, newspapers and much more.

One of Canada's earliest roads: the Cariboo
A CBC Radio audio clip about the history of the harrowing Cariboo Wagon Road in BC.