Finlay Forks

Finlay Forks (also called Finlay Junction and sometimes misspelt Findlay), is the confluence of the Finlay River and Parsnip River. The Finlay Bay Recreation Site,[1][2] on the southeast bank, is about three kilometres (1.9 mi) southeast of the former settlement (on the earlier southeast bank) that is now submerged beneath Williston Lake. Like the river, it was named after explorer John Finlay.[3] The access road from Mackenzie is called the Parsnip West FSR (formerly Finlay Forks Road and Parsnip Forest Road).[4]

Finlay Forks, British Columbia
Former settlement
Location of Finlay Forks in British Columbia
Coordinates: 55°59′00″N 123°50′00″W
CountryCanada
ProvinceBritish Columbia
Land DistrictCariboo
Regional DistrictFraser-Fort George
Geographic RegionOmineca Mountains
Area code(s)250, 778

History

Waterways & Trails

The first European explorers travelling through the Forks were Alexander Mackenzie in 1793, and Simon Fraser in 1805.[5]

Aboriginal trails laced the valleys for thousands of years. With the Klondike Gold Rush, the Canadian government sought to identify safe overland routes for prospectors to reach the Yukon from Edmonton. As water transport could be expensive, these were intended as wagon trails. The initial NWMP Trail, surveyed during 1897–98 by Inspector J.D. Moodie with First Nations guides, passed along the northeast bank of the Forks.[6] Hordes coming from the south would join the trail here.[7] Prospectors also passed through the vicinity on their way to gold rushes at Barkerville (1860s), Omineca (1871–72), and McConnell Creek (1907–08).[8]

During the ice-free months, passenger and freight vessels regularly ran between Summit Lake and Hudson's Hope via the Crooked River, the Parsnip River, Finlay Forks, and the Peace River.[9][10][11] However, low water levels would shorten the navigation season.[12]

Four of the potential sites for the W. A. C. Bennett Dam were at the western end of the Peace River canyon near the Forks.[13] Originally, the dam and powerhouse were planned for the Finlay Forks-Wicked River junction seven miles (11 km) east. On drilling down 400 feet in the middle of the Peace River, the failure to reach solid rock identified an unbridgeable crevice.[14]

By the summer of 1969, the T-shaped reservoir was 80-percent full.[15] The combination of high waves and floating logs could make Williston Lake treacherous, with at least eight persons missing and believed drowned in the lake during 1970–1985. The worst area is at Finlay Forks, where the wind can come from north, south, east or west.[16]

When his 15-tonne logging truck broke through the ice in the vicinity, Brian Wykes (1956–83)[17] drowned.[18]

Road & Rail Proposals

The joint Peace Pass/Finlay Forks proposals form part of the Pine Pass highway and railway developments.

In 1913, Premier McBride envisaged a PGE Alaskan rail route passing through the Forks.[19]

In the late 1920s, Mr. Armishaw sought to establish a trail southwest to Manson Creek.[20] A rail line from the Forks to the Ferguson mine in the Ingenika was proposed. Charter flights from Prince George to this mine were taking less than two hours to what had previously been a week by water and land.[21]

The 1930s survey for Route B of the proposed Alaska Highway, which was promoted as the Canadian preference, was via this locality.[22] By 1935, the leaning was for a Prince George-Finlay Forks road via Summit Lake rather than Manson Creek,[23] however this choice was not universal,[24] and further surveys ensued.[25] The latter, known as the Turgeon Highway, did not reach Manson Creek until 1939. The project required a further 40 miles of heavy construction if extended to Finlay Forks,[26] and progress was long delayed.[27]

A PGE link to a possible Alaskan rail route continued to include Finlay Forks.[28] In 1965, an access road north from Highway 97 reached the settlement and construction commenced on the Manson Creek link.[29] A three-times-weekly road freight service with Prince George was soon implemented.[30] The 1966 PGE spur covered only the 23 miles (37 km) to Mackenzie.

Community

Established in 1813,[31] the location was an important Hudson's Bay Company fur trading post and settlement.[32][33]

Two general stores opened in 1913.[34] That year, the residents formed a community association and petitioned the postal authorities to rename the location as ‘Finparpea’, compiled from the first three letters of the three rivers. World War I superseded any action, and few returned to their holdings after the conflict.[8] In 1915, there were about 35 settlers,[10] and the following year, the Fort Grahame band of Sekani established a reserve nearby. William Fox, the Hudson’s Bay factor (mercantile agent),[35] was the inaugural postmaster 1916–18, with mail deliveries 6–8 times each year.[36][37]

During the 1920s, The Northern Trading Co. also operated a post,[38] Hugh M. Gibson was a storeowner, and the population was about 12.[39] The nucleus of a potential town comprised a few scattered cabins,[40] with Ole Johnson offering visitor accommodation.[41] In 1912, Louis Peterson (c.1852–1933)[42] who took up the first pre-emption at the Forks,[8] was postmaster 1926–29,[37] and ran a trading store until his death.[43] The remaining storekeeper,[44] Alan (alternatively Alex) McKinnon, was also a fur trader,[45] postmaster 1920–25 and 1930–43,[37] and a mine owner.[46] Replenishing his supplies in the summer of 1940, he trucked the 50-ton load from Prince George to Summit Lake, from where it was boated to the Forks.[47] The annual fur auction held at Finlay Forks, comprised many trappers and drew in commercial buyers.[48]

By the 1950s, the Caucasian population numbered four, two of whom were Roy (1889–1984)[49][50] & Marge (1900–80)[51] McDougall, who ran the trading post and provided visitor accommodation. Marge was also the volunteer first aid attendant for the Sekani and passing itinerants.[52] Arriving in the 1920s, the couple farmed,[53] and Marge served as postmaster 1943–46 and 1948–58.[37] They sold up in 1957,[54] the post-office closed in 1959,[37] and they left 1960/61.[55]

The school was a challenge for maintenance crews, being at the northern tip of School District 57.[56] Catering to logging crews and Sekani, the two classrooms comprised an Atco-style singlewide structure for the primary grades, and a doublewide for the intermediate ones. The Carrier Lumber campsite provided water, power and sewer connections for the classrooms and teacherage. Operating 1968–1971, student enrolments ranged 20–27.[57][58] On closure, the three portable buildings were removed.[59]

During the 1968 summer, Bud Stuart operated a coffee shop and general store from a tent[60] that evolved into permanent premises.[61] By 1973, Bill Bloor ran the general store.[62] The Finlay Bay Cabins,[63] operated by Kelly Brothers, no longer exist.

Communications & Air Services

Communications with Prince George were slow, because mail travelled a circuitous route east via Hudson’s Hope, Edmonton, and west toward Prince George. The residents appealed for a direct route through Summit Lake, at least during the summer months.[64]

The rivers covered with floating ice, the ballot box for an election was parachuted from a plane. The mere 13 names on the electoral roll signified an expensive exercise in democracy.[65] The locked ballot box took 15 days to reach Hudson’s Hope, from where the mail would take a further 10 days to reach Prince George.[66] By the 1950s, the arrival of the ballot box, containing two votes, delayed the final count.[67]

In 1936, a shortwave radiotelephone station opened, which operated in conjunction with a series of similar stations in northern BC and the Yukon.[68] The following year, United Air Transport (UAT) inaugurated a scheduled monthly passenger/freight/mail service for nine months of the year.[69] A half-gallon ice cream consignment was the first occasion it was served in the community.[70] By 1938, the dominion postal inspector’s annual visit to Finlay Forks and the surrounding post-offices took five days by air, compared with the previous 40 days by boat.[71] UAT, renamed Yukon Southern Air Transport (YSAT), scheduled a Christmas 1940 mail run.[72] Moving under the joint control of YSAT and Canadian Airways in 1941,[73] the passenger/mail runs continued monthly.[74]

By the 1950s, Central B.C. Airways carried the nine mail deliveries for the year, the radiotelephone station had become redundant and closed, and the community’s two-way radio was dependent upon weather conditions.[52] When a plane crashed on making an emergency landing near Finlay Forks in 1950, the pilot and the three passengers survived.[75] Santa would come by plane, but sometimes the weather delayed the event until after Christmas.[76] With flight cancellations, several months of newspapers might arrive together.[77]

The Pacific Western Airlines Prince George-Fort St. John run, which commenced in 1957, provided the irregular passenger, freight and mail service to the Forks.[78] Months later, the ballot box travelled by helicopter.[79]

In 1995, when an amphibian plane crashed shortly after takeoff from Finlay Bay, the three occupants escaped uninjured.[80] The Finlay Bay Water Aerodrome (CAK8) was later abandoned.[81]

Law Enforcement

In 1924, Constable Muirhead became the inaugural provincial police constable in residence,[82] and mushed over 500 miles to spend Christmas in Prince George. Although federal police questioned the adequacy of provincial policing in the area,[83] a permanent police presence was limited to the 1920s.

In 1930, Alfred (Alf) Jank (1897–1989)[84] was appointed game warden for the Finlay River district, with his headquarters in the forestry cabin at Finlay Forks.[85] Vic Williams replaced him the following year.[86] Vic and a colleague rescued two men from a capsized boat in the Finlay Rapids, but a third person drowned.[87] In 1933, he was appointed coroner in conjunction with his ten-month-each-year game warden role.[88] During the late 1930s, Alf,[89] and Sidney G. Copeland,[90] held the game warden position. In 1940, Sidney apprehended Edward Bird (alias Byrde) at Deserter’s Canyon on a charge of bigamy and surrendered him to a police constable for escorting to Prince George.[91]

In 1944, after a social confrontation, Alex Prince (1921–45)[92] murdered trappers Eugene Messmer, 33, and then Hans Pfeuffer, 43, at their cabin in the vicinity. Found in Prince’s cabin were Messmer’s gold watch, handmade briefcase, rifle, valuable cameras, film, stolen furs and fur stretchers. Based on this evidence, Game Warden Jank executed an arrest on separate charges. The coroner’s court reached an open verdict.[93] Alex Prince, Sekani First Nations, stood trial,[94] but damaging inadmissible statements made by a witness prompted a mistrial.[95] At his retrial, Prince was found guilty of murdering Messmer and a stay of proceedings was entered in a second murder charge in the death of Pfeuffer.[96] After an unsuccessful appeal on the grounds of diminished capacity, he was hanged.[97]

In 1964 and 1965, rifle shots wounded separate members of the Poole family on the Finlay Forks reserve.[98] In another shooting incident at a family reunion, May Egnell (1929–68)[99] died, and another woman and boy were injured. The incident arose after a verbal exchange during an intoxicated episode. While Joe Egnell, husband of the deceased was in a physical altercation with Murphy Porter, their wives May and Mary, and Bessie Tomah, were fighting. Although May had pulled a knife, Bessie, 26, was found guilty of manslaughter and received a three-year sentence.[100]

In 1948, Joe Egnell’s father, McDonald, and youngest brother, Tony, died, the former of exposure and the latter of pneumonia. His mother trekked 80 miles in cold winter weather to bring her two children to safety. Game Warden Jank and Const. Lyle Oleson conducted the investigation, and Frank identified his father’s body.[101] Frank Egnell, 43, shot to death Keon Pierre (1914–71)[102] following an argument at Finlay Forks. Convicted of manslaughter, he was sentenced to two years less a day.[103]

Mining & Farming

A great deal of mining occurred in the surrounding mountains, rivers and creeks.[34][104][105] The increasing market for produce was anticipated to expand farming in the immediate area.[106] Larry Canty acquired 20,000 acres in 1929 for agricultural development.[107] However, the lack of rail lines and roads hampered mining activities.[108] The 1957 site selection for the W. A. C. Bennett Dam confirmed the flooding would submerge many mining and industrial development properties.[109]

Forestry

By the mid-1910s, the BC forestry department maintained a headquarters at Finlay Forks,[110] which in due course served a fire ranger role.[40] The forest ranger station operated after World War II,[111] and an assistant ranger station was built in 1964.[112] In the mid-1960s, logging contracts were let for those valleys north, south and east of the Forks, which would be flooded by the dam.[113] Donald Adems (Adams alternate spelling), a forestry service engineer on the project, had been the first Caucasian child to live at Finlay Forks.[114]

Further contracts were let for the clearing and burning of inferior timber.[115] Several portable sawmills began operations.[116] Carrier Lumber and Cattermole Timber adopted new ideas such as felling on the ice and sorting later.[117] The latter was located on the west bank of the Parsnip River, two miles south, and was accessed by an ice-bridge.[118] Fires completely gutted its 50,000-foot capacity McLean Lake Mill,[119] and the Courhon Sawmill on Scott Creek at mile 56 of the access road. A forest fire at Mile 43 threatened another mill.[120] Temporary work camps were at Miles 49 and 73.[121]

The forest service established a centre of operations at Finlay Forks. Rising faster than anticipated, the dammed waters created vast logjams and half-submerged trees.[60] In this environment, two tugboat companies and about 25 private logging contractors conducted one of the largest timber salvage operations in North America. At the Forks, Finlay Navigation operated a dispatch base, and Carrier Lumber a sawmill.[15] Sheriffs’ sales of assets occurred to settle unpaid wages of Yarkon Industries and workers compensation liabilities of Ashlea Timber at Mile 74½.[122] In 1969, the bush mills disappeared from the pondage area and the first log boom reached Mackenzie from the Finlay drainage.[117] By 1971, further timber salvaging became uneconomical,[123] and Carrier relocated all its operations from Finlay Forks to Mackenzie.[124] On rolling his skidder, operator Vincent Broad was fatally crushed (1951–73).[125]


Footnotes
  1. Prince George Citizen, 11 Mar 1989
  2. "Recreation Sites and Trails BC".
  3. Prince George Citizen, 27 Jul 1983
  4. Prince George Citizen: 19 Mar 1973, 18 May 1979; & 19 & 21 Nov 1980
  5. Prince George Citizen, 26 May 1938
  6. Sherry, Erin & Cadden, Veronica. (2008). Documenting and Interpreting the History and Significance of the North West Mounted Police Peace-Yukon Historic Trails. Inter-Agency Management Committee, Northern Interior Region. Preface & p. 40 http://www.muskwa-kechika.com/uploads/documents/cultural/NWMP%20trail%20Final%20Archival%20Report%20-%20June%2012%202008%20NWMP%20Trail.pdf
  7. Prince George Citizen, 25 May 1939
  8. Prince George Citizen, 17 May 1928
  9. Fort George Tribune, 27 Jun 1914
  10. Fort George Herald, 9 Oct 1915
  11. Prince George Citizen: 23 Jul 1920; 6 Aug 1920; 3, 24 & 30 Sep 1920; & 14 Apr 1938
  12. Prince George Citizen, 29 Jun 1944
  13. Prince George Citizen, 28 Apr 1958
  14. Prince George Citizen, 21 May 1991
  15. Prince George Citizen, 7 Jul 1969
  16. Prince George Citizen, 28 Aug 1985
  17. http://search-collections.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/Image/Genealogy/b65ff018-3dac-4cf4-ba04-61f9fc22737c
  18. Prince George Citizen, 28 Jan 1982
  19. Prince George Citizen, 16 Feb 1928
  20. Prince George Citizen, 13 Oct 1927
  21. Prince George Citizen, 13 Jun 1929
  22. Prince George Citizen: 4 Sep 1930, 17 Feb 1938, 5 May 1938, 17 Nov 1938, 29 Dec 1938, 9 Feb 1939, 18 May 1939, & 17 & 24 Jul 1941
  23. Prince George Citizen: 27 Jun 1935 & 15 Jun 1939
  24. Prince George Citizen: 4 Jun 1936, 2 Apr 1942, 23 Jul 1942, & 1 & 22 Jul 1943
  25. Prince George Citizen, 6 May 1943
  26. Prince George Citizen: 18 Mar 1937, 27 May 1937, 29 Jul 1937, 26 Aug 1937 & 26 Oct 1939
  27. Prince George Citizen: 8 Jun 1944, 7 Jun 1945, 21 Mar 1946, 26 Sep 1946, 3 Feb 1949, 24 Mar 1949, 16 & 23 Jun 1949, 24 Aug 1950, & 23 Dec 1957
  28. Prince George Citizen: 25 Nov 1948, 3 Mar 1949, 1 Sep 1949 & 31 Aug 1953
  29. Prince George Citizen, 30 Mar 1965
  30. Prince George Citizen, 13 Sep 1965
  31. "The Remarkable History of the Hudson's Bay Company".
  32. "Settlers' Effects - Mackenzie - Environmental, Cultural & Social Change from 1805-1972 - Trading Posts". settlerseffects.ca.
  33. Raymond M. Patterson. 1968. Finlay's River. New York: W. Morrow. Chapter 6.
  34. Fort George Tribune, 20 Jun 1914
  35. Prince George Citizen, 14 May 1925
  36. Prince George Citizen: 31 May 1916 & 24 Jun 1921
  37. "Postmasters".
  38. Prince George Citizen, 30 Apr 1920
  39. Prince George Citizen: 24 Jun 1921 & 2 Jul 1925
  40. Prince George Citizen, 7 Jul 1922
  41. Prince George Citizen, 19 Jul 1928
  42. http://search-collections.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/Genealogy/Results?search=Search&as.type_death=true&as.registration_num=1933-09-485048
  43. Prince George Citizen: 24 Sep 1918 & 1 Jun 1933
  44. Prince George Citizen, 19 Apr 1934
  45. Prince George Citizen, 28 Jul 1938
  46. Prince George Citizen, 5 Sep 1940
  47. Prince George Citizen, 13 Jun 1940
  48. Prince George Citizen: 22 May 1941, 19 Mar 1942, 18 May 1944 & 16 May 1946
  49. http://search-collections.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/Image/Genealogy/55fb64f8-68db-4872-9ecc-e17512156542
  50. Prince George Citizen, 23 Nov 1984
  51. http://search-collections.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/Image/Genealogy/46488662-b697-4f3e-a399-e11fd84ad1da
  52. Prince George Citizen, 27 Oct 1952
  53. Prince George Citizen: 21 Jun 1928 to 9 Aug 1928
  54. Prince George Citizen, 28 Feb 1957.
  55. Prince George Citizen: 2 Jun 1960 & 4 Apr 1961.
  56. Prince George Citizen, 7 Jan 1969
  57. Hall, Barbara; & Nellis, Kris (2012). School District No. 57 (Prince George) historical memories. (Volume II): people, places, programs & services. Prince George Retired Teachers' Association, Education Heritage Committee
  58. Prince George Citizen, 29 Dec 1967
  59. Prince George Citizen, 3 Dec 1971
  60. Prince George Citizen, 14 Jun 1968
  61. Prince George Citizen: 13 Jun 1969 & 13 Aug 1969
  62. Prince George Citizen, 17 Jan 1973
  63. Prince George Citizen, 15 Sep 1994
  64. Prince George Citizen, 14 Jun 1928
  65. Prince George Citizen, 2 Nov 1933
  66. Prince George Citizen, 23 Nov 1933
  67. Prince George Citizen, 31 Dec 1953
  68. Prince George Citizen: 30 Apr 1936, 27 Aug 1936 & 24 Sep 1936
  69. Prince George Citizen: 10 & 24 Jun 1937; 12, 19 & 26 May 1938; 23 Jun 1938; & 9 May 1940
  70. Prince George Citizen, 22 Jul 1937
  71. Prince George Citizen, 17 Mar 1938
  72. Prince George Citizen, 24 Dec 1940
  73. Prince George Citizen, 6 Mar 1941
  74. Prince George Citizen: 28 Nov 1946, 20 Mar 1947 & 10 Jul 1947
  75. Prince George Citizen, 31 Aug 1950
  76. Prince George Citizen, 30 Dec 1952
  77. Prince George Citizen: 12 Jan 1953 & 21 Jan 1954
  78. Prince George Citizen: 17 Oct 1957 & 20 Jun 1962
  79. Prince George Citizen, 28 Mar 1958
  80. Prince George Citizen, 21 Aug 1995
  81. "CAK8 @ OurAirports".
  82. Prince George Citizen, 16 Oct 1924
  83. Prince George Citizen, 8 Jan 1925
  84. http://search-collections.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/Image/Genealogy/e2891f12-b686-464a-bd9e-a162e097e570
  85. Prince George Citizen, 27 Nov 1930
  86. Prince George Citizen: 27 Aug 1931 & 25 Aug 1932
  87. Prince George Citizen, 15 Sep 1932
  88. Prince George Citizen, 22 Jun 1933
  89. Prince George Citizen, 1 Apr 1937
  90. Prince George Citizen, 6 Jul 1939
  91. Prince George Citizen: 30 May 1940 & 18 Jul 1940
  92. http://search-collections.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/Image/Genealogy/acd421cb-4897-4d63-b428-c3828264bc1c
  93. Prince George Citizen: 16 & 24 Mar 1944; & 6 Apr 1944
  94. Prince George Citizen, 14 Sep 1944
  95. Prince George Citizen, 28 Sep 1944
  96. Prince George Citizen, 7 Jun 1945
  97. Prince George Citizen, 8 Nov 1945
  98. Prince George Citizen: 28 Aug 1964, 30 Apr 1965 & 3 May 1965
  99. http://search-collections.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/Image/Genealogy/360cee0b-2910-439f-9340-c2029ce8d274
  100. Prince George Citizen: 14 & 16 Aug 1968; & 14, 15 & 19 Nov 1968
  101. Prince George Citizen: 18 Mar 1948 & 11 Dec 1999
  102. http://search-collections.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/Image/Genealogy/4c414ea0-45e9-4060-8756-157f035b7e7c
  103. Prince George Citizen, 10 Dec 1971
  104. Prince George Leader, 16 Jun 1922
  105. Prince George Leader, 14 Jul 1922
  106. Prince George Citizen: 17 May 1928 & 22 Nov 1928
  107. Prince George Citizen, 7 Mar 1929
  108. Prince George Citizen: 17 Feb 1938, 19 Oct 1939, 25 Jul 1940, 17 Apr 1941, 16 Jul 1951, 30 Oct 1952, 8 Dec 1952, 8 Dec 1952 & 15 Apr 1954
  109. Prince George Citizen, 7 Mar 1957
  110. Prince George Star, 10 Nov 1916
  111. Prince George Citizen, 17 Jun 1948
  112. Prince George Citizen: 25 May 1962 & 3 May 1985
  113. Prince George Citizen: 3 & 6 Apr 1963
  114. Prince George Citizen, 8 Jul 1964
  115. Prince George Citizen, 22 Mar 1965
  116. Prince George Citizen, 30 Mar 1965
  117. Prince George Citizen, 3 May 1985
  118. Under These Waters, p. 20
  119. Prince George Citizen, 14 Apr 1965
  120. Prince George Citizen, 14 May 1965
  121. Under These Waters, pp. 23-37
  122. Prince George Citizen: 12, 14 & 20 Aug 1969
  123. Prince George Citizen, 8 Feb 1971
  124. Prince George Citizen, 1 May 1999
  125. http://search-collections.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/Image/Genealogy/55457c43-592c-4089-8a34-29a825bc838a
gollark: You wouldn't say that potato bad?
gollark: ++help
gollark: ++delete literally anything
gollark: Oh no. It begins.
gollark: ++remind 9d23h maybe just something where a `++` command in a reminder is executed as the right user? Somehow? Would need to build the context or whatever, probably.

References
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