Barkerville is one of the main historic towns of the Gold rush period in Cariboo region of BC. It is now the largest living-history museum in western North America; declared as a National Historic site in 1924 and a Provincial Heritage Property in 1958.
Barkerville takes you back into time with over 125+ historic sites, activities, and live demonstrations of live back in time.
History
The town is named after an english prospector, William Billy Barker, and still stands in the testament of BC’s gold beginning. By mid 1850s, the profits in gold finds were lowering in the south, therefore prospectors were looking for gold finds in the north. eventually prospectors found their way into the hills surrounded Barkerville, with William Dutch Bill Dietz being the first one to find gold. William creek in Barkerville is named after him.
Chinese residents have been an integral part of the town since the beginning. They worked as labourers in the mine, and run various businesses like grocery store, clothing, and hardware.
How to get there
Barkerville is approximately 720 kms or 9.5 hours drive from Vancouver.
Barkerville Historic site is open all four seasons, but the accessibility is limited during spring and winter season. The summer season has longest hours of operation:from 8am to 8pm. Entry is by donation only. Ideally you need two days to best experience this site, however it can also be done briefly in a day as well.
Living the experience!
We really enjoyed our stay at the Wells Hotel in Wells, BC. It is approximately 7 minutes drive from Barkerville. There are some places to stay at Barkerville as well. Please check their website below.
Useful Links
Barkerville Historic Town & Park
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THERE IS LOT TO EXPLORE. KEEP EXPLORING
Tel U
Wow, that’s great, perfect for photos