55 years ago (1960):
Calgary men David and Doug Sinclair put the David Thompson Memorial fort up for sale. The fort had originally be built in 1922 by the Hudson’s Bay Company and Canadian Pacific Railway to honour the legacy of exporer and former Hudson’s Bay Company employee David Thompson. The fort was also meant to be a visitor attraction.
50 years ago (1965):
Local candidates in the federal election engaged in a debate here in the valley. NDP candidate James Patterson, Progressive Conservative candidate Mike MacFarlane and Liberal candidate James Bryne discussed medicare and foreign policy among other topics.
45 years ago (1970):
A public meeting on turning land near Windermere into a gravel pit attracted about 60 valley residents, most of them voicing opposition to the plan. Depsite the concern, the land was taken out of the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) and eventually became a gravel pit.
40 years ago (1975):
The Windermere District Chamber of Commerce and Invermere Business Association held a joint meeting with B.C. Hydro, in which B.C. Hyrdo officials were questioned on their plans to divert a portion of the Kootenay River into the Columbia River. B.C. Hydro engineer Gordon Tallman said the project had pros and several cons, one of which included a higher water table north of the planned diversion. “Athalmer would be a damp place in which to live,” he said. The diversion was scheduled to happen in 1984.
30 years ago (1985):
A new Official Community Plan was unveiled for Athalmer. The plan envisioned increased tourist development in Athalmer and even envisioned boat cruises on Lake Windermere, based out of Athalmer.
20 years ago (1995):
Then-NDP Kootenay MLA and Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Anne Edwards announced she was stepping down. The announcement came in the wake of a funding scandal involving NDP Premier Mike Harcourt.
15 years ago (2000):
A fire filled David Thompson Secondary School with smoke and noxious fumes after two local teenagers used a toilet paper dispenser in one of the school’s washrooms to start the blaze. The students were arrested and charged with mischief.
10 years ago (2005):
The district of Invermere heard from local residents about the planned Quiniscoe Canyon View development during a public hearing. At least one resident expressed the opinion that its low density equated to slums.