BC Heritage Week Event!

'和趣味 / Wa shumi: Japanese hobbies in Sandon, 1942–44'

This year's BC Heritage Week theme is 'Pastimes in Past Times.' Please join the Sandon Historical Society for a Heritage Week event exploring the various Japanese hobbies – or 和趣味 (*Wa shumi*) – that were practiced during the Nikkei internment in Sandon, 1942–1944. The event will be held at Sandon's K&S Station on BC Family Day; Monday, February 17, at 1 pm. We will briefly discuss the internment in Sandon before turning to the Wa shumi that were practiced within the Japanese-Canadian community there and other area internment sites in the 1940s.

While some hobbies may be familiar such as haiku, origami and judo, we will introduce other lesser known pastimes practiced in Sandon such as shigin, go and kendo. There will be some demonstrations and attendees can try their hand at several activities after the presentation.

Seating in the K&S Station will be limited so most folks should be prepared to stand and, while it will be heated inside, please dress warmly.

On behalf of the Sandon Historical Society, we hope to see you there!

The Alamo

Located appr. four miles west of Sandon along the old CPR grade - now Galena Trail - is the former community of Alamo. It began as a settlement surrounding the first concentrator mill built in the Slocan. Alamo had a post office, hotels, shops and all the usual amenities to be found in a community of 200 or more.

In 1918 Clarence Cunningham, an inventive, generous and much-loved local mining man, purchased the Alamo, Idaho and Queen Bess mines. He built a new concentrator mill, the finest in the country, and he became a millionaire over the next few years. Cunningham even built a beautiful mansion complete with English gardens on a bench above Alamo.

The Alamo mill was equipped to custom-mill ore that was brought in on the railway, and was constantly busy with Cunningham's own ore and that of others. An indication of the respect Cunningham was accorded was that when most other area mines were forced to stop production during a strike, Cunningham's men refused to walk out on him. Despite all his cleverness, wealth and the devotion of his workers, however, disaster loomed for Cunningham. As the 1930's dragged on, the Great Depression caused most mining activity in the Slocan to wither. Desperately, Cunningham invested more and more of his fortune in an effort to keep his mines active. It was said that if a man came to Cunningham with a 'hard luck story' he would not turn him away without a meal and a few dollars in his pocket. Sadly, Cunningham himself eventually died penniless.

Today, Alamo is a ghost town. Cunningham's great mill collapsed and the remains burned in 2018 leaving rusted metal machinery exposed. You can see the impressive site beside the cable car crossing on the Galena Trail.

The beautiful mansion above burned down many years ago although the collapsed stable block is still there. In a nod to the once beautiful gardens, daffodils pop up in the spring and then a large patch of striking, fragrant, yellow day lilies bloom on the bench with views of the New Denver glacier - the perfect spot for a picnic! On the second photo you can see the Old Sandon Road, now a trail, that ran between New Denver and Three Forks above the mill site and mansion.

The Alamo site can be reached by a half hour walk or bike ride along the old CP rail bed of the Galena Trail from Three Forks.

Summer 2024 Opening!

We are excited to announce our opening date as Friday 17th May this year! We are really looking forward to welcoming you all to Sandon and are excited for you to see some improvements from last year!