History Of Revelstoke

Revelstoke is located in British Columbia Canada. It was founded in the 1800s when the CPR (Canadian Pacific Railway) was built. The railway was crafted years ago because mining was such an important part of the Canadian economy. 

Revelstoke wasn’t always called Revelstoke. It was originally called Farwell- name after the local land owner and surveyor Mr. Farwell. Prior to Farwell, Revelsoke was called the Second Crossing, named by the CPR. Why? To differentiate for the first crossing which was build along the Columbia River in Donald. 

The United Kingdom Investment Bank saved the CPR from bankruptcy in 1885 in the summer. They helped Revelstoke by buying the company’s unsold bonds, which allowed the railway to reach completion. Another significant milestone was the construction of the Trans-Canada Highway in 1962. 

This increased access to the region and ignited the flame of tourism which is so important for the local economy. Skiing emerged as the most sought after attraction. The construction of Revelstoke Mountain Resort (a new ski resort on Mount MacKenzie) has been going on since 2005. 

Historic Revelstoke interests historians, as it is part of a railway museum. Revelstoke holds the Canadian record for the snowiest town. In the winter of 1971 to 1972 over 2447cm of snow fell on Mount Copeland. 

This works out to an astonishing 80 feet of snow! The snow levels were higher than many roofs around town by over two meters. Houses were literally covered with a blanket of snow! Revelstoke is also a site for the historic impact of a meteorite. 

It landed in 1965 and made a splendorous fireball Nike Swoosh across the sky. A few small meteorite remnants can be found today, because most of the meteorite vaporized, burnt up, or burst into dust. We hope you enjoyed learning all these interesting historic facts about the town of Revelstoke. 

Although, it’s a small town with just over 8,000 residents, it really packs a punch in the historic standpoint of beautiful British Columbia, Canada. With a brain full of new knowledge, make yourself at home in one of the many vacation rentals revelstoke bc.

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