Vernon, Chase, Salmon Arm, British Columbia in Colour Photos – My Top 16 Picks

Vernon, Chase, Salmon Arm, British Columbia in Colour Photos

Vernon is a city in the Okanagan region of the southern interior of British Columbia. Named after Forbes George Vernon, a former Member of the Legislative Assemblyof British Columbia who helped found the famed Coldstream Ranch nearby.It is the oldest city in the Okanagan Valley and celebrates its history and heritage with the larger-than-life display of twenty-six murals painted on the walls of its downtown buildings.

The Okanagan people settled around the city’s two lakes, Okanagan Lake and Swan Lake, obtaining seasonal sources of food. Fur traders camped in Vernon as it started to develop in 1863, following a gold discovery at the Cherry Creek, Monashee Mountains, Mission Creek and east side of the Okanagan Lake. Vernon was home to many cattle ranches and fruit orchards.

Vernon expanded after the Canadian Pacific Railway was opened in the Okanagan and Shuswap regions in 1891. The stern-wheeler S.S. Aberdeen was launched by the Canadian Pacific Railway for use on Okanagan Lake in 1893 connecting Vernon to Penticton at the south end of Okanagan Lake, and points between.

Chase is located at the outlet of Little Shuswap Lake which is the source of the South Thompson River. Chase Creek, which drops over three small waterfalls before flowing through the town, enters the South Thompson just below the lake’s outlet. The main industries in Chase are forestry and tourism.

The town was named after a flamboyant character named Whitfield Chase, an American from New York State. After originally coming to Canada during the 1858 gold rush he settled in the area in 1865. He was the first non-native settler that farmed and raised a family, in what was then called, The Shuswap Prairie.

Sorrento is on the south shore of Shuswap Lake, 28 kilometers west of Salmon Arm and 80 kilometers east of Kamloops. You can fish in the lake, enjoy water sports and boating, and view scenic landscapes.

Salmon Arm is located on Shuswap Lake midway between Calgary and Vancouver on the Trans-Canada Highway. It has the longest curved wooden wharf in North America which draws tourists from around the World.

By 1904, Salmon Arm had acquired a reputation for having an excellent fruit harvest. The local businessmen grew fruit as a main export, sending it to the larger, more populated towns that surrounded it.

Architectural Photos, Vernon, British Columbia
Vernon – 3302 27th Street – Beairsto Elementary School was known as Central School when it was built in Vernon in 1909. The brick building was three stories high with an auditorium on the third floor. A north wing in stucco was added in 1939 and a south wing was added in 1946. Harold K. Beairsto was principal from 1925 to 1961; when he retired the name of the school was changed to honor him. Beairsto Elementary School is still operating as a school and is the center for Vernon’s elementary French Immersion program. The main entrance is accentuated by a Georgian arch and the Mansard roof is topped by an octagonal cupola and framed by large chimneys.
Architectural Photos, Vernon, British Columbia
Vernon – 3001 27th Street – Vernon Law Courts – This second court house for Vernon was designed by T. Hooper and was started in 1910. It was built in the Classical Revival style of local granite from a quarry at Okanagan Landing. The first court case was heard in 1914.
Architectural Photos, Vernon, British Columbia
Vernon – 2203 30th Avenue – This impressive Queen Anne house features and octagonal tower, fish scale shingles, deep eaves and bay windows. The Campbells were long-established furniture dealers.
Architectural Photos, Vernon, British Columbia
Vernon – 2301 32nd Avenue – The steeply pitched Mansard roof of the Mohr House permits full use of the attic. It was built in 1893 for a wood-turner at Smith and Clerin’s Sawmill.
Architectural Photos, Vernon, British Columbia
Vernon – 2003 37th Avenue – C.B. Lefroy, rancher, later notary public and realtor had this home built in 1905. The hip-on-gable roof and highly decorated barge boards in the gable ends create a picturesque cottage-like effect. At one time the house was part of Miss Le Gallais’ School for Girls founded in 1913. Miss Topham-Brown, who came to Vernon in 1917, worked here as housekeeper, cook, games coach and drawing instructor prior to opening her own studio. She was an enthusiast supporter of the arts until her death in 1974.
Chase, British Columbia
Chase – Shuswap Lake
Sorrento, British Columbia
Sorrento – Shuswap Lake taken from Caen Road Community Park
Architectural Photos, Salmon Arm, British Columbia
Salmon Arm – Salmar Classic Theatre was built in 1949 using a Quonset design which was developed during World War II. It is circular in shape and constructed of corrugated steel sheets bolted together into a half circle arch form.
Architectural Photos, Salmon Arm, British Columbia
Salmon Arm – 20 Hudson Avenue NE – The old Courthouse, constructed in 1930, is a two-story brick and stucco building with gable dormers and half timbering. It has an arched entryway and portico, decorative eave brackets and carved barge boards.
Architectural Photos, Salmon Arm, British Columbia
Salmon Arm – 20 Hudson Avenue NE – The Municipal Hall is a one-story brick building with a gable roof, gable dormers and a brick chimney.
Architectural Photos, Salmon Arm, British Columbia
Salmon Arm – 70 Hudson Avenue NE – The Post Office, completed in 1937, is a one-story flat-roofed brick building with a raised stepped parapet in an Art Deco style including arched Palladian windows. The Post Office moved to a new location in 1974; the building was used as a library for nearly twenty years and now houses the Shuswap Art Gallery.
Architectural Photos, Salmon Arm, British Columbia
Salmon Arm – 251 5th Street SE – Skeleton House was built in 1912. Bob Skelton was Manager of the Salmon Arm Cooperative Creamery and the city mayor. It has a large gabled roof with lower-sloped “skirts” at the eaves. There are two gable-roofed dormers (one front, one back) each with the same lower-sloped eave details as found on the main gable.
Architectural Photos, Salmon Arm, British Columbia
Salmon Arm – 721 Harris Street – The M.M. Carroll House was built in 1909 and is an excellent example of pre-First-World-War bungalow design. Carroll was a plumber, tin-smith, undertaker and theater owner. It has a gable roof with dormer extensions at the top level; the windows are double hung and have upper lite multi-panes. The front verandah has bevel-sided half walls with cased posts, moldings and curved cased beams.
Architectural Photos, Salmon Arm, British Columbia
Salmon Arm – 720 Harris Street – The Collier House is a 1½ story cross-gabled house in the low Craftsman bungalow style. There are knee braces supporting the gable end eaves.
Architectural Photos, Salmon Arm, British Columbia
Salmon Arm – 680 Harris Street – The Lyman House was built about 1908 in the Dutch Colonial style.
Salmon Arm, British Columbia
Salmon Arm – The wharf is one of the iconic features of Salmon Arm.