Laketon- Lake Town

Laketon, British Columbia, Canada

Laketon BC,
in the “Cassiar” Land District

aka: Lake Town BC

Originally this was First Nation “Kaska” aka “Casca” Reserve area
They are related to the Tahltan.
Later the name was changed to “Cassiar”

Lat- 58º 42' N,
Long-130º 6' W

Near the mouth of Dease Creek, Half way up the West side of Dease Lake

90 miles from Telegraph Creek

Unincorporated Area

There was a Post Office here, but not much known about post masters

Laketon- ca 1887
Credit: George M. Dawson/Library and Archives Canada/PA-

Population in it's hey day approx 1500 per one source, another says 500-600
Gold Commissioner Sullivan claimed there were over 1600 white men in June 1874, in the area.
There was 255 voters in 1898.
1873 gold was discovered in this area.
Over $500,000 was taken out of the area in Gold for several years.

It was a central distribution point for the area.
Many business's established here as early as 1876

Today a Ghost town

There was a trail from Glenora Landing to Laketon

I know they had a cemetery here in Laketon as well.

1874
William Mashiter went to Laketon ca 1874/75
b- June 1, 1850, Cheshire, England
d- Jan 10, 1938, Squamish BC, age 77
son of Rev Benjamin and Elizabeth Mashiter.
Age 19 he went to California USA
3 1/2 years later in 1874 went to Victoria BC
Hunted, fished for 8 years in Laketon BC.
Grew food for the miners there.
He then moved to the Skeena area, to work at the canneries.
Then moved to Granville (Vancouver)
Operated a logging camp on the Fraser River.
Operated a store until 1886 when it burned down.
Moved to Newport, established a store there.
married Elizabeth Atkinson, May 21, 1894 in Vancouver
she was from Cumberland England

Gold Commisioner John Howe Sullivan was appointed, ca June 1874, when the Provincial Mines Department was formed.
John Howe Sullivan
b-
d- Nov 4, 1875, Cape Flattery, WA
He died on the sinking of the SS Pacific, sailing from Victoria to San Francisco.
He was a Police Constable in 1864 in Quesnel
He was a Judge, before becoming Gold Commissioner.
He was charged with shooting with intent, and wilful murder, in 1873.
A. W. Vowell took over from him, after his death.
Mt. Sullivan in map above, named after this man.

Feb 1878,
A. W. Vowell, Gold Commissioner at Laketon BC
His 1881 salary was $2,000 /yr
Vowell Creek named after this man, 14 miles from Laketon
Shown top left of map above off Thibert Creek

Arthur Wellesley Vowell
b- Sept 17, 1841 in Tipperary, Ireland
d- Sept 26, 1918 in Victoria BC, age 79
son of Richard Prendergast Vowell
Came to BC in Feb 1862
see Bio link below

1881
They were growing a field of Barley, and Oat Hay there,
plus potatoes which were sold at 2 cents/lb

ca 1884 and 1897 - James Porter-
Mining Recorder, Gold Commissioner, and Post Office, at Laketon
Salary of Constable and Recorder at Laketon, 1881, was $1,500 /yr
see my Porter Landing page, and Glenora page

Sept 1, 1885

James Carson, Trader
Joseph Clearihue, Trader
Matthew Crawford, Miner
Napoleon Fitzstubbs, Miner
William Giesler, Miner
Hugh Jones, Miner
Daniel Kennedy, Miner
Neil McArthur, Miner
William Mashiter, Fisherman
Joseph Quigley, Butcher
George Sainsbury, Miner
Gilbert W. Taylor, Clerk

1898
Calbreath, Cook & Co., General Merchants and Packers
(see Telegraph Creek page)

Hudson's Bay Co., Represented by Stuart Smith
Stuart Smith
b- Ireland, age 62 in 1891
d-
shown as a Gold Miner in 1891

William McPherson, Manager, C. C. & Co.
James Porter, Gold Commissioner and Government Agent. (see above)

1900
Casca Trading and Transportation Company Ltd. Store,
E. T. Pope- Manager
Incorporated May 25, 1898, office in Glenora
Company started by Warburton Mayer Pike.
He was married,
she was shown as wife of agent
of Washington and Alaska Steamship Co., ca 1901

1905
Hudson's Bay Co- G. P. Arnett in Charge
George Percy Arnett
b- Nov 7, 1874, Hampstead Reg. Dist., London, England
baptized Hampstead St. Paul,
d- Sept 8, 1964 Shaughnessy Hospital, Vancouver, BC, age 89
Immigrated in 1889
son of Charles Arnett and Mary Jane Arnett, nee Stenning
enlisted in WW1, Feb 24, 1917 at Vancouver
General Store Keeper in Vancouver at that time.
married Fanny Dease, May 29, 1908 in Dease Lake, BC
b- Dease Lake BC, age 18 when she married in 1908 d- bef 1964

Black River Post
On the left bank of the Black River, a little below the confluence of the West and South branches, about 100 miles from McDame Post

Liard Post
Left bank of the Liard River, opposite the confluence, of the Dease and Liard Rivers, Hudson's Bay co. Post here.

Vital Vital LaForce was another prospector in the area.
Vital Creek and Vital Mountain Range, named after him.
He was one of the Collin's Overland Telegraph explorers

Defot

Ext Links
not my sites

James Porter Photo, BC Archives
http://www.bcarchives.gov.bc.ca/cgi-bin/www2i/.visual/img_med/dir_146/h_00372.gif

Vowell Bio
http://www.ourroots.ca his photo, BC Archives
http://www.bcarchives.gov.bc.ca/cgi-bin/www2i/.visual/img_med/dir_102/a_02513.gif

Laketon Photos BC Archives
http://www.bcarchives.gov.bc.ca/cgi-bin/www2i/.visual/img_med/dir_124/d_08990.gif

http://www.bcarchives.gov.bc.ca/cgi-bin/www2i/.visual/img_med/dir_68/a_00823.gif

http://www.bcarchives.gov.bc.ca/cgi-bin/www2i/.visual/img_med/dir_69/a_05362.gif

http://www.bcarchives.gov.bc.ca/cgi-bin/www2i/.visual/img_med/dir_73/c_00603.gif

http://www.bcarchives.gov.bc.ca/cgi-bin/www2i/.visual/img_med/dir_73/c_00604.gif

Porter's landing photo, BC Archives
http://www.bcarchives.gov.bc.ca/cgi-bin/www2i/.visual/img_med/dir_124/d_08991.gif

©