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History of Squamish

 

The town site of Squamish began as an agricultural settlement and trading post in the early 1890s, across the channel from the ancient Squamish Native village of Sta-mus (below the Stawamus Chief).  Before and during World War I (during the railway building years), present-day Downtown Squamish was laid out, and Cleveland Avenue commercial street, hotels, church, schools and services were established.

For much of the last century, Squamish has been a railway town, with logging and sawmilling also as important factors in the local economy, especially since the 1950s and 60s.
 
In 1948, the town site was incorporated as the Village of Squamish, and dependence on the Pacific Great Eastern Railway Company for infrastructure support gradually lessened. By 1964, the entire valley including Brackendale had amalgamated with Squamish to form today's district municipality.
 
Until a rail link to North Vancouver was completed in 1956, Squamish was only accessible from Vancouver by steamship.  The completion of a road to the North Shore two years later greatly alleviated the isolation of Squamish. However, the long relative isolation contributed to a unique, cooperative ("get things done") and generous community spirit, which is still in evidence today.
 
The 1958 highway opening was celebrated with a Squamish Logger Sports competition – now a world famous annual event, since over half a century!
 
Downtown Squamish is built on delta land, and portions of it in fact lie below sea level. Floods were a perennial threat until recent improvements in dyking. On Cleveland Avenue, one can still see buildings with doorsteps and main floor 3-4 feet up from street level in case of “high water”!
 
There have been ongoing physical changes to Downtown Squamish in recent decades. Storefront street awnings are today safe from logging trucks which formerly roared down Cleveland; where the train station once sat is now a park, farmers’ market, arts centre and community pavilion site; and the waterfront once busy with log-handling is now being redeveloped.
 
The highway itself has become an important community economic factor, bringing many tourists from the Lower Mainland and beyond to Squamish – the “Outdoor Recreation Capital of Canada”.
 

 

text courtesy of Squamish Historical Society
images courtesy of Squamish Public Library