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Parksville/Qualicum in the Early Days
In 1910, when the E & N made its first stop, Parksville was known as McBride Junction. Prior to that it was frequently called "The River", because it was situated so close to the Englishman River. The Indians called the place Pentelch. But, the name that stuck was Parksville- named after Nelson Parks, the area's first Postmaster.
It was the fertile valley above the beach that attracted Albert and John Hirst to the area in 1874. They arrived by canoe from Nanaimo and built a two-storey log house on the south side of Englishman River. They planted an orchard: The beginning of Vancouver Island's fruit belt.
The Hirsts prospered and became the community's most prominent citizens. They built the town's first hotel (The Seaview) half a mile south of the present townsite. John and his wife ran the hotel. The log building doubled as a store and a telegraph office. In 1895, the Hirsts built the Rod and Gun Hotel which became a popular site for political meetings and community gatherings, and is still operating today.
Nelson Parks and his wife joined their sons on the Hirst estate in 1884. Parks was appointed the area's first postmaster on April 2, 1886. The post office was just a small shack. Parks spent most of his time on his nearby farm. People would come to collect their mail and find the post office closed with a sign on the door that said, "out in field, go to the west fence, and holler". If there was mail for Lasqueti Islanders, Parks lit a bonfire on the beach. It was a 10 mile row from Lasqueti so it was often a few days before anyone showed up.
Mail and supplies arrived by boat from Victoria every two weeks. The early supply boats were the paddle steamers. The boats unloaded at Beaver Creek, which is now Beaver Creek Wharf Rd, three miles from town. The freight was distributed by teams of horses and oxen as far as the pioneer road system would allow. It wasn't until 1886 that a road was built from Nanaimo, it took about six hours travel time by horse and buggy.
With the road open, a stagecoach service began a daily run between Nanaimo and Port Alberni. Parksville was the halfway point. The Halfway House was built as a stagecoach terminal and remained in service until E & N put the stagecoaches and freight wagons out of business.
Originally the French Creek area was known as "North Nanaimo", the wilderness between Nanaimo and Courtenay. In 1875 a Frenchman known as Harry deCreek moved to this site. It is said that French Creek received its name from this man.
Nine years later, Thomas Kincade tied up his eight ton sloop, "the Sally" on Little Qualicum River and began to build a home of hand-hewn timbers. He purchased 160 acres of land and with wheelbarrow and shovel, he built two dykes. The dykes, original home and barn can be seen on the Little Qualicum today.
According to an old Salish Indian Legend the name Qualicum means "Where the Dog Salmon Run".
Land development in the Qualicum area did not begin until the late 19th Century. The Hudson's Bay Company established Victoria in 1843, Nanaimo in 1852. Spurred on by the profitable fur trade the Company sent a party, headed by Adam Grant Horne, to find a land route to the West Coast. This successful trip inaugurated the Horne Lake Trail used by settlers and traders traveling to Alberni.
The road from Parksville was extended to Qualicum in 1894. The railway reached Parksville in 1910 and Qualicum in 1914. The original Parksville Water Tower to service steam engines has been restored and is beside the Parksville station.
In 1906 a railway official, Mr. H.E. Beasley, passed through Qualicum and was so enamored with the location he sponsored a land development company, "The Merchants Trust and Trading Company" who built the golf links and hotel in 1913 under management of General Noel Money.
Another company, McPherson and Fullerton, began the development of the townsite and had a subdivision of five acre lots. On the townsite in 1911 Ernest Bunting built a store and post office, McKinder added a butcher shop, Harry Dougan, a garage; Roger Whitman, a bakery. Fred Baynall was a teamster delivering to all parts of the area. A salvation Army Settlement at Coombs added settlers some of whom drifted to Qualicum. Today, the Parksville/Qualicum area has its own unique character- small towns that blossom every summer with an influx of tourists from miles around.
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