Exerpts From

Heritage Walk Through Powell River's Townsite
A " National Historic District"

Welcome to the old town of Powell River which has designated a National Historic District by the Federal Government in October of 1995. Powell River is an exceptional example of a single industry, resource based town dating from early modern period in Canadian town planning that utilized the Garden City concept, an English planning principle that was designed to bring beauty to the harsh landscapes of industrial towns. The town was originally owned and constructed by the Powell River Lumber company in 1910, which becoame the first and largest newsprint manufacturer in Western Canada. Basically, the town was constructed to provide homes for the workers and their families in order to encourage people to relocate to the isolated wilderness. Neighbourhoods placed workers of the same occupation in the same area and consisted of groups of houses having standardized designs.