Coquitlam’s Heart of Gold
Ten years since the discovery of gold in California, which brought tens of thousands of would-be prospectors across the continent and over the seas to seek their fortunes in the West, whispers of another find to the North reached the streets of San Francisco. In a moment, as many as twenty-three-thousand miners boarded ships bound for the backwater port town of Victoria, while another eight-thousand traveled overland.
Primarily Americans, these would-be prospectors set their sights on the relatively unknown regions of the upper Fraser River – a vast area with a poorly understood geography and climate. While the miners themselves were destined to either find their fortune or abandon the enterprise for lack of reward, the land in which they traveled would forever bear their mark. Prior to the rush, the colony of British Columbia did not even exist, never mind the municipally of Coquitlam. But by its end, British Columbia would be a thriving colony of the British Empire, boasting both great natural wealth in its hinterlands and surprising sophistication in the urban areas.
Meanwhile, Coquitlam would be established on the lower Fraser primarily as a lumbering community, close to the vital Royal Engineer camp at Sapperton, the former capital at New Westminster.
While little to no gold was ever found in the vicinity of Coquitlam, the rush nonetheless brought the people who would inhabit and build our community. It isn’t hard to imagine that without the rush, there might not have been Coquitlam.
The Sappers are Here!
Royal Engineer camp, circa 1862-64, later to become Sapperton. Today, “The Sappers Were Here” can be seen on a building from the Skytrain at Sapperton Station. IHP17114-07, courtesy of the New Westminster Archives.
Definition: A Sapper is a military engineer. The name comes from the French word sappe (“sapdework” or “trench”), referring to the work of 17th century engineers who dug trenches and tunnels in order to besiege fort walls. These trenches and tunnels were called “saps,” and their diggers came to be called “sappers.”
The Columbia Detachment of the Royal Engineers came to British Columbia as volunteers under the command of Colonel Richard Moody to serve several purposes. For one, the 220 strong force was charged with maintaining law and order as over 30,000 gold seekers flooded the colony and guarding against Indian uprisings that were increasing as the Europeans continued to encroach on their territory. It was also felt that they would improve the local population, setting a higher standard of society. Their presence also bolstered the British claim to the territory.
In addition to surveying, and thereby clarifying, the 49th parallel boundary between the United States and British Columbia, the sappers were skilled tradesmen, engineers, surveyors, and a trained military force. They were essential to military operations, providing support in all areas of logistics. The encampment where they set up in British Columbia was called Sapperton, which became the Capital of the colony for a time.
Perhaps their greatest, and most important contribution was the surveying of roads, many of which were originally First Nations’ trails. Some of their accomplishments include:
Surveying and construction of roads, including the 400 mile Cariboo Wagon Road
Laying out the capital in New Westminster
Setting aside Stanley Park as a military reserve
Building public offices and churches
Producing maps
Settling miners’ disputes
Ensuring that British Columbia remained a British Colony
However, closer to home, they were also some of the first settlers in the Coquitlam area. As part of their service, the sappers were offered Crown Land Grants. While some men returned to England or took assignments elsewhere, many stayed in the colony and took advantage of the opportunity to own land. Some were already married with families and others married after they arrived. A handful of them married Brideship girls and settled in the area now known as Coquitlam. Some received their Crown Land Grant and sold it off to other settlers. After being discharged from service in 1863, these men took up valuable trades. In the course of completing their network of roads, 15 sappers had died and 11 had deserted.
Hill 19 on the Cariboo Road. Item A33838_141, courtesy of the City of Vancouver Archives
Covered wagons on the Cariboo Road. Item AM54-S4, courtesy of the City of Vancouver Archives
Rocking the Golden Baby
A gold pan showing “gold 196 oz. in two days.” Item P116, courtesy of the Bakerville Archives.
Once the gold seekers made it to a suitably promising area, they would stake their claims. In the early days, much of the mining was done by placer mining using gold pans, sluices, or rocker boxes. Miners would often use gold pans first, placing gravel in a pan with lots of water, swishing the contents around with the hopes that when the water and gravel was poured out, heavy pieces of gold would remain in the bottom of the pan. Ten hours of work would process one cubic yard of gravel.
If this proved successful, they would often switch to sluice boxes or rockers, which could handle larger quantities of gravel. Rockers were quite portable and were filled by hand. Once filled with water and dirt, it was rocked back and forth to separate the gold from the gravel. Called “rocking the golden baby,” this method could process 3-4 cubic yards a day.
The next most efficient method was the sluice box, a wooden channel with riffles along the bottom that collected gold. They were usually a few feet long, some extended to ten feet. Anything over six feet was often called a “long Tom.” Placed on a slope and fed gravel and water, sluice boxes could process much more gravel, but were less efficient, only retaining about 40% of gold. This was good news for the miners who took over abandoned claims.
As money and supplies became more accessible, miners began employing hydraulic hoses to blast hillsides, funnelling vast amounts of earth into flumes to be mined further down in holding ponds. This kind of work was particularly devastating to the environment, causing disturbances to the rivers and Indigenous ways of like. Once mining commenced underground, the Cornish water wheel was used to remove standing water from deep mines, and to bring up gravel to be mined.
People familiar with the area’s gold were able to tell where a specific piece of gold had been mined. William “Doc” Keithley and his companions found a creek that they named Keithley Creek and followed it to another named Antler Creek. Both were gold-bearing and the men wanted to keep it secret. Unfortunately, they used their new-found gold to buy supplies. Someone noticed the colour of the gold, and realized it was from a new source, followed the group back to Keithley Creek, and soon there was a rush of men to that area.
People familiar with the area’s gold were able to tell where a specific piece of gold had been mined. William “Doc” Keithley and his companions found a creek that they named Keithley Creek and followed it to another named Antler Creek. Both were gold-bearing and the men wanted to keep it secret. Unfortunately, they used their new-found gold to buy supplies. Someone noticed the colour of the gold, and realized it was from a new source, followed the group back to Keithley Creek, and soon there was a rush of men to that area.
A more modern gold rocker made by A and A Machine Works for the Cariboo District. Item #99-4187, courtesy of the City of Vancouver Archives.
Item P0985, courtesy of the Bakerville Archives
Item P6076, courtesy of the Bakerville Archives
Gold nuggest vary in colour depending on the presence of other minerals, such as copper or silver. These nuggets are from (left to right) the Yukon, Bakerville, Australia, Mexico, and Russia.