Steamships navigating the Malaspina Strait relied on the most up-to-date marine information available. The area was particularly hazardous for vessels, and cartographers often prepared navigational charts months in advance. However, with the advent of modern printing presses, new nautical books became available each year.

The area around Powell Lake boasts many geographical features. Harwood Island, which is part of the Sliammon Reserve, is located 1.5 nautical miles from the shore. Surrounding waterway landmarks include Marshall Point, Rebecca Islet, and Bare Island. On the coast, you can find Grief Point, Froek, Powell Lake, Powell River, Sliammon, Lund, Sarah Point, Savary Island, Malaspina Inlet, and the entrance to Desolation Sound.

Magazines like the Souvenir of Vancouver published articles on the best places to visit, and labelled Vancouver as the Sunset Doorway of the Dominion. In their 1905 publication, the authors described Powell River as a foaming waterfall whose beauty remained largely unappreciated and unexploited. 50 Miles up from the coast and adjacent to one of the principal resorts of the summer. Steamers from the City carry passengers to the neighbouring Powell River, which connects to Powell Lake, and have two waterfalls of a combined height of 63 feet and run a half mile to the sea.

As the new year approached, there were serious concerns at the Sliammon Reserve (Tla’amin). Many of the Band members were gravely ill and wrote to their Indian Agent for assistance in a letter dated December 24, 1904. On January 3, 1905, the Indian Office replied to the Chief, informing him that the Department had notified a doctor and that he should send medicine.

In the village of Sliammon (Tla’amin), there was a Catholic Church where Father Chirouse delivered his sermons. He also served as an intermediary between the Sliammon Band (Tla’amin) and the Crown regarding correspondence. On January 10, 1905, Father Chirouse sent a letter to the Indian Department requesting a meeting between the Department and the Sliammon Band (Tla’amin).

Sliammon (Tla’amin) was in the middle of obtaining permission and resolutions for their own school. On January 25, 1905, a letter acknowledged the communication from Mr. Agent McDonald requesting that the Department provide a salary for a teacher for the day school that the Sliammon Band (Tla’amin) wishes to establish in their village. Tom Lamand supports the recommendation and the Indians’ efforts toward their betterment, and he will pay a customary salary of $300 toward a teacher’s wages when the school opens.

Mr. McDonald corresponded with the Indian Department on January 25, 1905, including a resolution signed by the majority of the male members of the Sliammon Band (Tla’amin) over the age of 21, requesting $330 in funds to purchase and have shipped water pipe and fittings to supply their village with a cleaner water source. Included in this were 2868 feet of 2-inch2-inch wooden water pipe for $278.85, Galvanized Iron pipe of 32 feet for $2.60, 8 elbows for $0.80, 1 cast iron Tee for $1.15, and 8 Brass stop brakes for $5.50, and freight of $41.00 for shipping all the material.

The community requested the construction of a water line from a nearby lake because its existing water source had become contaminated. Humpback and dogfish salmon frequently swam up the stream that ran through the village, where they died and decomposed, polluting the water supply. At the same time, the lake is a steady water source. Brother Colland of the St. Mary’s Mission has considerable experience in the construction of waterworks and will, for free, assist as the superintendent of the laying of the pipe, and the Indians will do the work.

On February 3, 1905, the Chief of Sliammon (Tla’amin) received another letter concerning the proposed day school and other community matters. In the letter, officials advised the Chief that teachers generally received a salary of $300 per year and that the Department would appoint a teacher once the school opened. Mr. McDonald urged the community to complete the necessary improvements to the school building as soon as possible so that classes could begin and the Department could secure a teacher’s services.

Mr. McDonald was also concerned about Charley Reid’s eyes; he arrived at the Vancouver Hospital but did not see the doctor and just returned to Sliammon (Tla’amin). He informed the Chief that the doctor could help Mr. Charley’s eyes, and that if he would come down again, the Department would pay the steamer’s fare both ways, and the Indian Agent would try to meet him in Vancouver.

News of a new paper mill on the coast of Malaspina Strait was making headlines in newspapers across British Columbia and many other places around the world.

From London, the Salisbury House publicly acknowledged the venture. At the same time, Mr. Clayton Beadle offered as much information as he could about the new company, The Western Canada Pulp and Paper Company, as reported on May 6, 1905.

With the major news out, the company published all its financial information, share offerings, and company standings. The Western Canada Pulp and Paper Company, led by English directors Mr. William Curtis Ward, Mr. Lewis Evans, Mr. Timothy Yates Nuttall, Mr. Robert Alfred Workman, and Mr. Edward Claude Leachman, received financial backing from The Union of London and Smiths Bank and the Canadian Bank of Commerce.

With an impressive £450,000 in funding, this company began advertising for shares. The Western Canada Pulp and Paper Company absorbed the Industrial Power Company and the Pacific Coast Power Company, thereby obtaining all necessary grants and licenses to construct the mill.

This new company was certainly well-funded, with loans and capital totalling £300,000 and payments of £37,500. The Western Canada Pulp and Paper Company acquired 163,000 acres of forest land, 2,900 acres of freehold land, and water rights. They agreed with Edward Lloyd Limited to supply 10,400 tons of product annually. As a result, investors were eager to purchase shares offered for sale from February through May 6, 1905.

The headline of the Cranbrook Herald on May 18, 1905, read “A Princely Concession.” A cable was sent out to the world announcing that the Western Canada Pulp and Paper Company Ltd. had successfully raised enough capital for the construction of a paper mill at Powell Lake. Local investors involved in this venture included Mr. H.B. Thompson, Mr. J.J. Shallcross, and Mr. Percy Criddle, all based in Victoria. Additionally, Dr. R.E. McKechnie and Mr. Geo. Cowan were involved from Vancouver, while Mr. W.W. Beer and Mr. J. Laing Stocks represented Nelson, BC.

These people were the principal instrumentalities in the flotation of the mill at Powell River. They started this venture in 1898, gradually securing the necessary paperwork, licenses, and approvals from the Province of British Columbia.

A lot was happening along the coast of Malaspina Strait, from Frolander Bay to Lund, as surveyors evaluated the standing timber as quickly as possible. Mr. W.E. Ditchburn, the Inspector of Indian Agencies for the Department of Indian Affairs, was concerned that the local Indigenous people were cutting small quantities of timber throughout the entire agency area.

The letter notes that the Indigenous peoples of the Sliammon (Tla’amin), Klahoos, Sechelt, and Homalco reserves are experiencing significant hardship, particularly due to a scarcity of food. The Department approved the removal of timber from designated areas and authorized its harvesting there. It allocated to the Sliammon (Tla’amin) Reserve 350 cords of shingle bolts, along with all dead timber situated within a specific tract of land that Mr. W.E. Ditchburn had marked.

This granting of cutting timber is in connection with Mr. Schacht, who is to sell the bolts for $2 per cord, and the buyer is to do the hauling, as the Sliammon (Tla’amin) Indians do not have satisfactory equipment to do the hauling. The proceeds from the sale of timber will greatly benefit the Sliammon (Tla’amin) Indians by helping them buy food and clothing for themselves and their families during the coming season.

The amount of timber the Department gave was small compared with the number of families who required assistance, according to Mr. W.E. Ditchburn, and the Sliammon ( Tla’amin) Indians have agreed to seed down the logged-off land within two years. Mr. Ditchburn recommended that the Department remit the timber dues in these cases on the ground that the purchasers have been making advancements in the provisions, as well as in clothing, for some time past.

With many people located in logging and mining camps along the coast and so few places to hear religious sermons, it was only a matter of time before they decided to travel by sea. A public announcement informed the coastal residents that the Missionary Steamer Columbia would be departing on April 4, 1905. The Archdeacon Pentreath, along with the Anglican clergy from Vancouver and their choir, gave the vessel a grand send-off. The Columbia will be journeying to Texada Island and Alert Bay, where there are over 3,000 loggers and miners.

The Reverend J. Antle will accompany the ship, which is also equipped with medical and surgical supplies and can serve as a marine ambulance.

As news of the new Pulp and Paper Mill in Powell River spread, many companies were grabbing up as many available District Lots as they could. The Fraser River Tannery Ltd was no exception, applying for Lots throughout the region, including lots on Powell Lake. Applied for on May 22, 1905, were Lots 9, 10, and 22, set between a creek, 3 miles from the shore of the north-east end of the lake, to a post set on Powell Island (Now known as Goat Island) and to 2 miles up the upper Powell River stream.

Mr. Moses Ireland was a pioneer in the forest industry, known for his interesting career with the Pacific Coast Timber Company. He was a prominent timber cruiser and an avid miner, making numerous deals throughout his life. He timber-cruised in the areas of Nanton and Dodd Lake, as well as several locations around Powell Lake and Grief Point, for the Moodyville Sawmill Company. Mr. Moses Ireland was a member of the Puget Sound firm Merrill & Ring in 1905, and he and his brother became multi-millionaires.

Working for the Hammond and Nanton, bankers from Winnipeg and Toronto, he cruised many areas in 1886. Also, he cruised with Webster and Edmonds, alongside the Victoria Timber Company, which had timber leases up and down the coast, including on Malaspina Strait.

A special meeting took place on June 8, 1905, in Vancouver, BC, involving loggers, mill workers, and the Provincial Government. The chairman, Alderman Heaps, attempted to address questions regarding the Western Canada Pulp and Paper Company, specifically regarding the grant of timberland they had received. There was widespread speculation along the coast about not only the quality and quantity of the timber but also its value, highlighting the need for proper surveying.

At the Powell River mill site, an agreement was made with Mr. Gardner, confirming that there was sufficient water head available to generate power. The company also determined that a log boom would be resilient enough to withstand any storm. The Honourable Mr. Carter-Cotton provided a personal assurance that the Province would implement necessary safeguards. He also confirmed that the company would invest capital in the venture and that the team involved was well-versed in the paper business. Therefore, Mr. Carter-Cotton deemed it unnecessary to take any further measures until the business progressed further.

Texada Island was an unusual meeting place for Canadian Pacific Railway (C.P.R.) officials on July 11, 1905, where they gathered to discuss various C.P.R. interests. In 1877, the HMS Daring anchored twice at Gillies Bay during its search for a western port for the railway. Engineer W.R. Thompson and experienced timber cruiser W.R. Regan left for Comox as part of this mission. Other attendees scheduled to join the meeting on Texada included Premier Hon. R.F. Green, Mr. William Manson, and another Mr. Thompson.

The Provincial Government sent a surveyor to the Powell River between July 1903 and June 1904 to assess the available water power. Mr. A.J. Hill arrived, surveyed the water power, and was paid by the Province the sum of $133.50 for his time and effort. The Bureau of Provincial Information, Bulletin No. 21 on The Timber and Pulp Wood Industries of BC, noted in its 1905 publication the encouragement for companies to obtain leases to locate pulp wood areas and water powers.

In the spring of 1905, companies granted within the Province were The Industrial Power Company and the Pacific Coast Power Company, The Cassiar Power and Industrial Company, the Oriental Power and Pulp Company, and the Quatsino Power and Pulp Company.

The Western Canada Pulp and Paper Company consolidated the Industrial Power Company and the Pacific Coast Power Company. It can now develop its lands near the mouth of the Powell River, located 80 miles north of Vancouver. The company’s stock is held in British Columbia and England, where Mr. W.C. Ward of London serves as the chairman.

On September 27, 1905, The Cumberland News reported that Mr. Peter Stewart McNutt paid $158.71 in taxes on 1,194 acres of land, identified as Lot 450 N of Powell River. This payment was part of the sale of lands for unpaid delinquent taxes in the Comox Assessment District of British Columbia.

The coast of British Columbia experiences very rough weather during the early months of the year, and conditions worsen as fall approaches. The Gulf of Georgia and Malaspina Strait, located between Vancouver Island and the mainland, are particularly treacherous during gale-force winds. In early October, a severe winter storm struck unexpectedly, which is common for this region. The storm resulted in tragic consequences, including the drowning of thirty Japanese fishermen.