By Earl Cahill
The 70 Mile House, which was 70 miles from Lillooet on the Cariboo Waggon Road, was built in 1862 and became a popular stopping place with the travelling public.
It had changed hands before Matt Porter purchased the roadhouse in 1922, and with a post office, it was a very busy place at times.
In 1952, the building suffered the fate of many of the roadhouses on the Cariboo Road when it was completely destroyed by fire.
During the 1930s, my friends, the McConnell kids, invited me to spend the summer with them visiting their grandparents Ma and Matt Porter at 70 Mile House. I really enjoyed these visits, which continued on into the ’40s and there was never a dull moment at the 70 Mile.
We were always there for the haying at the Thompson Meadows on Stormy Road about 10 miles north of the 70. There was a small cabin and barn at the meadow with tents set up for a couple of cowboys and us kids.
The haying was done by hand and horsepower, cut by mower, raked to dry, loaded onto slings on sloops, pulled up by a rope attached to an A-frame and dumped onto the stack. A wagon was loaded at the same time we stacked and a couple of us would get to take the load back to the 70 Mile barn for the winter feed.
It was hard work, but we always had fun at it. If we got bored, we could always hop on a horse and race around the meadow or think of some excuse to ride back down to the 70.
In the winter of 1944, David McConnell and I hauled hay by sleigh from the meadow to 70 Mile - a 10-hour round trip. We would burrow down in the hay to keep warm.
The Department of Highways never charged us for being overweight or for impeding traffic, as the most cars we ever counted on a round trip was seven.
When a vehicle trying to pass us got stuck in a snow bank, we would unhook the team and pull them out - even a Greyhound bus that was impatient to pass. With a little shovelling and David handling the team, we got it back on the road.
Nobody got too upset in those days. This was the “Cariboo Way.”
Birthday Party
On Sept. 1, 70 Mile House is celebrating its 150th anniversary with a birthday party at the 70 Mile Community Hall, starting at 9:30 a.m.
There will be music, vendors, displays, demonstrations and activities for all ages throughout the day.
A pig roast dinner will be served at 6 p.m. Dinner tickets are available at 70 Mile General Store, and are $15 for adults and $10 youth under 12 years and seniors 65 years and over.