In the late 1800’s gold prospectors traveled upstream from the Fraser River searching for the “mother lode” and discovered the Bridge River Valley and all it’s geological wonder and a gold rush soon started. During the years of 1933-1941 population was in the thousands and the area was booming. The last big mine in Bralorne closed it’s doors in 1971 and settlements like Bradian became ghost towns. Over 4 million ounces of gold was produced from the valley. Bralorne Mine is operational once again and the mine is milling gold and employs 50 people.
Several of these town sites are still in evidence today and include the existing communities of Bralorne and Gold Bridge, along with many abandoned towns in the valley such as Pioneer, Bradian and Minto which was flooded for the Bridge River BC Hydro Project. Bradian is a ghost town located above Bralorne that is for sale!
Visit the Bralorne Pioneer Museum to experience the lives and hear the stories of the Bridge River Valley pioneers. The Museum has recently moved locations to Main Street in Bralorne and will re-open summer of 2016.
Find your own gold at the Haylmore Heritage Site, former home of prospector and mine recording officer for Gold Bridge Will Haylmore. The site is open May to September offering half day tours, gold panning and local arts and crafts at the Rockwall Gallery. Historical landmarks are plentiful in the valley. Serious history buffs, geocachers or families looking for an adventure back in time will find ghost towns, historical buildings and fascinating abandoned mine sites to explore. Check out geocaching.com for nearby caches.
Bralorne Pioneer Museum
Sit back and view “Their Past Lives Here”