The community of Barriere rests in the mountains at the south end of the North Thompson Valley of central British Columbia. Barriere is situated on the Yellowhead Highway #5 (constructed about 40 years ago), 45 minutes or 66 km (41 miles) north of Kamloops, BC. Continuing north on Highway #5, the town of Clearwater is 58 km farther up the valley.The Simpcw First Nation (a division of the Shuswap) has historically occupied the drainage of the North Thompson River. Before the arrival of the Europeans, the Simpcw spent the spring, summer and fall traveling to hunt, gather food and other supplies to provide for them through the winter months. During the winter, the Simpcw would gather at village sites in the valley bottoms, close to the rivers. The Simpcw would often fish for salmon in the North Thompson and legendarily built the stone fish traps in the river around Barriere that caused the pooling of the salmon as they spawned each fall. Presently, there are about 600 members of the Simpcw First Nation and about 300 of those members live on the Simpcw First Nation Indian Reserve at Chu Chua, to the north of Barriere and the Louis Creek Reserve, to the south.
The first non-native inhabitants of the area were French fur traders who named the settlement Barrieré in 1828 for the fish traps constructed by First Nation fishermen that formed a barrier for travel down the river. In 1862, the Overlanders, who travelled from Ontario to the BC Interior in search of gold, camped 10 km south of Barriere before starting their notorious raft trip down the North Thompson River.
The area soon became a destination for settlers with farming and ranching ambitions. The farming and ranching lifestyle persists to this day as one of the main uses of the land in the Barriere area.
Started in 1949, the annual North Thompson Fall Fair and Rodeo is held each Labour Day Weekend. The first fall fair drew a crowd of about 500 people and featured events such as sporting events, agricultural and domestic exhibitions, and an evening dance in the hall. In 2007, approximately 10,000 people were in attendance as the nationally recognized rodeo took place. Amusement park rides, demonstrations, exhibitions of livestock, produce, fine arts and crafts as well as a parade and the dances in the evening are just some of the activities that are offered throughout the weekend. The Fall Fair is a highlight for the entire North Thompson Valley Area.
In August 2003, a state of emergency was declared as the McLure-Barriere fire burned out of control and forced the evacuation of 3000 valley residents, including the entire town Barriere. The local Tolko Lumber Mill was burned to the ground leaving more than 180 employees out of work.
In the fall of 2007, the residents of Barriere voted to incorporate and the District of Barriere was created. On November 17, 2007, Barriere community members voted for their first mayor and city councilors and a new page in the history of the Barriere community was turned.
This community's experience with a significant wildfire in the last 10 years and the resulting evacuations, property damages and losses made it an excellent candidate for resiliency research. Working within the Barriere area provides the opportunity to examine the ability of local governments to create secure, thriving settlements after a disaster, and the effect of such efforts on resiliency.
Barriere & District - Official Site
To view the Digital Stories created in Barriere, click here.
To view photos of the Barriere Community Forum on Mar 15 2010, click here.
To view photos of the Digital Story trip to Barriere Nov 2009, click here.
To view photos of the Monument Unveiling Ceremony Trip in July 2008, click here.
To view photos of the Sept 2008 trip to Barriere, click here.
To read an article about the project in the Barriere Star Journal, click here.