Category: From the Archives

Behind-the-scenes insights into the inner workings of a community museum and archives.

Icons Gone — brought back centre-stage!

Icons Gone — brought back centre-stage!Icons Gone — brought back centre-stage!

April 14, 2026 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 0 Comments

Featured Image: Keven “Big Kev” Mickelsen presents at last year’s Icon Gone. Whistler Museum Collection.

It could be argued that a signpost or a benchmark of a town’s maturity can be tabulated by how many significant symbols/things/happenings/elements-uniquely-local that have come to be associated with it, can now be referred to in the past tense… measuring a community’s forward trajectory by its ‘icons gone’.

Lamenting the legacy of legends-left-behind is the focus of next week’s ‘ICON GONE’ event put on by the Whistler Museum at the Maury Young Arts Centre/Millenium Place. The event began in 2008 and ran for many years up until 2013. It was resurrected last year with yet another all-star cast.

In a lively evening of friendly competition (tinged with debaucherous debate…it is, after all, 19+), six notable locals will take to the stage and argue for what they think is the largest loss in the landmark of Whistler-specific icons. The audience (through applause-and-yell-o-metre) along with a panel of equally notable judges will crown a champion. Nudity was the winner of last year’s debate. Citta’ (pronounced Cheetah’s, for those who don’t know), the runner up.

This year’s panel promises to deliver on all levels, covering the extremes from the raunchy to the contemplatively serious. Past topics have included everything from Fixed-Grip Chair Lifts to A-Frames, Squatters Cabins to The Boot Pub, the Passenger Train and Toonie Races to the Toad Hall Poster; from the Snow, Water, Earth Race to the Party Barge, Mountain Man Beards to Beavers. Gravity – as a topic, as a subject — even won one year.

The purpose of the evening is two, even three-fold. Undeniably, entertainment and community-fun are a major focus. However, the event also serves as a way to highlight the Museum’s local archive – and remind people of its absolute essential relevance. Through the eyes of the present we are given tools to reflect upon our past. ICON GONE serves to illustrate the value of preserving our stories, our legacies, our legends and some of the many ways which we can keep them alive. Humour is one of them, a method of honour. The archive is not a dusty, musty collection – it is active, vital and alive – infused only by our present perspectives.

In a December 5, 2025 editorial titled ‘Who remembers Whistler?’ Pique Newsmagazine editor Braden Dupuis deftly articulated the value of the Museum. ICON GONE offers the opportunity to showcase Dupuis’ points, worth repeating anew:

“If we don’t invest in institutions that collect, preserve, archive, and explain, we lose more than objects and photographs. We lose context. Identity. A sense of place beyond postcards and ski packages.

Left unchecked, the version of “Whistler history” that remains will be curated by marketing budgets: sleek, sanitized and built for outside consumption. It’s cultural erasure in its most casual, passive form.

[…]

By preserving history, we don’t resist change, we anchor it in respect. We ensure Whistler doesn’t forget it is more than a ski-lift and slopes, a playground for the rich or an ATM for faceless corporations—that it is a real community built by people, labour and continuity.”

In the spirit of continuity – through raucous reverence — let us celebrate the cornerstones of this community…

On Friday, April 17 – at 7:00 pm – join judges Ace MacKay-Smith, Julia Murray and Brandon Barrett as together we applaud debaters Feet Banks, Princess Stephanie, Stinky, Laugh Out Live’s Rebecca Mason, lawyer Tanya Kong — as they set to historically hammer home their iconic topic of choice!

For more information and Tickets, please visit www.whistlermuseum.org

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Whistler Weasels into Business: Mink, Marten and Mountain Movers 

Whistler Weasels into Business: Mink, Marten and Mountain Movers Whistler Weasels into Business: Mink, Marten and Mountain Movers 

March 23, 2026 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 0 Comments

Feature Image: Nita Lake Fur Farm owner Russell Jordan moved to the area in 1915. Photo: Whistler Museum Collection.

One hundred-and-one years ago, the first fur farm was established in Whistler. One hundred years ago, the local industry doubled, with a second business setting up shop. 

The currency of furs was always one of the mainstays of early residents. The hills were set with traplines extending into the surrounding ranges, however the establishment of farms where animals were raised in captivity – not caught in the wild – began in 1925.

The Lineham Mink Farm was developed on Green Lake – a half mile from where the Pacific Great Eastern Railway ran past the 40-mile post (signifying 40 miles from the Squamish station). P.D. Lineham was a retired businessman from Vancouver who sought out a simpler life in the vast outdoors. His answer to his wilderness quest-for-quiet was to start farming wily weasels.

Lineham’s breeding animals were registered stock – imported from Québec – that had been bred in captivity for generations. By the following spring, the farm had 40 mink and this number was expected to steadily increase.

“The climate of this district is particularly suited to mink and the best pelts are taken from here. They are very little trouble to raise and the losses among the pups are practically nil,” Alex Philip (of Rainbow Lodge renown, the first visitor destination in the valley, established in 1915) reported to Country Life in B.C. magazine. The year this statement was published was 1926. That same year, The Nita Lake Fur Farm began: the first and only marten farm in the province. 

Marten are relentless chewers and diggers. Owner-operator Russell Jordan had his work cut out for him. He rose to the challenge posed by the notorious beasts by constructing pens with 16-gauge wire mesh. The cages were built on the rise of land between Alpha and Nita Lakes and filled with miniature trees. He started with eight pairs of marten, described as being ‘the finest stock that have ever been obtained through careful selection during two trapping seasons.’

Russell first moved to the community of Alta Lake in 1915 with his wife and two children. He worked as a logger and the family purchased the Alta Lake Hotel. In an unusual move for the time, Russell was soon divorced by his wife – and she left for Vancouver with the children. The divorcé continued to operate the hotel (which later burnt down in 1933) while venturing into the pelt-rearing business.

Meanwhile, the Lineham Mink Farm began doing business throughout Canada and Europe. Furs were worth $39 each, while his breeding stock could fetch between $150-$200 a pair. This was a lucrative business at the time.

Both Whistler weasel ventures were proving to be worthy investments…but, their prosperity was short lived. The Wall Street Crash of 1929 marked the end to both local businesses and times turned suddenly much leaner in the valley.

Fast forward to the 1970s and, locally, the name ‘Weasel Workers’ suddenly takes on a much different meaning. No mink, no marten, no furs, no pelts … but, behind every major ski race held on Whistler, it has been said, ‘there was a pack of Weasels’.

The Whistler Weasels were a volunteer organization that began as a group of six, led by Bob Parsons, who prepped the courses for the first World Cup Ski Races on the mountain. The crew earned their moniker  – not for being ‘deceitful or treacherous’ as the name implies when referring to a person – but, rather due to their work on the ‘Weasel’  section of the Dave Murray Downhill which was too steep for the snowcats of the time to make it up. These weasels would flatten the course by foot. The organization was formally registered as the Coast Alpine Event Club in 1984, but the name didn’t stick.

What did stick around was the continued volunteer efforts of the group. The Whistler Weasel numbers soared into thousands during the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games, proving the polecats to be a vital and invaluable component for the execution of the Games. 

Weasels, simply put, form an integral part of the historical, community-sustaining efforts of this place. 

The Whistler Museum’s current Special Exhibition is titled Building the Spirit: Whistler’s Volunteers of the 2010 Games. The Weasel Workers feature as part of the exhibit. We look forward to welcoming you! The exhibit runs until March 29. More info: www.whistlermuseum.org

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2102 Lake Placid Road: the Southside Diner2102 Lake Placid Road: the Southside Diner

November 4, 2025 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 0 Comments

After it opened in 1974, the Whistler Centre Building saw several changes in tenants and its appearance over the next three decades, until it found stability with the iconic Southside Diner.

The first business to occupy the building was Le Magasin Du Ski, who moved across the way (from Union 76 station) to increase their capacity. The extra square footage separated their retail and rental space between the first floor and the basement. The shop was later taken over by Dave Kirk and Val Jazic, who renamed the shop to Whistler Creek Ski Shop, as apparently the French name confused patrons.

The Whistler Centre building in 1982. Whistler Question Collection.

In October 1975, MacGregor Pacific Realty (which later morphed into the Whistler Real Estate Company) moved into the office space on the second floor, but was soon removed around 1977 and Capilano Highlands moved in. Drew Meredith (of MacGregor Pacific) recalls the removal justified as they were arrears in rent.

Other occupants in the building included Rozell Construction Ltd, Garibaldi Blasting Ltd, The Insurance Shop (Jim Elliott Insurance Agencies), Harry Bullen’s “Mountain Hair”, Norman Minus & Co. Accountants, Syd Young Travel Unlimited, Whistler Office Services, the Whistler Question, and more. 

When the Whistler Village was constructed in the 1980s, traffic began to decrease in Creekside. Several occupants opted to move to the new hub of Whistler. The top floors and basement stayed as they were, but the ground floor changed and was revamped for the Rainbow Deli, a butcher shop previously located at the Gulf Station, where Tim Hortons is located today. The grand opening was on November 26, 1983, complete with free hot dogs.  

The Rainbow Deli is better known as the beloved Southside Delicatessen and the name changed sometime in 1986. Owned by Cal Schacter and Herschel Miedzygorski, the Southside Deli was instantly a hot spot for locals, and became world-famous, with actors, musicians, and pro athletes enjoying the affordable food options. The Deli also easily integrated into the community, sponsoring events and fundraisers, such as the Fireman’s Ball and the Cheakamus Challenge. 

Herschel Miedzygorski, Jan Woodside, and Cal Schacter at the 10th anniversary celebration of the Southside Deli held in 1994. Whistler Question Collection.

For a time the Deli shared the space with another restaurant. German Chef, Uli Schnur, moved to British Columbia as Umberto Menghi’s corporate chef. In 1992, he decided to open his own restaurant, Uli’s Flipside. He took over the Southside Deli at night, offering family and budget friendly made-from-scratch food until 1:00am. This operation arrangement continued until the early 2000s, even expanding to other locations around Whistler before officially closing the business.

Underneath the Deli/Flipside primarily held businesses dedicated to recreation. Backroads Whistler used the space in 1985 before moving to Mons. Two years later, Tim Mallone, who also owned Pumphouse Fitness Centre (later known as Whistler Creek Athletic Club), opened up the Southside Bike Shop. In the 1990s, the space saw Whistler’s first skateboard shop, Attitude at Altitude, clothing store Board of Authority, and World Pro High Performance Sport & Ski. Board of Authority recently returned to Whistler in the winter of 2023, opening a location in Village North.

The Southside Deli in 2000. In the 1990s, the Deli owners bought the building and converted the supper floors into the Southside Lodge. Insight Photography Collection.

After nearly twenty years of service the Southside Deli shut down in 2003. There was a quick attempt to create the space into an oyster bar, the Screaming Oyster; however, in the Spring of 2004, the Deli was reborn into the Southside Diner, with similar operations. The business expanded by opening a laundromat in the basement after the Nesters Laundromat closed in 2008, which is still the only coin-operated laundry around.

The original closure of the Southside Deli was celebrated as part of the Whistler Museum project, Vanishing Places, an effort to recognize places in town that have been lost to time. Thankfully, the spirit and history of the Southside Deli has continued through the Southside Diner. 

Whistler is expected to change and grow, and it is important for us to recognize our history and reflect on how far we have come. We are proud to write weekly stories to our community, and are excited to share more about what history you can see around the valley.

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Lot 4749: the Original Whistler CentreLot 4749: the Original Whistler Centre

October 28, 2025 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 0 Comments

In the last year, there was community input and discussion on the potential redevelopment of Creekside in the Lake Placid area. Though we have referred to the initial developments of Creekside, we have not spent much time talking about the west side of the highway.

After Whistler Mountain opened in 1966, the valley saw an increase in visitation, but there was a lack of accommodation and facilities to keep up with the growing popularity of skiing. There was also an Olympic dream in mind that was already denied due to lack of resources. While Capilano Highlands Ltd. and Green Lake Estates were looking at subdivisions away from the mountain, and Garibaldi Lifts Ltd. sought to expand their on-mountain facilities, another group looked across the gondola base to a messy lot for potential redevelopment. 

Russ Jordan’s land spanned from the east side of Nita Lake to just past where Highway 99 is today. The east part, at the gondola base, was the only part not included in the sale to Garibaldi Recreations Ltd.
An aerial view of lots in the 1960s. Laforce Collection

In 1936, Russ Jordan purchased 160 acres and constructed Jordan’s Lodge, a summer getaway and fishing destination. The lodge welcomed several visitors, with many revisiting Alta Lake to purchase land to build their own place. Popularity declined by the 1960s. His son, Eugene, described the property in 1962 as a mess, with grass up to the knees, a half-submerged float, and dirty cabins. This was a far cry from the carefully manicured design that Russ maintained at the peak of its summer tourism.

The property was designated as District Lot 4749. A group of people of varying professional backgrounds, which included Russ’ two sons, formed Garibaldi Recreation Ltd. They purchased the land for $45,000 in 1962. The intention was to build accommodations, parking facilities, and other amenities, or to sell it for more money if they felt other developers would be more successful. The group put some money towards improvements, but according to shareholder Peter Alder, interest started to wane and it was time to sell. 

In 1966, Garibaldi Recreation Ltd. sold Lot 4749 to Olympic Bid supporters, John and Kathleen ‘Kay’ Taylor for around $400,000. Through the Whistler Centre Ltd. and Whistler Housing Corporation, the Taylors and their associates were dedicated to developing the area, and coordinated their efforts with mountain operations and what was being developed at the base. 

The Taylors planned for hotels, shopping areas, clubhouses, a medical clinic, and single and multi-family units. The first phase was to sell 150 lots to the public. All lots were surveyed and prepared for sale with telephone lines, BC Hydro electricity, water supply, and septic tanks. The first subdivision of thirty-nine lots sold out by 1968, and several homes were constructed by 1971. Some of their original plan and structure of the west side of the highway looks as it is today. In recognition of the foundations laid, streets near Alpha Lake Village were named after them: Taylor Way and Kathleen Place. However, there were many changes that did not reflect the original plan.

For sale sign for Lot 31 in Block A. LaForce Collection.
The proposed layout from Whistler Centre Ltd. was advertised in Garibaldi’s Whistler News.

At the entrance of the Whistler Centre area, the Whistler Housing Corporation had a small A-Frame cabin for their sales and display office. There were plans to expand into a larger building that also included residence for the property manager, hotel reservations, and a tourist information centre. The design was by architect Asbjørn Gåthe, who is known for designing the Skier’s Chapel. According to Garibaldi’s Whistler News, construction was slated for Spring of 1968, though it did not pan out. Gåthe’s designs for a four-unit building and twelve-unit building along the highway did contribute to the Centre and are still standing today.

The entrance instead made way for a new gas station, Union 76 (now called Co-op), which opened in 1970 and was operated by Rich Naylor. The service station expanded in 1972 to include two brand new shops. Bonnie Naylor operated The Store, which was boasted as Whistler’s first delicatessen, and sold take-out foods, magazines, medicines, milk, bread, and other staples. Christine and Leo Verstraete of Chamonix Resources Ltd. opened a french ski shop, Le Magasin Du Ski, which competed with Jim McConkey’s ski shop.

Across from Union 76, nestled on the corner of Highway 99 and Lake Placid Road, the sales office remained until a new dedicated business centre opened in the Fall of 1974. The aptly named Whistler Centre Building had three storeys and a basement to allow for several businesses to occupy. It served as the only commercial office space prior to the Whistler Village being constructed. 

The Whistler Centre building in 1977 with the original paint job that suited the style of Vancouver architect, Wilfried Geppert. Geppert worked on various projects around Whistler, including St. Anton’s Village. Whistler Mountain Collection.

Check backnext weekas we dive into the various businesses that called the Whistler Centre Building home.

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