While most of the world’s attention is focused on the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, in Powell River we are celebrating 100 years of papermaking in our community.
On April 12, 1912, the first rolls of newsprint rolled off the machines at the mill, owned by Powell River Company. It had been a two-year long struggle for the company to produce the paper, the first newsprint made in western Canada. The three American businessmen who established the company had to overcome many challenges, but they persevered and laid the foundations for a company that would grow to become the largest newsprint producer in the world.
Dwight Brooks, Michael Scanlon and Anson Brooks not only built a pulp and paper company, however. They also designed and built a town. While they needed to have accommodations to attract workers, the founders went beyond providing bare necessities. They incorporated educational, recreational and cultural amenities that would contribute to the overall well-being of their employees.
Townsite is their legacy. In 1995, it was designated as a National Historic District of Canada, one of only seven in Canada and the only one in Western Canada. It plays a significant role in attracting tourists to our community and generates interest among history buffs and scholars who study its architecture and planning principles.
Over the years, Powell River has been the site of many firsts, including the first town in BC to have dial telephones and the first employee medical plan. The mill generated innovations in the industry as well, such as the world’s first pressurized headbox which was invented for No. 8 paper machine.
Powell River has transitioned over the last 100 years from a company town to a community that is more economically diversified, but still dependent on one industry. The future for the company that now owns the mill, Catalyst Paper Corporation, is uncertain as it goes through creditor protection and financial restructuring. Many people remain optimistic about the mill and the future for Catalyst Paper. Many believe that if Catalyst does not survive, the mill will continue to produce paper under different ownership.
While we can’t know what will happen, we can celebrate 100 years of papermaking. The mill has contributed innumerable benefits to the community, from the earliest days when the owners knew the names of all their employees to recent years when the employees collectively made the largest donations to Powell River and District United Way. Across the span of those years, thousands of stories have been told and thousands more are yet to come as the mill embarks on its second century of making paper.
