Chatham Reach
Fireside memories and ghostly tales
"There are few places in the world that can match the natural beauty of British Columbia’s Fraser Valley. One of the valley’s most scenic vistas is the view looking north up the Pitt River toward Pitt Lake (the world’s largest tidal freshwater lake) at a stretch of the river known as “Chatham Reach.” - James McMillan, first Chief Factor at Fort Langley, first mentions the Pitt River in his journals of 1827.
The river was charted in 1860 by Captain George Henry Richards of the British Royal Navy Hydrographical vessel, the HMS Plumper.
“The banks of the Pitt River are exceedingly beautiful; extensive meadows sweep gracefully from the very edge of the river towards the distant line of forest and mountain. The rich alluvial soil produces a thick growth of grass, interspersed with the Michaelmas daisy, the wild rose, and scattered groups of willows..." - Lieutenant Richard C. Maynes, Royal Navy – 1860 (from his 1859 survey of the Upper Fraser River)
*Header image by Erik Prosser
Slumach’s Gold
*The following was contributed by Brian Antonson, co-author of “Slumach’s Gold – In Search of a Legend – and a Curse”
In the 1880s, Slumach, a Katzie Indigenous man who is now a legend, was said to have discovered gold nuggets in the wild region north surrounding of Pitt Lake. Slumach was hanged on January 16, 1891, for the murder of Louis Bee, at Addington Point on Chatham Reach, on the west side of Pitt River across from the confluence of the Alouette and Pitt Rivers.
Legend maintains that upon the gallows, Slumach cursed the mine and all those who sought it, saying "Nika memloose, mine memloose", which means "When I die, mine dies" in the Chinook jargon. That said, witnesses at his hanging said he spoke not a word. It is thought Newspaper reports suggest that up to as many as 21 - 23 men have perished in the search of Slumach's Gold.
New Westminster in 1888, two years before the Slumach tales emerged
Addington Point on Chatham Reach, where Slumach killed Louis Bee
The British Columbia Provincial Gaol (Jail) where Slumach was hanged on January 16, 1891
One of many 'tent-shaped rocks' that legend say may hide gold nuggets
The legends that sprang from Slumach's hanging have fascinated thousands of gold seekers for over 130 years. Experienced and novice prospectors have scoured the mountains and valleys around Pitt Lake, books have chronicled the tales, television programs have covered the searches of various adventurers, all to no avail.
Does a motherlode exist high in the mountains or deep in lower valleys? Gold seekers continue to probe the vastness of this wilderness in search of Slumach's legendary glory hole.
For more information about Slumach, check out: