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Fort Steele, British Columbia, by Ray Mannix
Exploring Fort Steele Heritage Town, BC (with 52 photos)

Fort Steele Heritage Town, BC (official site)
Dateline: November 14, 2025.

    Eight pen-and-ink drawings of Fort Steele created by Ray Mannix in July 1975, with historical information.
Fort Steele, British Columbia - pen-and-ink drawings by Ray Mannix.
Major General Sir Samuel Benfield Steele, NWMP - pen-and-ink drawing by Ray Mannix.

Major General Sir Samuel Benfield Steele, KCMG, CB, MVO
North West Mounted Police

    Established the first North West Mounted Police Fort in British Columbia. In 1887, with Inspectors S. T. Wood, C. F. A. Huot, Surgeon F. H. Powell and the men of 'D Division, which totalled 75 officers and men, arrived from Fort McLeod in July to establish their first post west of the Rocky Mountains. The presence of the first police force created a more stable atmosphere in the Kootenays. Superintendent "Sam" Steele with his usual tact and sense of fairness soon had established law and order between the Indians and the whites. Having accomplished its task, the force returned to Fort McLeod in August 1888, leaving the small settlement of Galbraith's Ferry, which was soon to be renamed Fort Steele, and still bears his name to this day.

The honours (recorded incorrectly on the print):
- KCMG denotes a Knight Commander of the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George. Major General Steele was thus knighted, earning the title of "Sir."
- CB denotes a Companion of the Order of the Bath.
- MVO denotes a Member of The Royal Victorian Order.
The Water Tower at Fort Steele, British Columbia - pen-and-ink drawing by Ray Mannix.

Fort Steele Water Tower

    Built in 1897 near the original site of the 1887 North West Mounted Police post, this water tower became a prominent landmark of Fort Steele. Often mistaken as part of a fortification of the police post, it was perhaps a symbol of the optimism of the townspeople of the 1890s.
The Express and Stage Line Office at Fort Steele, British Columbia - pen-and-ink drawing by Ray Mannix.

The Express and Stage Line Office

    This was the type of building used as a stage line and express office in the 1880s-90s.
The Wild Horse Theatre at Fort Steele, British Columbia - pen-and-ink drawing by Ray Mannix.

The Wild Horse Theatre

    Where you can see and hear the Wild Horse Players performing music, mirth and melodrama of the Gay Nineties, such as "The Saga of Sam Steele" and many, many more.
The Perry Creek Water Wheel at Fort Steele, British Columbia - pen-and-ink drawing by Ray Mannix.

The Perry Creek Water Wheel

    This prominent landmark at Fort Steele Historic Park was built in 1933-34. It was designed to provide cheap power for pumping water from placer mine tunnels at bedrock, deep under the channel of Perry Creek, 25 miles west of Fort Steele. The 32-foot diameter overshot wheel operated only intermittently over several years.
St. Anthony's Roman Catholic Church at Fort Steele, British Columbia - pen-and-ink drawing by Ray Mannix.

St. Anthony's Roman Catholic Church

    The first church to be built at Fort Steele, dedicated on October 31, 1897, by Father Coccola.
The Windsor Hotel at Fort Steele, British Columbia - pen-and-ink drawing by Ray Mannix.

The Windsor Hotel

    Built in 1895 by Robert D. Mather - originally called the Dalgardno House.
The Ferry Office / Customs House at Fort Steele, British Columbia - pen-and-ink drawing by Ray Mannix.

The Ferry Office - Customs House

    Part of this building dates back to the Wild Horse Creek gold rush of 1864-66. Used first as the ferry office by the Galbraith Bros., it later served as the Customs house and the post office. John Galbraith operated the ferry from 1864 until 1870. Robert Galbraith then took over and operated it until the first bridge was built in 1888.

    An extensive search for Ray Mannix on Google, Ancestry, and in Facebook and newspaper archives has come up with a single mention, in The Vancouver Sun of Friday, August 8, 1975.

Burnaby Bandstand - pen-and-ink drawing by Ray Mannix, 1975.