Hutton, British Columbia
| Hutton, British Columbia | |
|---|---|
| Railway Point | |
  Hutton, British Columbia Location of Hutton in British Columbia | |
| Coordinates: 53°59′00″N 121°37′00″W / 53.98333°N 121.61667°WCoordinates: 53°59′00″N 121°37′00″W / 53.98333°N 121.61667°W | |
| Country | Canada |
| Province | British Columbia |
| Regional District | Fraser-Fort George |
Hutton is a railway point located between Sinclair Mills and Longworth on the north bank of the Fraser River in central British Columbia. Originally known as "Hutton Mills," it was established as a station on the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway in 1914. The post office was opened 1 November 1917 with W.A. Willits as postmaster. The post office was closed 23 March 1929, re-opened 27 September 1937, and closed for good 30 September 1959. The community's name was changed to "Hutton" on 5 October 1960.
The main industry was a sawmill and planing mill owned by the United Grain Growers which produced lumber for grain elevators in the Prairies. A school opened in April 1919. During the 1920s there was at Hutton Mills a hospital, a laundry, and a bakery. The population peaked between 800 and 1000 until a fire destroyed Hutton Mills in 1926 and most of the residents moved away.
Via Rail's Jasper – Prince Rupert train calls at the Hutton railway station.
Only one family is currently occupying what used to be Hutton Village. There are, however, many remnants of old buildings, as e.g. the Hospital area, where lots and lots of old medicine bottels are buried in the ground, the old Sawmill Canteen, surrounded by a multitude of old cans and aluminum plates and so forth, and even the old Hutton Railway Station Water-Tower is still on the property.
Also, the current owners have dismantled the Aleza Lake Catholic Church (built 1949) in 2004. Aleza Lake is app. 30 km West of Hutton and also in the Upper Fraser Valley. The Church was not in use any more and on the verge of breaking down. The Church has since been re-constructed in Hutton as a keep-sake of the Upper Fraser Valley's rich history.
Hutton is located on the foothills of the Rocky Mountains and is offering a wonderful view of the Cariboo Mountains (especially Sugarbowl Mountain). There are lots of creeks, beautiful hiking areas, wildlife watching opportunities etc.
References
Addition to Footnotes written by current owner of Hutton, BC, January 2010