Figure 1:Warf at Okanagan Centre in early Days. Packinghouse to right.
Before Lake Country, there was Okanagan Centre. For the first three decades of the twentieth century, Okanagan Centre was the commercial hub of the area. From the late 1800s to the 1930s, Okanagan Centre was one of the main points for the Central Okanagan. It was also a major port for sternwheelers. From the Okanagan Centre Warf goods such as apples, pears, and cattle where shipped to the Railyard at Okanagan Landing. From the Okanagan Landing Railyard goods were shipped to all over the world. Dry goods, manufactured items and new settlers all arrived at the Okanagan Centre Warf.
In 1892 Vincent and Homer Maddock purchased thousands of acres of land at the auction in Vernon. A section of the land they purchased would become Okanagan Centre. The land purchased by the Maddocks was subdivided into orchard sized plots. The Maddocks built an irrigation system to deliver water to the orchard land. The remaining land was subdivided into townsite lots. Each lot was around 25 feet wide. The Maddocks sold their property in 1909 to the Okanagan Valley land Company.
Over the years Okanagan Centre continued to develop. By 1910 the town had two hotels, a general merchant, a Chinese laundry, and a “red-light district.” In the new church, a school was opened for the children of the local farmers. Development was beginning for the packing house and cannery.
In 1925 one major event increase the commerce and immigration to Okanagan Centre. This event was the creation of the strip of the National Railway that connected Vernon to Kelowna. Over time the transportation corridor shifted from Okanagan Lake to the railway. Motorways were also stating to develop which increased transportation by automobile within the valley. The National Railway and the new motorways meant that the commercial use of sternwheelers and freight barges began to decrease.
Figure 2: Three teams of horses clearing and flattening for road construction.