THE KÜTNE READER

I had the privilege of examining the guest book of Sandon’s Reco Hotel for the period of April 1, 1905 to March 27, 1908.

Part of the original Kaslo Hotel is hiding in plain sight. This post explains why it has been obscured.

A rare Christmas seal inflated the price of an envelope from a Trail hotel.

In June 2018, the Salmo Valley Historical Society got a peek inside the Salmo Hotel, including the second floor and basement.

Was the Salmo Hotel built in 1896? 1912? 1932? 1981? Find out here and a whole lot more.

What happened to the bars from the Reco, Sandon, and Hume hotels?

I had the privilege of reading the guest book of a famous New Denver hotel from 1897 to 1899 that was rescued from a landfill.

The cachet associated with the ghost town of Sandon probably drove up the auction price of a trade token from the Hotel Reco.

Where was the Elma Hotel in Trail? And who was Elma?

When fire destroyed the Newmarket Hotel in October 1973, New Denver lost its greatest heritage building, constructed 80 years earlier.

The last remaining portion of an early Nelson hotel is still standing in the middle of downtown.

Martha Collins was a pioneer prospector and hotel keeper whose name was once known in every mining camp in the west.

While Trail has had several famous hotels, here is a list of some others that didn't receive nearly the same attention.

Here is another photo from a series of negatives I recently purchased showing Trail in 1953. Pictured is the intersection of Bay and...

This week, a rare envelope from the Hotel Pilot Bay, postmarked 1897, sold on eBay for $115 US. Making it all the more appealing, it was...

One of West Kootenay’s least known attractions is an amazing map of the Kootenays and Okanagan in the pub of the Salmo Hotel, created in...

Although I’m rarely on the cutting edge of technology, I was the first person I knew to own a digital camera, purchased directly from...

You’d think if fire destroyed a town’s business district, the date would be well documented. Not in Fruitvale’s case. Much of the town...

A few months ago I was forwarded this tattered but terrific photo, previously unseen (at least by me). It shows the Silver King Hotel and...

The City of Trail bought the Union Hotel (pictured below) and a neighbouring building last year with plans to tear them down and sell the...