Stanley once had a sprawling population that surpassed the town of Barkerville at one time due to the gold in the area.

An abundance of scrap wood, metal and remnants of buildings can be seen buried in the brush and earth.

The first proprietor, William Houseman, locally nicknamed The Duke of York, renamed his Yorkville Saloon to The Lightning Hotel.

There is some speculation that the hotel burned down in 1924 and was rebuilt on its original site from buildings purchased by Jimmy Williams at the defunct La Fontaine Mine.

During the early 1900s an additional wing (which was the mirror image of the original structure) was built doubling the size of the building.

It was purchased by prominent Vancouver mining executive Jack LaFleur and his wife Nita who opened it in 1967 for the centennial year.

The Cariboo region of British Columbia was ravaged by the Mountain Pine Beetle in which Stanley lies.

In 2005, the beetle kill trees were harvested around the Stanley cemetery and area for the safety of the visitors and to reduce the threat of forest fire.