[3] Later erosion in the drainage basins of the Brassey and Upper Ranch creeks overlaid these sand and gravel areas with fertile deposits.

[8] Experiencing the vegetation associated with semi-arid conditions of Western North America,[9] the land was most suited to cattle ranching.

Possessing water rights on Brassey Creek and storage at Twin Lakes, Pennie developed a 0.8-hectare (2-acre) apple orchard,[11] having potential far exceeding the general area.

[13] In December 1884, the eastward advance of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) rail head from Port Moody passed through the locality.

[14] Erected in 1884, the standard-design (Bohi's Type 5) single-storey station building with gable roof and dormers (identical to Keefers) was sold in 1965.

[21] In 1911, all the passenger cars of a train derailed on returning to the main line at Semlin,[22] and CP built an engine house and plastered the station.

[25] Months later, an escaping jewels thief attempted to board a passing CP train but instead sustained scalp wounds and fell dazed beside the track.

[37] In 1998, the derailment of five rail cars of a CP freight train about 1 kilometre (0.6 mi) east damaged approximately 500 metres (1,640 ft) of track.

[82] The BCDA immediately formed two subsidiaries, the Dry Belt Settlement Utilities (DBSU) for the townsite and the BC Horticultural Estates for the agriculture.

In summer 1908, 150 town lots were surveyed, 10 hectares (25 acres) planted with grass, and work began on developing irrigation systems from the creeks.

[91] The BCDA renamed its townsite of Sunnymede[84] as Walhassen in February 1909, claiming this anglicization of a First Nations word meant "abundance of the earth".

An accurate translation as "land of round rocks", which better described the terraces capped with large concentrations of cobble gravel, never appeared in promotional materials.

[84] Unlike other interior communities, Walhachin functioned as an elite English implant during its boom years, earning the unofficial name of Little England[93] or Canada's Camelot, a second Eden in the desert.

[94] Years of optimism in BC, accompanied by inaccurate and/or biased promotional material, triggered immigration, which was key to Walhachin's growth.

[95] Such literature claimed that fruit farming in the valley was highly profitable and an ideal pursuit for the upper class, while glossing over the isolation and harsh environment.

[103] Two restaurants,[104] a bakery, barber, butcher, dairy, livery stable, ladies store, two insurance offices, and three laundries, also existed.

[112] He introduced a degree of relaxation to the rigid class structure at Walhachin by changing the rules to permit public entry to the hotel.

[113] One account claims about 1,800 tonnes (2,000 short tons) of potatoes were produced in 1911,[104] whereas another states that only small volumes of vegetables were shipped out prior to 1917.

[119] The CN railway point being the notable local survivor of the Anglesey family name, the Marquess returned permanently to England[122] but revisited his ranch at least once.

[123] After 1923, Chinese gardeners leased 5 hectares (12 acres) as orchard and also grew vegetables[124] on the limited arable ground irrigated by the Twin Lakes Reservoir.

[127] An underwater pipe crossing the river to supplement the south shore irrigation was washed out two months after installation during the 1911 spring run off.

[130] A contrary perspective of the whole conduit infrastructure suggests a temporariness in design to save costs, with the intention of replacement once the orchards produced income streams.

[137] A 1945 study to examine the feasibility of settling returned World War II soldiers reached a similar conclusion.

The excessive summer temperatures[144] caused high evaporation of scarce water resources and the sun scald of fruit.

[145] Unlike the Okanagan, where the lake moderates temperatures,[146] Walhachin is susceptible to serious frosts,[147] which in 1912 destroyed 20 hectares (50 acres) of peaches, indicating that the vicinity was suitable for apple crops only.

Many either possibly faced or actually experienced expulsion from school, the military, or high society, because of moral shortcomings, legal problems, or gross incompetence.

Beyond patriotism, World War I provided the disenchanted an opportunity to escape from the isolation, where suitable marriage prospects were slender[161] and the overall Walhachin enterprise was indicating failure.

[168] That year, a ferry installed at the former Pennie Ranch site[13] to serve the Barnes estate on the north side[169] ran until 1912.

[174] The estate was largely vacant until 1940, when cattleman Harry Ferguson leased 2,000 hectares (5,000 acres) of bottom land,[119] which he used for winter grazing.

Remaining in the hall for almost 50 years, the Weber piano, once played by Ignacy Jan Paderewski, was donated in 1961 to the University of British Columbia School of Music.