A Rare Piece of Wells’ Gold Rush History Needs Your Support!!!!
The Wells Historical Society is poised to restore a second building in the cluster of industrial buildings associated with the Island Mountain Mine. The Island Mountain Mine operated in Wells from 1934 to 1967 producing an estimated 527,355 ounces of gold and 73,842 ounces of silver. It was a significant contributor to the British Columbia economy during the depression. This building is one of 3 remaining buildings from this important group of heritage buildings that helped shape the history of British Columbia.
In 1999 the Wells Historical Society completed the restoration of the Mine Office building which became the Wells Museum.
The current project is to rehabilitate ‘the dry’, the building used by the miners to change out of their wet clothes and hang them to dry between shifts.
The Dry, which was located on a site with very poor drainage, has been temporarily stabilized. This first phase of the rehabilitation will move the building a few feet to the north onto a helical (screw) pile foundation on solid ground. Engineered drawings have been prepared, construction estimates received and work is ready to start as soon as sufficient funds are raised, hopefully in the spring of 2026.
The rehabilitated building will be an important part of the ‘heritage corner’ at the entrance to the community from Highway 26. The Wells Museum and the outdoor mining display already attract significant local and visitor traffic. The Dry will provide climate-controlled artifact storage for portions of the museum’s collection, as well as two small apartments which will assist in alleviating the affordable housing crisis in Wells.
The Dry is more than just a building — it’s a living piece of our town’s legacy. With you help we can give it a future that serves both history and the community. We need to raise $50,000 for this phase of the project which will move the building onto it’s new foundation and replace the back wall so the building is secure and ready to move forward to the next phase which will rehabilitate the interior of the building. Any donation, large or small, will help us achieve our vision of a vibrant museum complex on the ‘heritage corner’.