When Billy Barker struck gold on Williams Creek in 1862 he couldn’t have predicted that more than 100,000 people would follow, traveling on the Cariboo Wagon Road to work on the gold fields. Barkerville soon became a bustling city filled with traffic, people, excitement and optimism — and was the largest city west of Chicago and north of San Francisco.
Barkerville Historic Town & Park is now BC’s largest living museum with 125 heritage buildings, live theatre, restaurants and shops. Walk down the streets in the footsteps of miners, take a stagecoach ride and interact with the costumed interpretive staff.