Today, in spite of its highways and railroad, Jasper National Park looks very much like it did when David Thompson, Canada's great fur-trade-era explorer first saw it.
This region has seen many changes in the last two centuries - from sporadic visits by native people to more than 3 million visitors a year. Following is a brief account of the history of Jasper National Park.

1810 David Thompson, surveyor, makes first recorded visit to Athabasca Valley.
1813 North West Company builds supply depot on Brule Lake, which becomes known
as Jasper House after clerk Jasper Hawes.
1820 Iroquois trader, Pierre Bostonnais, guides Hudson's Bay Company through
northern Rockies. His light-coloured hair results in nickname "Tete Jaune" or
"Yellowhead."
1845 Father P.J. deSmet, Jesuit missionary, records the name "La riviere maligne," or
"wicked river", now known as Maligne River.
1859 The Earl of Southesk, first recorded "tourist", visits what is now Jasper National
Park.
1862 The Overlanders, 115 intrepid adventurers, suffer many hardships on their
journey through Yellowhead Pass to seek fortunes in B.C. goldfields.
1884 Jasper House abandoned as fur trade declines.
1897 A.E. Snyder, of the North West Mounted Police, makes first patrol from
Edmonton
1898 Columbia Icefield discovered.
1907 Dominion Government establishes Jasper Forest Park, setting aside an area of
13,000 km.
1908 Mary Schaffer, widow from Pennsylvania, follows Stoney Indian trails to discover
Maligne Lake.
1910 Payments made to settlers forced to leave Athabasca Valley due to formation of
Park - with exception of Lewis Swift.
1911 Grand Trunk Pacific Railway reaches Fitzhugh (Jasper) Station.
1911 Interprovincial Boundary Survey started by A.O. Wheeler, takes 14 years to
complete. In process many geographical places named.
1913 Present townsite Information Centre is built as the park superintendent's
residence.
1914 First school opens in Jasper.
1915 Tent City built at Lac Beauvert during railway construction, eventually becomes
Jasper Park Lodge.
1916 Mount Edith Cavell is named to honour heroic British nurse executed during
WWI for assisting prisoners of war to escape German-occupied Belgium.
1925 First Ascent of Mount Alberta by Japanese Mountaineers
1928 The Jasper-Edmonton road opens.
1930 Jasper officially established as a national park.

The following photos were submitted by Howard Durham.

Photos from the past in the late 40's

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