History



Every community has a story. Ours is about the railroad—and, of course, one very large rock.

The original White Rock townsite was homesteaded in 1886 by a family who promptly subdivided their property and sold the lots. By 1887, the British Columbia Directory was promoting Semiahmoo Bay as “the Naples of B.C.” and predicted it would become a popular resort.

When the railway came to White Rock in 1909, the prediction came true. Sun seekers from New Westminster and Vancouver began disembarking at White Rock to enjoy the wide expanse of beach and fresh sea breezes.

In 1913, the current railway station opened, and a year later, a pier was built.

Meanwhile, the opening of two new border crossings and the construction of Pacific Highway made the area even more accessible to would-be tourists and cottage dwellers.

By the late 1930s, a number of cottages had become permanent homes.

On April 15, 1957, White Rock received a special Provincial warrant to secede from the City of Surrey and become its own municipality.

In the 1980s, a wildly successful annual sandcastle competition drew more than 100,000 people to the beach and gave White Rock international prominence before eventually moving to Harrison Hot Springs.

The Legend of the White Rock

Standing more than four metres high and weighing a reported 488 tonnes, the famous white rock is actually a large granite boulder.

How did it get here? According to a Semiahmoo First Nations legend, a young sea god hurled it into the sea when he fell in love with a Cowichan princess but was forbidden to marry her. He declared they would make their new home, and start their own tribe, wherever the boulder landed.

Geologists call the rock as a “glacial erratic”, meaning it was carried here from the Coast Mountains during the last ice age. When the ice melted, the rock was left on the beach.

Although naturally light in colour, the rock now receives an annual coat of paint courtesy of the City of White Rock.


The story behind the yellow cottage

One of the oldest homes in White Rock, a yellow seaside cottage, stands at 15180 Columbia, on the way to the beach. The lot was purchased from James Hawthornthwaite in 1891.

The house itself was likely built by the Stannards, who, along with the Thrift family, were part owners of White Rock Tie and Lumber Company, founded in 1917.

It operated on Marine Drive near Duprez Street, and sold up to 8,000 sq ft of lumber per day to markets as far away as Japan.

The little yellow house could tell a few stories. It was also the site of one of White Rock’s few murders. The victim, Barbara May Helgason, was a beautiful young travel agent shot by her boyfriend. 

The famous White Rock train's history 

The train has been running through White Rock and adding a touch of character since 1909. It was so well used between here, Vancouver, New Westminster and points south to Seattle that people gave the trains nicknames.

The late night one was called the Owl Train. The one that brought crowds of weekenders was called the Campers’ Special. And the one that brought out working fathers from the city on Friday night to join their families who were holidaying at the beach was called the Daddy Train.