For more than 100 years, the local Cunningham family has maintained a strong presence in the British Columbia ranching community and in its community of 70 Mile House.
Since 1891, when Jack Cunningham pre-empted land near Loch Lomond in 70 Mile and built a thriving roadhouse and cattle ranch, family members have remained on the property as working cowboy
At the 2011 Kamloops Cowboy Festival on March 11, five generations of the Cunningham family will be inducted into the BC Cowboy Hall of Fame. They will be recognized and celebrated for the contributions they have made in keeping the essence of cowboy life alive in B.C.
BC Cowboy Heritage Society vice-president Mark McMillan was a member of the selection committee.
“There are hundreds who have been nominated and are on a waiting list, and at the moment, do not qualify as above average, to make the BC Hall of Fame. This is not the hall of average; the Cunninghams are special.
“Every generation has been involved with both rodeo and working ranc
Their legacy speaks for itself.
In 1896, Jack Cunningham married Margaret Clark, a girl from nearby Clinton, and together, they built and ran the 74 Mile Roadhouse on the ranch property. It serviced the busy northern gold field traffic, providing food and lodging for people and freight teams.
The couple had four children, but a son died at the age of 12 and Jack passed away just two weeks later. Margaret carried on with the running of the ranch and the roadhouse, aided by hired help and the children.
The log roadhouse was lost to fire in 1923, but was promptly replaced with a large frame house that continued to serve them well as a stopping house.
In 1948, the Cariboo Highway was diverted, and no longer passed by the 74 Mile Roadhouse. This prompted Margaret to retire and leave running of the ranch to her only surviving son, Norman, and his sister, Reita.
In 1930, Norman married Mary (Molly) Wilkinson and they had four sons, including Kenneth, William (Bill), Gordon and Earl.
As with most ranching families, the boys grew up as cowboys, breaking horses and riding in rodeos. Bill, as he is most commonly known, was no exception, and while working as a ranch hand one summer at the Flying U Guest Ranch on Green Lake, met Olga Rust, who would be his wife in 1954. The couple raised five boys and one girl in a rustic home not far from the main ranch, where they all learned what cowboy life was about.
In 1975, Norman passed away and the ranch was handed over to Bill, who, along with his wife and children, continued to raise cattle.
In 1980, Bill and Olga’s own home at Bullock Lake burned and they moved into the old roadhouse, which had scarcely seen any changes over the decades. Room numbers still hung on the bedroom doors and the old crank telephone retained its place on a kitchen wal
Olga passed away in 2000, leaving Bill to run the ranch with the help of sons and grandsons. Sadly, fire struck again in 2010, burning the old Cunningham 74 Mile ranch house to the ground. The original barn still stands as a reminder of days gone by and a new home is being constructed for Bil
Despite the hardships, the Cunningham legacy lives on and cowboy blood still runs through the veins of one of Bill’s grandsons, Wade, who was the 2010 British Columbia Rodeo Association season leader in saddle bronc competitio
Over the decades, five generations of the Cunningham family have ridden the ebbs and flows of the ever-changing cattle industry, and kept the ranch viable through their dedication to the cowboy lifestyle and their hard work. For this, they have earned their place in the BC Cowboy Hall of Fame in the “Family” categor
David Cunningham, third-generation family member and Bill’s son, says news of the induction was a total surprise.
“We’re honoured and dad feels the same. It’s a real tribute to his dad and aunts and family and it’s kind of a neat thing to carry on.”
Each of his brothers, Ross, Keith, Lee, Brian, and his sister, Heather, are involved in the ranching industry.
Other inductees at the March 11 induction ceremony include the 107-year-old Jocko Creek Ranch near Kamloops in the category of Century Ranch; Jesus Garcia, formerly of Merritt, in the category of Ranching Pioneer, and Robert “Butch” Sahara of Merritt, in the category of Competitive/Working Cowboy.
The BC Hall of Fame is located in Williams Lake in the Museum of the Cariboo Chilcotin, which is located on the corner of 4th Avenue and Borland Stree
On April 17 at the Williams Lake Indoor Rodeo, the pioneering Wright Family of Lac la Hache will also be inducted to the BC Cowboy Hall of Fame in the category of “Family as Working Cowboys.”
For more information about the BC Hall of Fame and its inductees, visit its website at www.bcchs.com.
