ARCHITECTURAL HERITAGE
The Fernie
Court house
The Crow’s Nest Pass Coal Co. created
Fernie as the industrial, commercial,
government and cultural hub of the Elk
Valley. Here, the company’s head office
was located and government services
were quickly established to support the
rapidly growing population.
Fernie has had four court houses since
1898. The first was a small building that
was used for less than a year. The second,
constructed in 1899, was a modest
wood-frame building that housed a
courtroom, a guardroom, a constable’s
room, a magistrate’s chamber and
four jail cells. It was quickly outgrown.
Construction on Fernie’s third, more
substantial court house began in 1907
and was completed in spring 1908. It
burned to the ground, along with most of
Fernie, in the Great Fire of 1908. Read
more p9.
The reconstruction of Fernie started
almost immediately. For Fernie’s
fourth court house, a new larger site
was chosen on Howland Avenue (4th
Avenue). Designed by George Stanley
Reese, construction of the new building
began in May 1909 and was completed
in 1911.
The Fernie Court House is arguably the
community’s grandest heritage building
and is the only such court house
of its kind in British Columbia. The
Architecture Foundation recognized it
as one of BC’s best buildings in 2014.
The balustrade, hand carved with
British Columbia’s provincial flower,
the dogwood, and the stained glass
located in the courtroom, entrance,
and stairwell, are two of the many rich
architectural details of this impressive
heritage building. The building has
undergone few changes since it was
built. It is still in use as a court house, as
well as offices for the Government of
BC and visitors are welcome to view the
original entrance lobby during regular
office hours.
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