Population decline
With the onset of World War I in 1914, the local economy was devastated as many local men enlisted and the construction of the Pacific Great Eastern Railway was halted, creating a massive drop in population. Many men enlisted in Prince George from the surrounding communities and were primarily sent to Vernon, BC for training before being shipped overseas. 17 names of soldiers who died in World War I are inscribed on the cenotaph, although many more enlisted. Population decline continued with the ensuing Spanish flu epidemic of 1918. The epidemic took at least fifty lives in the area, including First Nation's leaders