When Edison Motors purchased its property in Donald, the company became a close neighbour to an important piece of the town’s history. This fall, the company helped continue the tradition of tours of the Donald Cemetery, giving visitors a chance to learn more about the people who once called the community home.
The Donald Cemetery is the oldest in the region. It served as a final resting place for residents of the former railway town and now offers a fascinating record of the people who lived and died in Donald during the late 19th century.
The cemetery can be difficult to find if you don’t know where to look. It sits on a hillside near the former townsite of Donald, alongside the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) mainline. Access has become easier with the development of Edison Motors’ test track on the surrounding property.
For this year’s tour, members of the Edison Motors team led a convoy from the Donald log yard onto the property, helping visitors find their way to the cemetery.
At the end of the gravel road, it is only a short walk to reach the site. One of the first signs that visitors are approaching is a plaque listing the known graves.
“That’s the only people we can say are here. We have others I’ve heard about, but they don’t stand up and tell me,” said Denise Darbyshire, a representative of the Golden and District Historical Society.
The plaque lists 50 names, 15 of which belong to infants. Most of the recorded deaths occurred between 1885 and 1900, a period that coincides with Donald’s growth as a railway community.
“Donald was established around 1884, 1885. It was a bustling CPR divisional point, with a roundhouse, courthouse, hotel, stores, et cetera,” Darbyshire explained.
As the population grew, so did the need for a cemetery. But Donald’s fortunes changed when the CPR decided to relocate its divisional operations.
“In about 1896, CP decided to relocate its divisional point to Revelstoke. And by 1899, most operational office buildings were relocated in Field and Revelstoke. That left a ghost town.”
The graves offer a glimpse into a relatively short but significant period in Donald’s history. Today, the cemetery is one of the remaining physical reminders of the people who lived in the community during its early years.
Although some original headstones remain, many of the cemetery’s original grave markers have been removed or relocated over time. The Golden and District Historical Society, which
maintains the site, has placed white crosses at the presumed locations of graves, creating a striking sight among the trees.
The cemetery is hauntingly beautiful. As I drove toward Donald, clouds covered the sky, but by the time we arrived, the sun had broken through.
Walking among the trees, it is easy to reflect on the hopes people once had for Donald as a growing community. Today, a different kind of industrial future is taking shape just a short distance away at Edison Motors.
Theron Groff, president of Edison Motors, joined the tour and spoke about the company’s connection to the historic property.
“It’s so cool to be on a property with such crazy history,” Groff said.
Edison Motors purchased 305 acres in Donald for its truck manufacturing operations. The company has been developing the site for its work, including a test track for vehicle testing.
“Finding this property here was a game changer for us. It is everything we needed,” Groff said.
Despite the changes taking place on the property, Groff acknowledged the site’s historical significance. Referring to the removal of an old industrial warehouse, he said, “It was kind of sad to take it down, because the history of Donald and our property here is so great.”
Edison Motors welcomed the cemetery tour onto its property, allowing visitors to access a site that might otherwise be difficult to reach. The cooperation also highlighted the continued interest in Donald’s history, even as new industry takes shape in the area.
The cemetery offers a window into the lives of the people who helped build Donald, while Edison Motors represents another chapter in the community’s industrial story. How Donald’s future will unfold remains to be seen, but the efforts of the Golden and District Historical Society, alongside the interest of local residents and businesses, help ensure that the town’s past remains part of its present.
