ABOUT US

The Whistle Stop Pub was built in 1976, using most of the original structure of the old Harold Spencer home. Hazel Spencer was a descendant of the Leighton family of Courtenay. According to historical documents, the house and property originally belonged to the Campbell family - the Campbells of Campbell Brothers Store in Cumberland. The Campbell ranch, as it was known, stretched from the outskirts of Courtenay south almost to Roy's beach.

Quietly, and at enormous personal cost, the Campbells played an important role during the Big Strike of

1912-1914. When other merchants cut off strikers, the

Campbells continued to supply them on credit. By the end of the strike, it was estimated that they had lost about $80,000 in unpaid credit, which the had no expectation of recovering. As if that were not enough, the Campbells also offered their property to strikers and allowed them to put up tents and shacks. The miner's

children attended Courtenay schools during their stay at the Campbell's ranch. The Campbells, well-known for their generosity, also allowed the strikers to have vegetable plots in order to help feed everyone. Later on, a second house was built and it is now the Comox Valley Women's Centre.

The Comox Logging & Railway Company's rail line stretched from Headquarters Road to the Royston log dump. It ran right past the Campbell's house and many people mistook it for a train station...hence the name Whistle Stop Pub.