Abernathy Road

British Columbia. Road
Forks off Highway 5 near Valemount
52.8687 N 119.3018 W GoogleGeoHack
Roads are not in the official geographical names databases

Pinkney Bee Abernathy [1900–1961] and his wife Elizabeth [b. 1905] arrived at Red Pass from Gainford, Alberta, in 1949. Abernathy, a native of North Carolina, set up a lumber mill at Swift Current Creek, which he operated until 1960.

A supporter of the Yellowhead Route, he worked on the construction of the highway through Mount Robson Park. Before there was year-round maintenance of this section of Highway 16, Abernathy kept the road open to obtain mail and freight from Red Pass and to reach a long-distance phone at Jasper.

References:

  • Valemount Historic Society. Yellowhead Pass and its People. Valemount, B.C.: 1984
  • Carson, Art. Personal correspondence. 2008 Mountain Mania. Mountain Mania

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