Visit the Corn Maze at Tranquille Farms
If you are a history buff who loves a good farmer’s
market, you may want to take a tour of Tranquille Farm.
At the time when British Columbia’s first hospital for the treatment of tuberculosis opened near the mouth of Tranquille Creek, it was one of only a few in Canada. The facility, which was proposed in the 1890’s, was slated to be built at the foot of Bachelor Hill but stern opposition from the residents of Kamloops moved it farther out of town.
The Fortune family ranch at Tranquille had been purchased by the Anti-TB Society and the original farmhouse was used to house the ill until the sanatorium was built. The sanatorium admitted its first patients on November 28th, 1907 and within a month the facility was operating at full capacity. Having been partially funded with the gift of money given to Sir Ernest Cassel by King Edward the facility was renamed the King Edward Sanatorium in 1911.
At the time when British Columbia’s first hospital for the treatment of tuberculosis opened near the mouth of Tranquille Creek, it was one of only a few in Canada. The facility, which was proposed in the 1890’s, was slated to be built at the foot of Bachelor Hill but stern opposition from the residents of Kamloops moved it farther out of town.
The Fortune family ranch at Tranquille had been purchased by the Anti-TB Society and the original farmhouse was used to house the ill until the sanatorium was built. The sanatorium admitted its first patients on November 28th, 1907 and within a month the facility was operating at full capacity. Having been partially funded with the gift of money given to Sir Ernest Cassel by King Edward the facility was renamed the King Edward Sanatorium in 1911.
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The facility received some much needed federal
funding in 1915 to treat soldiers suffering from tuberculosis. A cure for TB was found in 1957 and the
sanatorium was due to close giving rise to a new problem. The citizens of Kamloops then grappled with
the question of what to do with the small city which now included a school
house, fire hall, power plant, hospital, laundry and farm.
In September of 1958, it was decided that it would be used as a home for “mentally defective” adults between the ages of twenty and forty years old who were at risk to the community. The first patients arrived in July of 1959. By the 1970’s institutionalization was no longer viewed as being in the best interest of patients and it was announced that Tranquille Farm would be phased out by the end of the 1980’s. Many people lost their jobs and the government was left with the problem of what to do with the property. |
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The
province put the property on the market in 1988 and it was purchased by
Giovanni Camproese who renamed it Padova City after his hometown in Italy. He planned to build a multi-faceted
destination resort but when this didn’t happen a reluctant government resumed
ownership in lieu of taxes and it became the City of Kamloops problem. The property remained abandoned for years
being occasionally used as a movie set for such projects as the mini-series
“Alice”, “Firewall” starring Harrison Ford and “A Team” starring Liam Neeson
and Bradley Cooper. However it was the MTV series “Fear” that had the biggest
impact on the property – one that remains to this day. The program followed a
group of contestants being left at an allegedly haunted location and led them
on a series of dares over two nights to explore and confirm whether or not the
place is haunted. The group determined
that Tranquillle was in fact haunted thus spurring countless numbers of people
to trespass in search of ghosts often breaking windows and damaging the fragile
buildings.
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The
current owners are certain the place is not haunted and that the group only
claimed it was to boost the show’s ratings.
They are in the process of returning the property to its farming
roots. In its heyday the Tranquille Farm
was producing the majority of food and dairy products for the 1,000 staff and
patients working and living at the neighboring Tranquille Institution. The site
has been renamed Tranquille On the Lake and will become home to a sustainable
Master Planned Community of approximately 4,500 people.
HOW TO
GET THERE - Go west on Tranquille Road. Continue on Tranquille Road past
the Kamloops Airport, the Kamloops Golf and Country Club, and the city of
Kamloops compost yard. Drive approximately 2 kilometers west of the compost
yard. When Tranquille Road forks to go over a rail crossing, take the left hand
fork. Drive 700 meters, the TranquilleFarmFresh gate will be on your right. For more information call T: 250 434 9690 or
visit their website at tranquillefarmfresh.ca
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