The first Cadillac in the Okanagan Valley was owned by a Summerland pioneer.
James Ritchie, one of Summerland’s pioneers, owned the car shown in this 1910 photo. At the time, Ritchie was the reeve of Summerland.
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The Cadillac car company was formed in Detroit, Michigan in 1902 and was acquired by General Motors in 1909. Cadillac has long had a reputation as a luxury automobile company.
In the early 1900s, as Cadillac was building a name for itself in the automotive industry, Ritchie was establishing himself as a prominent Summerlander.
Ritchie, who moved to Summerland from Manitoba in 1903, pre-empted much of the land around Giant’s Head Mountain. He also bought out the Dunsdon brothers and the Garnett brothers. In 1906, he formed the Garnett Valley Land Company.
One of Ritchie’s accomplishments in Summerland was in bringing the Kettle Valley Railway to the community. In 1910, Ritchie requested the railway not to bypass Summerland, but this request was turned down. Ritchie then surveyed the area, using a carpenter’s level, and designed a route that would pass near the present Summerland Research and Development Centre.
Ritchie’s plan kept the grade to no more than two per cent and shortened the railway route by nearly a kilometre. A steel bridge over the Trout Creek Canyon was built in 1913. On May 31, 1915, the first train passed through the community. Passenger rail service continued until Jan. 16, 1965.
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