Qualicum

The Qualicum Beach Train Station is an excellent example of a community preservation project and the adaptive re-use of a historic building. Recognizing the building’s historic value and concerned about its deterioration, volunteers worked for almost a decade to raise funds for rehabilitation. Still used as a stop for passenger service on Vancouver Island, the rest of the station has been renovated for lease to community groups.
The Train Station speaks directly to the earliest settlement and development of Qualicum Beach. The arrival of rail service in 1914 was a critical turning point in Qualicum Beach’s slow evolution from a sparsely-settled farming and logging district to a premiere tourist destination that featured upscale hotels, resorts and golf courses.
Representative of many Canadian Pacific Railway stations built during the period, the 1914 Qualicum Beach Train Station is an excellent example of a vernacular, rustic style building. It’s rambling form, picturesque roofline and overall cottage character represents the type of architecture favoured in Qualicum Beach at the time. The building’s location in a large municipal park reinforces its rustic ambience.