In the area known as "The Gulch" is a large sani-dump station along Highway 3B/22. The gulch is on the western edge of Trail, an old section of the town straddling the highway which climbs up to Rossland, the site of the gold/copper mines which are referred to in the history below. This sign is in the centre of the station, with one side providing a bit of the region's history, while the other provides a map of Trail which includes points of interest.
Across the road from the sign and the sani-dump station is a beautiful little park, Piazza Colombo, which is a great place for a picnic lunch or even just a short break from one's travels.
The discovery of gold/copper ore on a mountain west of the Columbia River at the headwaters of Trail Creek by Joe Morris and Joe Bourgeois was the single most important event in the history of Trail and the Trail/Rossland area. With the discovery of the rich ore veins entrepreneurs, Colonel Eugene Sayre Topping and Frank Hanna, purchased 343 acres of flat land at the mouth of Trail Creek on the Columbia River to develop a town to serve the mining activity in the mountains above. As the mines grew in wealth Topping provided land to F.A. Heinze of Butte, Montana in 1895 to build a smelter to treat the Rossland ores.
The smelter was a success and in 1898 was purchased by the Canadian Pacific Railway. In 1906 the smelter, the War Eagle, Centre Star and St. Eugene mines and the Rossland Power Company were amalgamated to form the Consolidated Mining & Smelter Company of Canada.
The town of Trail prospered as the fortunes of the smelter improved. After WWI, the population increased as the demand for workers in the smelter grew. The area known as Columbia Heights overlooking the commercial area was developed and in the 1930s the city expanded to the east side of the river. During WWII, production at the smelter was increased to assist with the war effort. After the war, the City expanded further to the east, north and south. By the early 1960s, Trail's population was over 12,000.
The tiny copper smelter of 1895 has grown to become the largest producer of zinc in the world. In turn, the City of Trail has become a lasting legacy to the modest visions of E.S. Topping and Frank Hanna over 110 years ago.