The Shady Rest in Qualicum Beach will mark its centennial this year, a remarkable achievement surrounded by interesting Parksville Qualicum Beach history.

The iconic waterfront pub is part of the legacy of the Kinkade family, who owned and operated it for 61 years, from 1924 until 1985, when it was purchased by Wayne Duncan.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 100 years of peopleB次元官网网址檚 stories,B次元官网网址� said Tom Saunders, general manager of the Shady Rest for the last 14 years. B次元官网网址淟ife-changing things B次元官网网址� anniversaries and meetups and birthdays, just kind of everything.B次元官网网址�

Thomas Kinkade opened the Shady Rest on July 8, 1924 as a rest stop and inn, according to family history provided to the PQB B次元官网网址 by Stewart Moore, who married Lois Patricia (Kinkade) Moore. The establishment was named for the large trees that grew nearby, which provided shade for trestle tables and benches built nearby.

Saunders says quite a few patrons have brought up the coming centennial to him lately.

B次元官网网址淥ne of the things that IB次元官网网址檝e heard over all these years is just the meeting place that itB次元官网网址檚 been,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淲hether youB次元官网网址檙e coming from the south Island or the west coast or the north Island, itB次元官网网址檚 kind of like a good spot sort of in the middle for people to meet up.B次元官网网址�

ItB次元官网网址檚 tough to say exactly what made the Shady Rest successful enough to last for a century, but Saunders thinks location might have something to do with it.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 such a primo spot on the ocean. It used to be right beside the highway B次元官网网址� the main highway before there was an inland highway,B次元官网网址� he said.

A road was built along the Qualicum Beach waterfront in 1895, hand-graded to a width of 12 feet, according to a speech Kinkade gave to a local Legion in 1946.

Since those days plenty of businesses have come and gone but the Shady Rest has endured as the oldest business still operating, according to the Qualicum Beach Museum and Brad WylieB次元官网网址檚 book Qualicum Beach - A History of Vancouver IslandB次元官网网址檚 Best Kept Secrets.

Lately Saunders has been hearing about memories customers have from over the decades.

B次元官网网址淥ne gentleman told me recently that his dad was stationed in Comox during World War 2 and his mom has all these letters that he wrote to her, every day that keep mentioning, B次元官网网址榗anB次元官网网址檛 wait to meet you at the Shady RestB次元官网网址�,B次元官网网址� Saunders said. B次元官网网址淚t was just, again, that place where heB次元官网网址檇 be able to get off the base and meet the mom.B次元官网网址�

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Bruce Percevault has lots of fond memories of the Shady Rest, dating back to the 1960s.

B次元官网网址淭wenty-one was the age back in those days,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淎nd I was in there drinking at 19 or something and one night my parents came in and my mother started to say B次元官网网址� and I said B次元官网网址榙onB次元官网网址檛 you say a wordB次元官网网址�.B次元官网网址�

He will meet with 20 or so fellow graduates from the Qualicum Beach High School class of 1964 for an informal reunion this month.

A lot has changed in the last century. The Kinkade family moved from Northwest Bay to the mouth of Little Qualicum River way back in the 1880s. In order to vote, KinkadeB次元官网网址檚 father walked all the way to Wellington. Several years later a polling station was set up at the Parksville School House.

B次元官网网址淕ame was very plentiful such as geese, ducks, Brant, deer, bear, elk and plenty of wolves,B次元官网网址� Kinkade wrote. B次元官网网址淢y father and Tranfield shot many wolves on their hunting trips. Quite a bit of activity commenced around what is today Qualicum Beach, in 1905 to 1914.B次元官网网址�

In 1944 Kinkade retired and his son Gerald took over operation of the business with his wife Emily. The couple continued on until 1974 when due to ill health they asked their daughter Lois and her husband Stewart Moore to take over.

The family continued to operate the Shady Rest until 1985, when it was sold to Duncan.

B次元官网网址淭he Shady was quite a bit smaller then, IB次元官网网址檝e renovated many times over the years,B次元官网网址� Duncan said, and added at the time they had a big sendoff party for the Kinkade family. He anticipates a celebration this year as well to mark the centennial, although the date is to be determined.

B次元官网网址淭he restaurant was only about 24 seats when I bought it, it was a little truck stop,B次元官网网址� he said.

Several renovations over the decades expanded the capacity to 100 seats in the bar and 125 in the restaurant, plus another 35 on the restaurant deck. The liquor store was added in 2004 B次元官网网址� previously it was a residence of the former owners.

B次元官网网址淚f you look from the road, youB次元官网网址檒l see the original Shady is right in the middle,B次元官网网址� Duncan said.

There used to be cabins for rent, but they were converted into office space. At one time there was a manual gas pump out front as well, Duncan said.

The locations of the entrances and exits have also changed.

B次元官网网址淚n those days you had to have a ladies and escorts door,B次元官网网址� Duncan said. B次元官网网址淚f you brought your wife in you had to go through that door. For whatever reason, because the bar was so small you sat in the same places anyways.B次元官网网址�

Patrons donB次元官网网址檛 always believe the Shady is a century old until they go downstairs.

B次元官网网址淲e have an old stump down there that I think they just cut off and used as a footing so it wouldnB次元官网网址檛 slide into the ocean,B次元官网网址� Duncan said. B次元官网网址淔our-and-a-half-feet across. ItB次元官网网址檚 a big stump and it still sits there to this day and it will never move, I guarantee you.B次元官网网址�

The restaurant and pub remains a popular stop for locals and tourists and the Shady RestB次元官网网址檚 story is far from over.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 an amazing spot with amazing customers and amazing staff and hopefully we can get another 100 years,B次元官网网址� said Saunders.

The Shady Rest has been for sale for approximately a year. ItB次元官网网址檚 a challenging time for the service industry, due to inflation and the labour shortages, and Duncan said young people canB次元官网网址檛 afford go out as much they used to.

B次元官网网址淲e really thank the Town of Qualicum for the support over the years, without them 100 years wouldnB次元官网网址檛 have been possible,B次元官网网址� he said.