The settlement history of the Spirit River area extends to long before the M.D. was established in 1916. During the 1800s, both North West Company and HBC had trading posts at nearby Dunvegan, across the Peace River from where Spirit River is now located. In the 1860s, Dunvegan also became the site of a Roman Catholic Mission. By the late 1800s, both farming and ranching were being done in the Spirit River area. In 1906, an Anglican mission was founded. The Spirit River area was surveyed for the Government of Canada in 1909 by J. B. Saint Cyr. Early settlers arrived primarily over the Long Trail and the Edson Trail. After the arrival of the Edmonton, Dunvegan and British Columbia Railway (E. D. & B. C.) at Spirit River in 1916, settlement increased.
Read more about Spirit River at – Municipal District of Spirit River fonds 550