Ainsworth Hot Springs, previously named Ainsworth, is a historic village on Kootenay Lake in British Columbia, Canada and has a population of 20. Founded on May 31, 1883, it is the oldest surviving community on Kootenay Lake. Ainsworth Hot Springs is located on Highway 31, north of Balfour and south of Kaslo, British Columbia. Today, Ainsworth Hot Springs and the Cody Caves are a popular destination for tourists and spelunkers. History The founder of Ainsworth Hot Springs was George Ainsworth, a steamboat captain from Portland, Oregon, who, with his father John, had already made a fortune operating sternwheelers on the Columbia River. On May 31, 1883, George Ainsworth pre-empted at what was originally Hot Springs Camp. He named the land Ainsworth in honour of his family. Upon hearing of the discoveries of silver-lead ore in the Kootenays, the brothers had travelled to British Columbia from Idaho via Bonners Ferry. Ainsworth grew into a town in 1884 when, "A.D. Wheeler landed there" with the first general store "started by G.B. Wright in the fall of 1888." Although Ainsworth was the town name, and Hot Springs (or Warm Springs) the mine camp, the names were used interchangeably. From 1884, the mountains above Ainsworth were alive with mining activity and prospectors had staked nearly every inch of ground from the townsite to the glacial summits. By 1889, several mines including Number One, Skyline, Little Donald and Krao were operating. Among the prospectors was roadbuilder Gustavus Blin Wright, who had built part of the Old Cariboo Road. However, like many others, Wright would have no luck. Then in 1891, Eli Carpenter and John Seaton left Ainsworth for their mining claims, but returned after several futile weeks of searching. They returned to town by a route that took them over Payne Mountain, where they discovered ore samples worth CN$170 to $240 a ton. Carpenter's and Seaton's discoveries would be the catalyst for the Slocan Silver Rush and the region would become known as the "Silvery Slocan". The town of Ainsworth prospered during this period and Gold Commissioner, Henry Anderson petitioned the government for a wagon road from the town to the mines and for a wharf. Both were built in 1889 and in 1891, the town was visited by the new sternwheeler Nelson, the first sternwheeler built to provide service for the communities on Kootenay Lake. The Nelson didn't operate during the winter months and