 Ranching became an important industry in the region; two large ranches, the Empire Valley and the Gang were formed around Churn Creek in the latter part of the 19th century.Parks Canada identified the Churn Creek area as a potential park due to its populations of bighorn sheep and other mammals, but opposition from local ranchers stopped the formation of a National Park.After the Province of British Columbia completed an assessment of environmental resources in the Cariboo region in the 1990s, the area was again looked at as a potential park.