Greater Vernon Chamber

The Chamber of Commerce, incorporated in 1897 as the Vernon Board of Trade, was established to meet the ever increasing demands for business and travel information that came with the arrival of the new railroad. The 44 charter members of Vernon’s senior business organization elected George A. Henderson as their first president.

The Vernon Board of Trade registered a name change in 1961 to the Vernon Chamber of Commerce when P.D. Seaton was president. Later, the name was unofficially changed to the Vernon and District Chamber of Commerce. In 1990, an application was made to change the name a third time to the Greater Vernon Chamber of Commerce, which better reflects the Chamber’s changing and expanding mandate as the Voice of Business for the Greater Vernon area.