An 1871 agreement to bring the province of British Columbia into the Confederation of Canada set the wheels in motion for the creation of the Field townsite. Crucial to the agreement was a commitment to expand railway access across the continent.
Established in the 1880s as a settlement of tents and shacks to house construction workers for the Canadian Pacific Railway, Field soon became a hotbed of activity in the Rocky Mountains. The townsite received its name in honour of Cyrus Field, an American being wooed by the CPR for investment capital; he never did invest. The CPR greatly influenced development in the area by building many of the hiking trails surrounding Field and erecting a variety of mountain hotels, chalets, and guide houses to attract the wealthy tourists who helped fund construction of the railway, which was completed in 1885. In order to stimulate tourism, experienced Swiss guides were hired to escort amateur mountaineers drawn to the thrill of ascending peaks that had previously been inaccessible.
William Cornelius Van Horne moved to protect a small area surrounding the Field townsite against development, and in 1886 the Mt. Stephen Dominion Reserve was established. The protected area was quickly expanded to preserve the natural magnificence bordering other CPR developments and renamed in 1901 to "Yoho", a Cree expression of awe and wonder. Yoho is now part of the National Rocky Mountain Parks and fully protected.