In 1949, during demolition following a fire the previous year, a glass bottle and a mysterious tin box containing unknown documents were found beneath the cornerstone of the Coqualeetza tuberculosis hospital. The box was promptly handed over to the RCMP, the Chilliwack Progress reported; but no follow-up story was published.

After the closure of the hospital in 1969 and in the early stages of the legal dispute over the grounds with the federal government, two Stó:lō men were caught attempting to break open the same cornerstone with a sledgehammer. The RCMP allowed them to finish but seized the tin box as evidence after the documents were inspected.

One of the men swore that among these were papers proving Stó:lō Nation’s rights to the Coqualeetza property. Further research by Keith Carlson of police records regretfully did not find such a document. There are papers regarding the sale of adjoining properties from local farmers in the Stó:lō Archives dated 1929, which contributed greatly to the legal case against the federal government. It is possible that these were among the hidden documents.

The cornerstone is still displayed in its original place, with further additions.