Deroche is a farming community on the Canadian Pacific Railway and BC Highway 7 located approximately 110 km east of Vancouver, in the Fraser Valley. This historic farm and cemetery are valued for their association with Joseph Deroche, who came from Quebec in 1858, attracted by the California and BC gold rushes. Deroche’s original house remains close to the main street of the village.
The significance of this historic place is as an example of a Francophone settler leaving his name to the community which developed around his original land.
Deroche died on March 19, 1922, age 99, and some of his descendants still live in the area. The cemetery contains the graves of Francophone settlers from the area, including Deroche himself.