The true catalyst for settlement in the area was the completion and opening of the highway connecting Whitecourt and Valleyview in the fall of 1955. This newly opened road provided critical access to a previously isolated region.

Following the road's opening, workers and settlers arrived looking for opportunities in forestry and resource exploration. In 1956, the Alberta Forest Services built the first two permanent houses to support a new ranger station, which opened in 1957.

The region's economy changed dramatically with major resource discoveries. The Kaybob North oil field was discovered in 1957, followed by the massive Kaybob South gas field in 1961. Over the next decade, a dozen new oil and gas fields were identified, leading to the construction of multiple gas processing plants and an influx of drilling rigs, sawmills, and work camps.

The community's first businesses—gas stations combined with restaurants under the British American and Imperial Oil brands—opened in 1957. A post office was established in March 1958, initially operating under the name Iosegun Lake Post Office (it was not officially renamed Fox Creek until a decade later).