History of British Columbia
Encyclopedia
British Columbia
is the westernmost province in Canada
. Originally politically constituted as a pair of British colonies, British Columbia joined the Canadian Confederation
on July 20, 1871.
British Columbia, before the arrival of the Europeans, was home to many Indigenous peoples
speaking more than 30 different languages, including Babine
, Beaver, Carrier
, Tsilhqot'in
, Gitksan, Haida, Halkomelem, Kaska
, Kutenai
, St'at'imcets, Nisga'a
, Nuu-chah-nulth
, Nuxálk
, Sekani
, Secwepemc
, Sinixt
, Sḵwxwú7mesh, Tagish
, Tahltan
, Nlaka'pamux
, Tlingit, Tsetsaut, and Tsimshian
.
The abundance of natural resources, particularly salmon and cedar, enabled the development of a complex hierarchical society on the British Columbia Coast
. With so much food being available, the peoples of the B.C. coast could focus their time on other pursuits such as art, politics, and warfare.
BC is also one of the most amazing places in the world because i live here :)
rs entered the area to harvest sea otter
s. While it is thought that Sir Francis Drake may have explored the British Columbian coast in 1579, it was Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra
who completed the first documented voyage, which took place in 1775. In doing so, Quadra reasserted the Spanish
claim for the Pacific coast, first made by Vasco Núñez de Balboa
in 1513.
In 1774, the Spanish navigator Juan José Pérez Hernández
, a native of Majorca, sailed from San Blas
, Nueva Galicia
(modern-day Western Mexico), with instructions to reach 60° north latitude
to discover possible Russian settlements and take possession of the lands for the Spanish Crown. Hernández reached 55° north latitude, becoming the first European to sight the Queen Charlotte Islands
and Vancouver Island
. He traded with the natives near Estevan Point
, although apparently without landing. The expedition was forced to return to Nueva Galicia, due to the lack of provisions.
Since Pérez Hernández's first expedition failed to achieve its objective, the Spanish organized a second expedition in 1775 with the same goal. This expedition was commanded by Bruno de Heceta
on board the Santiago, piloted by Pérez Hernández, and accompanied by Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra
in La Sonora. After illnesses, storms, and other troubles had affected the expedition, de Heceta returned to Nueva Galicia, while Quadra kept on a northward course, ultimately reaching 59° North in what today is Sitka, Alaska. During this expedition, the Spanish made sure to land several times and formally claim the lands for the Spanish Crown, while verifying the absence of Russian settlements along the coast. In the following years, several other Spanish expeditions would set sail from Nueva Galicia bound for the Pacific Northwest
.
Three years later, in 1778, the British
Royal Navy
Captain James Cook
arrived in the region, searching for the Northwest Passage
, and successfully landed at Nootka Sound
on Vancouver Island
, where he and his crew traded with the Nuu-chah-nulth First Nation
. Upon trading his goods for sea otter pelts, his crew in turn traded them for an enormous profit in Macau
on their way back to Britain. This led to an influx of traders to the British Columbian coast, and ongoing economic contact with the aboriginal
peoples there.
In 1788, John Meares
, an English navigator and explorer, sailed from China and explored Nootka Sound
and the neighbouring coasts. He bought some land from a local chief named Maquinna
and built a trading post
there.
Two years later, in 1789, the Spanish commander Esteban José Martínez, a native of Seville
, established a settlement and started building a fort in Friendly Cove, Nootka Sound
, which was named Fort San Miguel
. This territory was already considered as part of New Spain
by the Spanish due to the previous explorations of the region. Upon Martinez's arrival, a number of British ships were seized, including those of Captain Meares. This originated the Nootka Crisis
, which almost led to a war between Britain and Spain. The controversy resulted in the abandonment of the Nootka Sound settlement by the Spanish. Some months later, Manuel Antonio Flores
, Viceroy of New Spain, ordered a Francisco de Eliza
to rebuild the fort. The expedition, composed of three ships, the Concepción, under the command of De Eliza
, the San Carlos, under the command of Salvador Fidalgo
and the Princesa Real, under the command of Manuel Quimper
, sailed in early 1790 from San Blas
in Nueva Galicia and arrived at Nootka Sound in April of that year. The expedition had many Catalan volunteers
from the First Free Company of Volunteers of Catalonia, commanded by Pere d'Alberní, a native of Tortosa
. The expedition rebuilt the fort, which had been dismantled after Martínez abandoned it. The rebuilt fort included several defensive constructions as well as a vegetable garden to ensure the settlement had food supplies. The Catalan volunteers left the fort in 1792 and Spanish influence in the region ended in 1795 after the Nootka Convention
came into force.
, and David Thompson
. As employees of the North West Company
, the three were primarily concerned with discovering a practicable river route to the Pacific, specifically via the Columbia River
, for the extension of the fur trade
. In 1793, Mackenzie became the first European to reach the Pacific overland north of the Rio Grande
. He and his crew entered the region through the Rocky Mountains
via the Peace River
, reaching the ocean at North Bentinck Arm
, near present-day Bella Coola
. Shortly thereafter, Mackenzie's companion, John Finlay, founded the first permanent European settlement in British Columbia, Fort St. John
, located at the junction of the Beatton
and Peace Rivers.
Simon Fraser was the next to try to find the course of the Columbia. During his expedition of 1805-09, Fraser and his crew, including John Stuart
, explored much of the British Columbia interior, establishing several forts (Hudson's Hope, Trout Lake Fort, Fort George
, Fort Fraser, and Fort St. James
). Fraser's expedition took him down the river
that now bears his name, to the site of present-day Vancouver. Although both Mackenzie and Fraser reached the Pacific, they found the routes they took impassable for trade. It was David Thompson who found the Columbia River and followed it down to its mouth in 1811. He was unable to establish a claim, however, for the American explorers Lewis and Clark had already claimed the territory for the United States of America six years earlier. The American Fur Company
of John Jacob Astor
had founded Fort Astoria
just months before Thompson arrived, though within a year the local staff at Astoria sold the fort and others in the region to the North West Company, which renamed it Fort George. Though "returned" to US hands as a result of treaty complications at the end of the War of 1812
, this meant only there was a parallel US fort adjacent to the NWC one, which was the more prosperous of the two. Following the forced merger of the North West Company and Hudson's Bay Company in 1821, Fort Vancouver
was established as the new regional headquarters.
, British Columbia was largely run by the Hudson's Bay Company
after its merger with the North West Company in 1821. The Central Interior
of the region was organized into the New Caledonia
District, a name that came to be generally attributed to the mainland as a whole. It was administered from Fort St. James, about 150 km northwest of present-day Prince George
. The Interior
south of the Thompson River
and north of California
was named by the company the Columbia District
, and was administered first from Fort Vancouver, and later from Fort Victoria
.
Fort Victoria was established as a trading post in 1843, both as a means to protect HBC interests, as well as to assert British claims to Vancouver Island and the adjacent Gulf Islands
. In 1844, the United States Democratic Party asserted that the U.S. had a legitimate claim to the entire Oregon Country
, but President James Polk
was prepared to draw the border along the 49th parallel
, the longstanding U.S. proposal. When the British rejected this offer, Polk broke off negotiations, and American expansionists reasserted the claim, coining slogans (most famously "Fifty-Four Forty or Fight!"). With the outbreak of the Mexican-American War diverting attention and resources, Polk was again prepared to compromise. The Oregon boundary dispute
was settled in the 1846 Treaty of Washington
. The terms of the agreement established the border between British North America and the United States at the 49th parallel from the Rocky Mountains
to the sea, the original American compromise proposal, with all of Vancouver Island retained as British territory. In 1849, the Crown Colony of Vancouver Island
was created; and in 1851, James Douglas
was appointed Governor. Douglas, known as the father of British Columbia, established colonial institutions in Victoria. Meanwhile on the mainland, New Caledonia
continued to be an unorganized region, its 100 or so non-native inhabitants (mostly HBC employees and their families) under the administrative oversight of Douglas, who was also the HBC's regional chief executive.
was found along the banks of the Thompson River
just east of what is now Lytton, British Columbia
, triggering the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush
. When word got out to San Francisco about gold in British territory, Victoria was transformed overnight into a tent city as prospectors
, speculators, land agents, and outfitters flooded in from around the world, mostly via San Francisco. The Hudson's Bay Company's Fort Langley
burgeoned economically as the staging point for many of the prospectors heading by boat to the Canyon.
At the time, the region was still not under formal colonial authority. Douglas, fearing challenges to the claim of British sovereignty in the region in the face of an influx of some 20,000 Americans, stationed a gunboat at the mouth of the Fraser in order to obtain license fees from those seeking to head upstream. The British colonial office responded to the new situation by establishing the mainland as a crown colony on August 2, 1858, naming it the Colony of British Columbia
.
On 19 November 1858, a government for the colony was established with Fort Langley, on the southern reaches of the Fraser, as its provisional capital. New Westminster was chosen as its first official capital, however, for reasons of military security. New Westminster, at a defensible location on the north bank of the Fraser River, possessed, according to Lieutenant-Governor Richard Moody
, "great facilities for communication by water, as well as by future great trunk railways into the interior". Governor Douglas
proclaimed "Queensborough" (as the site was initially called by Moody) the new capital on February 14, 1859. "Queensborough", however, did not appeal to London and it was Queen Victoria
who proposed New Westminster, after Westminster
, that part of the British capital of London
where the Parliament Buildings were situated. New Westminster became the first city incorporated on the mainland in 1860. Douglas was named joint governor of the three colonies (the Colony of the Queen Charlotte Islands
had been in existence since 1853 and was merged with the Mainland Colony under Douglas' regime, in 1863).
A second major gold rush
in the Cariboo
region of the colony occurred in 1861-64, in the midst of a smaller ones
, notably in the Omenica
, Big Bend
and on the Stikine
. The influx of gold miners into B.C.'s economy led to the creation of basic infrastructure
in B.C., most notably, the creation of the Cariboo Wagon Road which linked the Lower Mainland
to the rich gold fields of Barkerville
. However, the enormous costs of the road, and its predecessor the Douglas Road
and services such as the Gold Escort, left B.C. in debt by the mid-1860s. In 1866, because of the massive debt leftover from the gold rush, the mainland and Vancouver Island became one colony named British Columbia
, with its capital in Victoria.
When American Secretary of State William H. Seward
negotiated the Alaska Purchase
in 1867, it was part of his plan to incorporate the entire northwest Pacific Coast, chiefly for the long-term commercial advantages to the United States in terms of Pacific trade. Seward believed that the people in British Columbia wanted annexation and that Britain would accept this in exchange for the "Alabama claims
". In the event, Seward dropped the idea of an exchange and accepted an arbitration plan that settled the Alabama claims for cash. Until the Alaska Purchase and the new Dominion status (which were almost simultaneous), the British had been indifferent to the fate of British Columbia. London now paid attention, and realized the value of B.C. as a base for its imperial trade opportunities in the Pacific and the need of the Royal Navy for a station in the region. Governor Anthony Musgrave
proposed an attractive plan for joining Canada, with the Dominion paying off the B.C. debt and building a new Canadian transcontinental railway that would eliminate the reliance on the American transcontinental. Meanwhile, the United States was so focused on issues of Reconstruction, that few Americans picked up on Seward's grand dream to expand Manifest Destiny to the Pacific.
Both the depressed economic situation arising from the collapse of the gold rushes, as well as a desire for the establishment of truly responsible
and representative government, led to enormous domestic pressure for British Columbia to join the Canadian Confederation
, which had been proclaimed in 1867. The Confederation League, spearheaded by three future premiers of the province — Amor De Cosmos
, Robert Beaven
, and John Robson
— took a leading role in pushing the colony towards this goal. And so it was on July 20, 1871, that British Columbia became the sixth province to join Canada. In return for entering Confederation, Canada absorbed B.C.'s massive debt, and promised to build a railway from Montreal
to the Pacific coast within 10 years. In fulfillment of this promise, the last spike
of the Canadian Pacific Railway
was driven in Craigellachie
in 1885.
The mining frontier in B.C. led to the creation of many mines and smelters, mostly through American investment. One of the world's largest smelters still exists today in Trail
. The capital and work to be found in B.C. during the turn of 19th century to the 20th century led to the creation of several new towns in B.C. such as Nelson
, Nakusp
, Slocan
, Kimberley
, Castlegar
, Rossland
, and Salmo
. A large coal
empire run by Robert Dunsmuir
, and his son and later premier, James Dunsmuir
also developed on Vancouver Island during this era.
As the economy on the mainland continued to improve as a result of improved transportation and increased settlement, other resource-based economic activity began to flourish. Throughout the latter half of the nineteenth century, fishing
, forestry
, and farming
(including the planting of extensive orchard
s in the Okanagan
region) became the "three F's" on which the new province built its economy — a situation that persisted well into the late twentieth century.
With the booming economy came the expansion of the original fur trading posts into thriving communities (such as Victoria, Nanaimo, and Kamloops). It also led to the establishment of new communities, such as Yale, New Westminster, and — most notably, though a latecomer — Vancouver. The product of the consolidation of the burgeoning mill towns of Granville and Hastings Mill located near the mouth of the Fraser on Burrard Inlet
in the later 1860s, Vancouver was incorporated in 1886 following its selection as the railhead for the Canadian Pacific Railway
. Despite a devastating fire which all but wiped out the city three months later, Vancouver quickly became the largest city in the province, its ports conveying both the resource wealth of the province as well as that transported from the prairie provinces by rail, to markets overseas. Vancouver's status as the principal city in the province has endured, augmented by growth in the surrounding municipalities of Richmond
, Burnaby, Surrey
, Delta
, Coquitlam, and New Westminster. Today, Metro Vancouver is the third most populous metropolitan area in Canada, behind Toronto and Montreal
.
, particularly fishing
, logging
and mining
. From the canneries to the mills and mines, B.C.'s resource sector was increasingly the domain of large commercial interests.
With industrialization and economic growth, workers arrived to join in the seemingly boundless prosperity. Increasingly, these workers came from Asia as well as Europe. The mix of cultures and diversity was a source of strength, but also, often, of conflict. The early part of the 20th century was a time of great change and foment between immigrants and the First Nations, all of whom found their lives changing rapidly.
. The first major sympathy strike
was in 1903 when railway employees struck against the CPR for union recognition. Labour leader Frank Rogers was killed while picketing at the docks by CPR police during that strike, becoming the British Columbia movement's first martyr. Canada's first general strike occurred following the death of another labour leader, Ginger Goodwin
, in 1918, at the Cumberland
coal mines on Vancouver Island
. A lull in industrial tensions through the later 1920s came to an abrupt end with the Great Depression
. Most of the 1930s strikes were led by Communist Party
organizers. That strike wave peaked in 1935 when unemployed men flooded the city to protest conditions in the relief camps run by the military in remote areas throughout the province. After two tense months of daily and disruptive protesting, the relief camp strikers
decided to take their grievances to the federal government and embarked on the On-to-Ottawa Trek
, but their commandeered train was met by a gatling gun at Hatzic, just east of Mission City
, and the strikers arrested and interned in work camps for the duration of the Depression.
During the 20th century, many immigrant groups arrived in British Columbia and today, Vancouver is the second most ethnically diverse city in Canada, only behind Toronto. In 1886, a Head Tax was imposed on the Chinese
, which reached as much as $500 per person to enter Canada by 1904. By 1923 the government passed the Chinese Immigration Act
, which prohibited all Chinese immigration until 1947. Sikh
s had to face an amended Immigration Act in 1908 that required Sikhs to have $200 on arrival in Canada, and immigration would be allowed only if the passenger had arrived by continuous journey from India, which was impossible. Perhaps the most famous incident of anti-Sikh racism in B.C. was in 1914 when the Komagata Maru
arrived in Vancouver harbour with 376 Sikhs aboard, who were all denied entry. The Komagata Maru spent two months in harbour while the Khalsa Society went through the courts to appeal their case. The Khalsa Society also kept the passengers on the Komagata Maru alive during those two months. When the case was lost, , a Canadian Navy cruiser, towed the Komagata Maru out to sea while thousands of white people cheered from the seawall of Stanley Park
.
During the Second World War, security concerns following the bombing of Pearl Harbor
and Canada's entry into the war versus Japan led to controversial measures. The local Japanese-Canadian population was openly discriminated against, being put in internment camps. The Pacific Coast Militia Rangers were formed in 1942 in order to provide an armed presence on the coast in addition to the pre-war fortress garrisons, which were expanded after hostilities. Japanese military attacks against BC amounted to a small number of parachute bombs released from great distance away and by the middle of 1942 the threat of direct attack diminished following defeat at the Battle of Midway
by US forces. A Pacific Command
was created in 1942 also, and was disbanded in 1945. Militia units from southern BC provided cadres for many regiments that eventually fought in Europe, and the Rocky Mountain Rangers sent a battalion to fight the Japanese in the Battle of the Aleutian Islands
in 1943. Thousands more British Columbians volunteered for the Royal Canadian Navy
and Royal Canadian Air Force
. Two soldiers, Ernest Alvia Smith and John Keefer Mahony
, were awarded the Victoria Cross for actions with BC-based regiments in Italy.
was prohibited in British Columbia for about four years, from 1917 to 1921. A referendum in 1916 asked BC citizens whether they approved of making alcohol illegal (the other question was whether women had the right to vote). The contested results rejecting prohibition
led to a major political scandal that subsequently saw the referendum being overturned and alcohol prohibited. However, by 1921 the failures were so apparent—a thriving black market, arbitrary (often class- and race-based) enforcement and punishment, rampant corruption—that alcohol was established as a commodity subject to government regulation and taxation as it is today. U.S. prohibition in the 1920s and early 1930s led to a thriving business of producing and smuggling alcohol to quench the thirst of BC's southern neighbors. Many of Vancouver's richest families built or consolidated their fortunes in the rum-running business. Some compare today's robust cannabis
-growing industry in BC (the number-one cash crop) to this earlier era.
which required the building of three large dams in British Columbia in return for financial compensation related to U.S. hydroelectric power production enabled by the dams. The dams flooded large areas within British Columbia, but would prove to a very stable and renewable source of power for the province.
(aboriginal) people of British Columbia is a long-standing problem that has become a major issue in recent years. First Nations were confined to tiny reserves that no longer provide an economic base. They were provided with inadequate education and discriminated against in numerous ways. In many areas they were excluded from restaurants and other establishments. Native people only gained the right to vote in 1960. They were prohibited from possessing alcohol, which rather than preventing problems with this drug, exacerbated them by fostering unhealthy patterns of consumption such as binge drinking. The lives of status Indians are still governed by the Indian Act
. With the exception of what are known as the Douglas Treaties
, negotiated by Sir James Douglas with the native people of the Victoria
area, no treaties were signed in British Columbia. Many native people wished to negotiate treaties, but the province refused until 1990. Another major development was the 1997 decision of the Supreme Court of Canada in the Delgamuukw v. British Columbia
case that aboriginal title still exists in British Columbia.
60% of First Nations in British Columbia are aligned with the First Nations Summit. This bring a total of 58 First Nations, but only 20 are said to be in active-negotiations. Three Final Agreements have been settled, with one being rejected by Lheidli T’enneh in 2007. The other two, the Maa-nulth treaty group, a 5 Nuu-chah-nulth member group, and the Tsawwassen First Nation
. Although these treaties have yet to be ratified by Parliament in Ottawa and Legislature in Victoria, neighboring First Nations are seeking to block these treaties in the courts. A group of Vancouver Island and some mainland First Nations, the WSANEC, Lekwungen, and Semiahmoo
, are seeking to block to Tsawwassen First Nation treaty, claiming infringement on their rights and land titles. On the westcoast of Vancouver Island, the Ditidaht First Nation is doing the same against the Maa-nulth treaty group. The only treaty, the Nisga'a Treaty
(1998) signed in recent years was negotiated outside of the current treaty process
. There is considerable disagreement about treaty negotiations. Many non-indigenous are vehemently opposed to it. For indigenous, there is mounting criticism of extinguishment of Aboriginal title
, continued assimilation
strategies by attempting to change the indigenous peoples from nations to municipal style government. Therefore, a substantial number of First Nations governments consider the current treaty process inadequate and have refused to participate.
A November 2007 court ruling for the Xeni Gwet'in First Nation
has called future participation in the process into question. The judge ruled that the Xeni Gwet'in
could demonstrate aboriginal title
to half of the Nemaia Valley, and that the province had no power over these lands. Under the BC treaty process, negotiating nations have received as little as 5% of their claimed land recognized. Grand Chief Stewart Phillip
, president of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, has called the court victory a "nail in the coffin" of the B.C. treaty process.
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
is the westernmost province in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Originally politically constituted as a pair of British colonies, British Columbia joined the Canadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation was the process by which the federal Dominion of Canada was formed on July 1, 1867. On that day, three British colonies were formed into four Canadian provinces...
on July 20, 1871.
Early history (until 1774)
Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast
The Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of the Pacific Northwest Coast, their descendants, and many ethnic groups who identify with those historical peoples. They are now situated within the Canadian Province of British Columbia and the U.S...
speaking more than 30 different languages, including Babine
Babine
In its broader sense, Babine refers to the Athabascan Indians who speak the Babine dialect of the Babine-Witsuwit'en language in the vicinity of the Babine River, Babine Lake, Trembleur Lake, and Takla Lake in the central interior of British Columbia, Canada....
, Beaver, Carrier
Carrier language
The Carrier language is a Northern Athabaskan language. It is named after the Dakelh people, a First Nations people of the Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada, for whom Carrier is the usual English name. People who are referred to as Carrier speak two related languages. One,...
, Tsilhqot'in
Tsilhqot'in
The Tsilhqot'in are a Northern Athabaskan First Nations people that live in British Columbia, Canada...
, Gitksan, Haida, Halkomelem, Kaska
Kaska
The Kaska or Kaska Dena are a First Nations people living mainly in northern British Columbia and the southeastern Yukon in Canada. The Kaska language originally spoken by the Kaska is an Athabaskan language....
, Kutenai
Kootenai (tribe)
The Ktunaxa , also known as Kootenai, Kutenai or Kootenay , are an indigenous people of North America. They are one of three tribes of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Nation in Montana, and they form the Ktunaxa Nation in British Columbia...
, St'at'imcets, Nisga'a
Nisga'a
The Nisga’a , often formerly spelled Nishga and spelled in the Nisga’a language as Nisga’a, are an Indigenous nation or First Nation in Canada. They live in the Nass River valley of northwestern British Columbia. Their name comes from a combination of two Nisga’a words: Nisk’-"top lip" and...
, Nuu-chah-nulth
Nuu-chah-nulth language
Nuu-chah-nulth is a Wakashan language spoken in the Pacific Northwest of North America, on the west coast of Vancouver Island from Barkley Sound to Quatsino Sound in British Columbia, by the Nuu-chah-nulth people...
, Nuxálk
Nuxalk
Nuxálk are an indigenous people native to Bella Coola, British Columbia in Canada. The term can refer to:* Nuxálk language, a moribund Salishan language.* Nuxalk Nation, the name of the Nuxálk group in the First Nations....
, Sekani
Sekani
Sekani is the name of an Athabaskan First Nations people in the Northern Interior of British Columbia. Their territory includes the Finlay and Parsnip River drainages of the Rocky Mountain Trench. The neighbors of the Sekani are the Babine to the west, Dakelh to the south, Dunneza to the east, and...
, Secwepemc
Secwepemc
The Secwepemc , known in English as the Shuswap people, are a First Nations people residing in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Their traditional territory ranges from the eastern Chilcotin Plateau and the Cariboo Plateau southeast through the Thompson Country to Kamloops and the Shuswap...
, Sinixt
Sinixt
The Sinixt are a First Nations People...
, Sḵwxwú7mesh, Tagish
Tagish
The Tagish or Tagish Khwáan are a group of Athabaskan First Nation people that lived around Tagish Lake and Marsh Lake, in the Yukon Territory of Canada. Tagish people intermarried heavily with Tlingit people from the coast and the Tagish language is almost extinct...
, Tahltan
Tahltan
Tahltan refers to a Northern Athabaskan people who live in northern British Columbia around Telegraph Creek, Dease Lake, and Iskut.-Social Organization:...
, Nlaka'pamux
Nlaka'pamux
The Nlaka'pamux , commonly called "the Thompson", and also Thompson River Salish, Thompson Salish, Thompson River Indians or Thompson River people) are an indigenous First Nations/Native American people of the Interior Salish language group in southern British Columbia...
, Tlingit, Tsetsaut, and Tsimshian
Tsimshian
The Tsimshian are an indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest Coast. Tsimshian translates to Inside the Skeena River. Their communities are in British Columbia and Alaska, around Terrace and Prince Rupert and the southernmost corner of Alaska on Annette Island. There are approximately 10,000...
.
The abundance of natural resources, particularly salmon and cedar, enabled the development of a complex hierarchical society on the British Columbia Coast
British Columbia Coast
The British Columbia Coast or BC Coast is Canada's western continental coastline on the Pacific Ocean. The usage is synonymous with the term West Coast of Canada....
. With so much food being available, the peoples of the B.C. coast could focus their time on other pursuits such as art, politics, and warfare.
BC is also one of the most amazing places in the world because i live here :)
Early European explorations (1774-1788)
The arrival of Europeans began around the mid-18th century, as fur tradeFur trade
The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of world market for in the early modern period furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most valued...
rs entered the area to harvest sea otter
Sea Otter
The sea otter is a marine mammal native to the coasts of the northern and eastern North Pacific Ocean. Adult sea otters typically weigh between 14 and 45 kg , making them the heaviest members of the weasel family, but among the smallest marine mammals...
s. While it is thought that Sir Francis Drake may have explored the British Columbian coast in 1579, it was Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra
Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra
Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra was a Spanish naval officer born in Lima, Peru. Assigned to the Pacific coast Spanish Naval Department base at San Blas, in the Viceroyalty of New Spain , this navigator explored the Northwest Coast of North America as far north as present day Alaska.Juan...
who completed the first documented voyage, which took place in 1775. In doing so, Quadra reasserted the Spanish
Spanish Empire
The Spanish Empire comprised territories and colonies administered directly by Spain in Europe, in America, Africa, Asia and Oceania. It originated during the Age of Exploration and was therefore one of the first global empires. At the time of Habsburgs, Spain reached the peak of its world power....
claim for the Pacific coast, first made by Vasco Núñez de Balboa
Vasco Núñez de Balboa
Vasco Núñez de Balboa was a Spanish explorer, governor, and conquistador. He is best known for having crossed the Isthmus of Panama to the Pacific Ocean in 1513, becoming the first European to lead an expedition to have seen or reached the Pacific from the New World.He traveled to the New World in...
in 1513.
In 1774, the Spanish navigator Juan José Pérez Hernández
Juan José Pérez Hernández
Juan José Pérez Hernández , often simply Juan Pérez, was an 18th century Spanish explorer. He was the first European to sight, examine, name, and record the islands near present-day British Columbia, Canada...
, a native of Majorca, sailed from San Blas
San Blas, Nayarit
San Blas is both a municipality and municipal seat located on the Pacific coast of Mexico in the state of Nayarit.-City:San Blas is a port and a popular tourist destination, located about 100 miles north of Puerto Vallarta, and 40 miles west of the state capital Tepic. The town has a population of...
, Nueva Galicia
Nueva Galicia
El Nuevo Reino de Galicia or Nueva Galicia was an autonomous kingdom of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. It was named after Galicia in Spain...
(modern-day Western Mexico), with instructions to reach 60° north latitude
Latitude
In geography, the latitude of a location on the Earth is the angular distance of that location south or north of the Equator. The latitude is an angle, and is usually measured in degrees . The equator has a latitude of 0°, the North pole has a latitude of 90° north , and the South pole has a...
to discover possible Russian settlements and take possession of the lands for the Spanish Crown. Hernández reached 55° north latitude, becoming the first European to sight the Queen Charlotte Islands
Queen Charlotte Islands
Haida Gwaii , formerly the Queen Charlotte Islands, is an archipelago on the North Coast of British Columbia, Canada. Haida Gwaii consists of two main islands: Graham Island in the north, and Moresby Island in the south, along with approximately 150 smaller islands with a total landmass of...
and Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island is a large island in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of several North American locations named after George Vancouver, the British Royal Navy officer who explored the Pacific Northwest coast of North America between 1791 and 1794...
. He traded with the natives near Estevan Point
Estevan Point
Estevan Point is a lighthouse located on the headland of the same name on the Hesquiat Peninsula on the west coast of Vancouver Island, Canada....
, although apparently without landing. The expedition was forced to return to Nueva Galicia, due to the lack of provisions.
Since Pérez Hernández's first expedition failed to achieve its objective, the Spanish organized a second expedition in 1775 with the same goal. This expedition was commanded by Bruno de Heceta
Bruno de Heceta
Bruno de Heceta y Dudagoitia was a Spanish Basque explorer of the Pacific Northwest. Born in Bilbao of an old Basque family, he was sent by the Viceroy of New Spain, Antonio María Bucareli y Ursúa, to explore the area north of Alta California in response to information that there were colonial...
on board the Santiago, piloted by Pérez Hernández, and accompanied by Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra
Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra
Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra was a Spanish naval officer born in Lima, Peru. Assigned to the Pacific coast Spanish Naval Department base at San Blas, in the Viceroyalty of New Spain , this navigator explored the Northwest Coast of North America as far north as present day Alaska.Juan...
in La Sonora. After illnesses, storms, and other troubles had affected the expedition, de Heceta returned to Nueva Galicia, while Quadra kept on a northward course, ultimately reaching 59° North in what today is Sitka, Alaska. During this expedition, the Spanish made sure to land several times and formally claim the lands for the Spanish Crown, while verifying the absence of Russian settlements along the coast. In the following years, several other Spanish expeditions would set sail from Nueva Galicia bound for the Pacific Northwest
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...
.
Three years later, in 1778, the British
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
Captain James Cook
James Cook
Captain James Cook, FRS, RN was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer who ultimately rose to the rank of captain in the Royal Navy...
arrived in the region, searching for the Northwest Passage
Northwest Passage
The Northwest Passage is a sea route through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways amidst the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans...
, and successfully landed at Nootka Sound
Nootka Sound
Nootka Sound is a complex inlet or sound of the Pacific Ocean on the rugged west coast of Vancouver Island, in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Historically also known as King George's Sound, as a strait it separates Vancouver Island and Nootka Island.-History:The inlet is part of the...
on Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island is a large island in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of several North American locations named after George Vancouver, the British Royal Navy officer who explored the Pacific Northwest coast of North America between 1791 and 1794...
, where he and his crew traded with the Nuu-chah-nulth First Nation
First Nations
First Nations is a term that collectively refers to various Aboriginal peoples in Canada who are neither Inuit nor Métis. There are currently over 630 recognised First Nations governments or bands spread across Canada, roughly half of which are in the provinces of Ontario and British Columbia. The...
. Upon trading his goods for sea otter pelts, his crew in turn traded them for an enormous profit in Macau
Macau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
on their way back to Britain. This led to an influx of traders to the British Columbian coast, and ongoing economic contact with the aboriginal
Aboriginal peoples in Canada
Aboriginal peoples in Canada comprise the First Nations, Inuit and Métis. The descriptors "Indian" and "Eskimo" have fallen into disuse in Canada and are commonly considered pejorative....
peoples there.
Early European settlements (1788-1790s)
John Meares
John Meares was a navigator, explorer, and maritime fur trader, best known for his role in the Nootka Crisis, which brought Britain and Spain to the brink of war.- Career :...
, an English navigator and explorer, sailed from China and explored Nootka Sound
Nootka Sound
Nootka Sound is a complex inlet or sound of the Pacific Ocean on the rugged west coast of Vancouver Island, in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Historically also known as King George's Sound, as a strait it separates Vancouver Island and Nootka Island.-History:The inlet is part of the...
and the neighbouring coasts. He bought some land from a local chief named Maquinna
Maquinna
Maquinna was the chief of the Nuu-chah-nulth people of Nootka Sound, during the heyday of the maritime fur trade in the 1780s and 1790s on the Pacific Northwest Coast...
and built a trading post
Trading post
A trading post was a place or establishment in historic Northern America where the trading of goods took place. The preferred travel route to a trading post or between trading posts, was known as a trade route....
there.
Two years later, in 1789, the Spanish commander Esteban José Martínez, a native of Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
, established a settlement and started building a fort in Friendly Cove, Nootka Sound
Nootka Sound
Nootka Sound is a complex inlet or sound of the Pacific Ocean on the rugged west coast of Vancouver Island, in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Historically also known as King George's Sound, as a strait it separates Vancouver Island and Nootka Island.-History:The inlet is part of the...
, which was named Fort San Miguel
Fort San Miguel
For Angola fort, see Fortaleza de São MiguelFort San Miguel was a Spanish fortification at Friendly Cove in Nootka Sound , Vancouver Island....
. This territory was already considered as part of New Spain
New Spain
New Spain, formally called the Viceroyalty of New Spain , was a viceroyalty of the Spanish colonial empire, comprising primarily territories in what was known then as 'América Septentrional' or North America. Its capital was Mexico City, formerly Tenochtitlan, capital of the Aztec Empire...
by the Spanish due to the previous explorations of the region. Upon Martinez's arrival, a number of British ships were seized, including those of Captain Meares. This originated the Nootka Crisis
Nootka Crisis
The Nootka Crisis was an international incident and political dispute between the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Spain, triggered by a series of events that took place during the summer of 1789 at Nootka Sound...
, which almost led to a war between Britain and Spain. The controversy resulted in the abandonment of the Nootka Sound settlement by the Spanish. Some months later, Manuel Antonio Flores
Manuel Antonio Flores
Manuel Antonio Flores Maldonado Martínez Ángulo y Bodquín was a general in the Spanish navy and viceroy of New Granada and New Spain .-Early career:Flores entered the royal navy of Spain, where he commanded various...
, Viceroy of New Spain, ordered a Francisco de Eliza
Francisco de Eliza
Francisco de Eliza y Reventa was a Spanish naval officer, navigator, and explorer. He is remembered mainly for his work in the Pacific Northwest...
to rebuild the fort. The expedition, composed of three ships, the Concepción, under the command of De Eliza
Francisco de Eliza
Francisco de Eliza y Reventa was a Spanish naval officer, navigator, and explorer. He is remembered mainly for his work in the Pacific Northwest...
, the San Carlos, under the command of Salvador Fidalgo
Salvador Fidalgo
Salvador Fidalgo y Lopegarcía was a Spanish explorer who commanded an exploring expedition for Spain to Alaska and the Pacific Northwest during the late 18th century.-Early career:...
and the Princesa Real, under the command of Manuel Quimper
Manuel Quimper
Manuel Quimper Benítez del Pino was a Spanish Peruvian explorer, cartographer, naval officer, and colonial official. He participated in charting the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Sandwich Islands in the late 18th century. He was later appointed a colonial governor in his native Peru at the...
, sailed in early 1790 from San Blas
San Blas
San Blas, the Spanish name for Saint Blaise, can refer to:*San Blas, La Rioja*San Blas Department*San Blas, Costa Rica*San Blas, Quito*San Blas, El Salvador* San Blas, Nadur* San Blas, Nayarit* San Blas, Sinaloa* San Blas Atempa, Oaxaca...
in Nueva Galicia and arrived at Nootka Sound in April of that year. The expedition had many Catalan volunteers
Catalan people
The Catalans or Catalonians are the people from, or with origins in, Catalonia that form a historical nationality in Spain. The inhabitants of the adjacent portion of southern France are sometimes included in this definition...
from the First Free Company of Volunteers of Catalonia, commanded by Pere d'Alberní, a native of Tortosa
Tortosa
-External links:* *** * * *...
. The expedition rebuilt the fort, which had been dismantled after Martínez abandoned it. The rebuilt fort included several defensive constructions as well as a vegetable garden to ensure the settlement had food supplies. The Catalan volunteers left the fort in 1792 and Spanish influence in the region ended in 1795 after the Nootka Convention
Nootka Convention
The Nootka Conventions were a series of three agreements between the Kingdom of Spain and the Kingdom of Great Britain, signed in the 1790s which averted a war between the two empires over overlapping claims to portions of the Pacific Northwest coast of North America.The claims of Spain dated back...
came into force.
Late British expeditions (1790s-1821)
Subsequently, European explorer-merchants from the east started to discover British Columbia. Three figures dominate in the early history of mainland British Columbia: Sir Alexander Mackenzie, Simon FraserSimon Fraser (explorer)
Simon Fraser was a fur trader and an explorer who charted much of what is now the Canadian province of British Columbia. Fraser was employed by the Montreal-based North West Company. By 1805, he had been put in charge of all the company's operations west of the Rocky Mountains...
, and David Thompson
David Thompson (explorer)
David Thompson was an English-Canadian fur trader, surveyor, and map-maker, known to some native peoples as "Koo-Koo-Sint" or "the Stargazer"...
. As employees of the North West Company
North West Company
The North West Company was a fur trading business headquartered in Montreal from 1779 to 1821. It competed with increasing success against the Hudson's Bay Company in what was to become Western Canada...
, the three were primarily concerned with discovering a practicable river route to the Pacific, specifically via the Columbia River
Columbia River
The Columbia River is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, Canada, flows northwest and then south into the U.S. state of Washington, then turns west to form most of the border between Washington and the state...
, for the extension of the fur trade
Fur trade
The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of world market for in the early modern period furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most valued...
. In 1793, Mackenzie became the first European to reach the Pacific overland north of the Rio Grande
Rio Grande
The Rio Grande is a river that flows from southwestern Colorado in the United States to the Gulf of Mexico. Along the way it forms part of the Mexico – United States border. Its length varies as its course changes...
. He and his crew entered the region through the Rocky Mountains
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
via the Peace River
Peace River (Canada)
The Peace River is a river in Canada that originates in the Rocky Mountains of northern British Columbia and flows to the northeast through northern Alberta. The Peace River flows into the Slave River, a tributary of the Mackenzie River. The Mackenzie is the 12th longest river in the world,...
, reaching the ocean at North Bentinck Arm
North Bentinck Arm
North Bentinck Arm is short inlet about in length in the Central Coast region of British Columbia, Canada. It is a sidewater of Burke Channel and is linked via that waterway and Labouchere Channel to Dean Channel, which is one of the largest inlets of the BC Coast.A spot on North Bentinck Arm is...
, near present-day Bella Coola
Bella Coola, British Columbia
Bella Coola is a community of approximately 600 at the western extremity of the Bella Coola Valley. Bella Coola usually refers to the entire valley, encompassing the settlements of Bella Coola proper , Lower Bella Coola, Hagensborg, Saloompt, Nusatsum, Firvale and Stuie...
. Shortly thereafter, Mackenzie's companion, John Finlay, founded the first permanent European settlement in British Columbia, Fort St. John
Fort St. John, British Columbia
The City of Fort St. John is a city in northeastern British Columbia, Canada. A member municipality of the Peace River Regional District, the city covers an area of about 22 km² with 22,000 residents . Located at Mile 47, it is one of the largest cities along the Alaska Highway. Originally...
, located at the junction of the Beatton
Beatton River
The Beatton River is a tributary of the Peace River, flowing generally east, then south through north-eastern British Columbia, Canada. The river rises at Pink Mountain, about 10 km west of the Alaska Highway hamlet of the same name, and flows 240 km generally east, then south, draining into the...
and Peace Rivers.
Simon Fraser was the next to try to find the course of the Columbia. During his expedition of 1805-09, Fraser and his crew, including John Stuart
John Stuart (explorer)
John Stuart was a nineteenth century Scottish-Canadian explorer and fur trader, employed by the North West Company...
, explored much of the British Columbia interior, establishing several forts (Hudson's Hope, Trout Lake Fort, Fort George
Prince George, British Columbia
Prince George, with a population of 71,030 , is the largest city in northern British Columbia, Canada, and is known as "BC's Northern Capital"...
, Fort Fraser, and Fort St. James
Fort St. James, British Columbia
Fort St. James is a district municipality and former fur trading post in north-central British Columbia, Canada. It is located on the south-eastern shore of Stuart Lake in the Omineca Country, at the northern terminus of Highway 27, which connects to Highway 16 at Vanderhoof...
). Fraser's expedition took him down the river
Fraser River
The Fraser River is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Mount Robson in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia at the city of Vancouver. It is the tenth longest river in Canada...
that now bears his name, to the site of present-day Vancouver. Although both Mackenzie and Fraser reached the Pacific, they found the routes they took impassable for trade. It was David Thompson who found the Columbia River and followed it down to its mouth in 1811. He was unable to establish a claim, however, for the American explorers Lewis and Clark had already claimed the territory for the United States of America six years earlier. The American Fur Company
American Fur Company
The American Fur Company was founded by John Jacob Astor in 1808. The company grew to monopolize the fur trade in the United States by 1830, and became one of the largest businesses in the country. The company was one the first great trusts in American business...
of John Jacob Astor
John Jacob Astor
John Jacob Astor , born Johann Jakob Astor, was a German-American business magnate and investor who was the first prominent member of the Astor family and the first multi-millionaire in the United States...
had founded Fort Astoria
Fort Astoria
Fort Astoria was the Pacific Fur Company's primary fur trading post in the Northwest, and was the first American-owned settlement on the Pacific coast. After a short two-year term of US ownership, the British owned and operated it for 33 years. It was the first British port on the Pacific coast...
just months before Thompson arrived, though within a year the local staff at Astoria sold the fort and others in the region to the North West Company, which renamed it Fort George. Though "returned" to US hands as a result of treaty complications at the end of the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
, this meant only there was a parallel US fort adjacent to the NWC one, which was the more prosperous of the two. Following the forced merger of the North West Company and Hudson's Bay Company in 1821, Fort Vancouver
Fort Vancouver
Fort Vancouver was a 19th century fur trading outpost along the Columbia River that served as the headquarters of the Hudson's Bay Company in the company's Columbia District...
was established as the new regional headquarters.
From fur trade districts to colonies (1821-1858)
Although technically a part of British North AmericaBritish North America
British North America is a historical term. It consisted of the colonies and territories of the British Empire in continental North America after the end of the American Revolutionary War and the recognition of American independence in 1783.At the start of the Revolutionary War in 1775 the British...
, British Columbia was largely run by the Hudson's Bay Company
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
after its merger with the North West Company in 1821. The Central Interior
British Columbia Interior
The British Columbia Interior or BC Interior or Interior of British Columbia, usually referred to only as the Interior, is one of the three main regions of the Canadian province of British Columbia, the other two being the Lower Mainland, which comprises the overlapping areas of Greater Vancouver...
of the region was organized into the New Caledonia
New Caledonia (Canada)
New Caledonia was the name given to a district of the Hudson's Bay Company that comprised the territory largely coterminous with the present-day province of British Columbia, Canada. Though not a British colony, New Caledonia was part of the British claim to North America. Its administrative...
District, a name that came to be generally attributed to the mainland as a whole. It was administered from Fort St. James, about 150 km northwest of present-day Prince George
Prince George, British Columbia
Prince George, with a population of 71,030 , is the largest city in northern British Columbia, Canada, and is known as "BC's Northern Capital"...
. The Interior
British Columbia Interior
The British Columbia Interior or BC Interior or Interior of British Columbia, usually referred to only as the Interior, is one of the three main regions of the Canadian province of British Columbia, the other two being the Lower Mainland, which comprises the overlapping areas of Greater Vancouver...
south of the Thompson River
Thompson River
The Thompson River is the largest tributary of the Fraser River, flowing through the south-central portion of British Columbia, Canada. The Thompson River has two main branches called the South Thompson and the North Thompson...
and north of California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
was named by the company the Columbia District
Columbia District
The Columbia District was a fur trading district in the Pacific Northwest region of British North America in the 19th century. It was explored by the North West Company between 1793 and 1811, and established as an operating fur district around 1810...
, and was administered first from Fort Vancouver, and later from Fort Victoria
Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria is the capital city of British Columbia, Canada and is located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of about 78,000 within the metropolitan area of Greater Victoria, which has a population of 360,063, the 15th most populous Canadian...
.
Fort Victoria was established as a trading post in 1843, both as a means to protect HBC interests, as well as to assert British claims to Vancouver Island and the adjacent Gulf Islands
Gulf Islands
The Gulf Islands are the islands in the Strait of Georgia , between Vancouver Island and the mainland of British Columbia, Canada....
. In 1844, the United States Democratic Party asserted that the U.S. had a legitimate claim to the entire Oregon Country
Oregon Country
The Oregon Country was a predominantly American term referring to a disputed ownership region of the Pacific Northwest of North America. The region was occupied by British and French Canadian fur traders from before 1810, and American settlers from the mid-1830s, with its coastal areas north from...
, but President James Polk
James K. Polk
James Knox Polk was the 11th President of the United States . Polk was born in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. He later lived in and represented Tennessee. A Democrat, Polk served as the 17th Speaker of the House of Representatives and the 12th Governor of Tennessee...
was prepared to draw the border along the 49th parallel
49th parallel north
The 49th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 49 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane. It crosses Europe, Asia, the Pacific Ocean, North America, and the Atlantic Ocean....
, the longstanding U.S. proposal. When the British rejected this offer, Polk broke off negotiations, and American expansionists reasserted the claim, coining slogans (most famously "Fifty-Four Forty or Fight!"). With the outbreak of the Mexican-American War diverting attention and resources, Polk was again prepared to compromise. The Oregon boundary dispute
Oregon boundary dispute
The Oregon boundary dispute, or the Oregon Question, arose as a result of competing British and American claims to the Pacific Northwest of North America in the first half of the 19th century. Both the United Kingdom and the United States had territorial and commercial aspirations in the region...
was settled in the 1846 Treaty of Washington
Oregon Treaty
The Oregon Treaty is a treaty between the United Kingdom and the United States that was signed on June 15, 1846, in Washington, D.C. The treaty brought an end to the Oregon boundary dispute by settling competing American and British claims to the Oregon Country, which had been jointly occupied by...
. The terms of the agreement established the border between British North America and the United States at the 49th parallel from the Rocky Mountains
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
to the sea, the original American compromise proposal, with all of Vancouver Island retained as British territory. In 1849, the Crown Colony of Vancouver Island
Colony of Vancouver Island
The Colony of Vancouver Island , was a crown colony of British North America from 1849 to 1866, after which it was united with British Columbia. The united colony joined the Dominion of Canada through Confederation in 1871...
was created; and in 1851, James Douglas
James Douglas (Governor)
Sir James Douglas KCB was a company fur-trader and a British colonial governor on Vancouver Island in northwestern North America, particularly in what is now British Columbia. Douglas worked for the North West Company, and later for the Hudson's Bay Company becoming a high-ranking company officer...
was appointed Governor. Douglas, known as the father of British Columbia, established colonial institutions in Victoria. Meanwhile on the mainland, New Caledonia
New Caledonia (Canada)
New Caledonia was the name given to a district of the Hudson's Bay Company that comprised the territory largely coterminous with the present-day province of British Columbia, Canada. Though not a British colony, New Caledonia was part of the British claim to North America. Its administrative...
continued to be an unorganized region, its 100 or so non-native inhabitants (mostly HBC employees and their families) under the administrative oversight of Douglas, who was also the HBC's regional chief executive.
Colonial British Columbia (1858-1871)
In 1858, goldGold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
was found along the banks of the Thompson River
Thompson River
The Thompson River is the largest tributary of the Fraser River, flowing through the south-central portion of British Columbia, Canada. The Thompson River has two main branches called the South Thompson and the North Thompson...
just east of what is now Lytton, British Columbia
Lytton, British Columbia
Lytton in British Columbia, Canada, sits at the confluence of the Thompson River and Fraser River on the east side of the Fraser. The location has been inhabited by the Nlaka'pamux people for over 10,000 years, and is one of the earliest locations settled by non-natives in the Southern Interior of...
, triggering the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush
Fraser Canyon Gold Rush
The Fraser Canyon Gold Rush, began in 1858 after gold was discovered on the Thompson River in British Columbia at its confluence with the Nicoamen River. This was a few miles upstream from the Thompson's confluence with the Fraser River at present-day Lytton...
. When word got out to San Francisco about gold in British territory, Victoria was transformed overnight into a tent city as prospectors
Prospecting
Prospecting is the physical search for minerals, fossils, precious metals or mineral specimens, and is also known as fossicking.Prospecting is a small-scale form of mineral exploration which is an organised, large scale effort undertaken by mineral resource companies to find commercially viable ore...
, speculators, land agents, and outfitters flooded in from around the world, mostly via San Francisco. The Hudson's Bay Company's Fort Langley
Fort Langley National Historic Site
Fort Langley is a former trading post of the Hudson's Bay Company, now located in the village of Fort Langley, British Columbia. Commonly referred to as "the birthplace of British Columbia", it is designated a National Historic Site of Canada and administered by Parks Canada.-A new fort:After John...
burgeoned economically as the staging point for many of the prospectors heading by boat to the Canyon.
At the time, the region was still not under formal colonial authority. Douglas, fearing challenges to the claim of British sovereignty in the region in the face of an influx of some 20,000 Americans, stationed a gunboat at the mouth of the Fraser in order to obtain license fees from those seeking to head upstream. The British colonial office responded to the new situation by establishing the mainland as a crown colony on August 2, 1858, naming it the Colony of British Columbia
Colony of British Columbia
The Colony of British Columbia was a crown colony in British North America from 1858 until 1866. At its creation, it physically constituted approximately half the present day Canadian province of British Columbia, since it did not include the Colony of Vancouver Island, the vast and still largely...
.
On 19 November 1858, a government for the colony was established with Fort Langley, on the southern reaches of the Fraser, as its provisional capital. New Westminster was chosen as its first official capital, however, for reasons of military security. New Westminster, at a defensible location on the north bank of the Fraser River, possessed, according to Lieutenant-Governor Richard Moody
Richard Moody
Major-General Richard Clement Moody was a Lieutenant-Governor, and later Governor, of the Falkland Islands, and the first Lieutenant-Governor of the Colony of British Columbia. While serving under this post, he selected the site of the new capital, New Westminster...
, "great facilities for communication by water, as well as by future great trunk railways into the interior". Governor Douglas
James Douglas (Governor)
Sir James Douglas KCB was a company fur-trader and a British colonial governor on Vancouver Island in northwestern North America, particularly in what is now British Columbia. Douglas worked for the North West Company, and later for the Hudson's Bay Company becoming a high-ranking company officer...
proclaimed "Queensborough" (as the site was initially called by Moody) the new capital on February 14, 1859. "Queensborough", however, did not appeal to London and it was Queen Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
who proposed New Westminster, after Westminster
City of Westminster
The City of Westminster is a London borough occupying much of the central area of London, England, including most of the West End. It is located to the west of and adjoining the ancient City of London, directly to the east of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and its southern boundary...
, that part of the British capital of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
where the Parliament Buildings were situated. New Westminster became the first city incorporated on the mainland in 1860. Douglas was named joint governor of the three colonies (the Colony of the Queen Charlotte Islands
Colony of the Queen Charlotte Islands
The Colony of the Queen Charlotte Islands was a British colony constituting the archipelago formerly of the same name from 1853 to July 1863, when it was amalgamated into the Colony of British Columbia....
had been in existence since 1853 and was merged with the Mainland Colony under Douglas' regime, in 1863).
A second major gold rush
Cariboo Gold Rush
The Cariboo Gold Rush was a gold rush in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Although the first gold discovery was made in 1859 at Horsefly Creek, followed by more strikes at Keithley Creek and Antler Horns lake in 1860, the actual rush did not begin until 1861, when these discoveries were...
in the Cariboo
Cariboo
The Cariboo is an intermontane region of British Columbia along a plateau stretching from the Fraser Canyon to the Cariboo Mountains. The name is a reference to the woodland caribou that were once abundant in the region...
region of the colony occurred in 1861-64, in the midst of a smaller ones
British Columbia Gold Rushes
The presence of gold in the region that is now British Columbia is mentioned in old legends that, in part, led to its discovery. The Strait of Anian, claimed to have been sailed by Juan de Fuca for whom today's Strait of Juan de Fuca is named, was described as passing through a land "rich in gold,...
, notably in the Omenica
Omineca Gold Rush
The Omineca Gold Rush was a gold rush in British Columbia, Canada in the Omineca region of the Northern Interior of the province. Gold was first discovered there in 1861, but the rush didn't begin until late in 1869 with the discovery at Vital Creek....
, Big Bend
Big Bend Gold Rush
The Big Bend Gold Rush was a gold rush on the upper Columbia River in the Colony of British Columbia in the mid-1860s....
and on the Stikine
Stikine Gold Rush
The Stikine Gold Rush was a minor but important gold rush in the Stikine Country of northwestern British Columbia, Canada. The rush's discoverer was Alexander "Buck" Choquette, who staked a claim at Choquette Bar in 1861, just downstream from the confluence of the Stikine and Anuk Rivers, at...
. The influx of gold miners into B.C.'s economy led to the creation of basic infrastructure
Infrastructure
Infrastructure is basic physical and organizational structures needed for the operation of a society or enterprise, or the services and facilities necessary for an economy to function...
in B.C., most notably, the creation of the Cariboo Wagon Road which linked the Lower Mainland
Lower Mainland
The Lower Mainland is a name commonly applied to the region surrounding and including Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. As of 2007, 2,524,113 people live in the region; sixteen of the province's thirty most populous municipalities are located there.While the term Lower Mainland has been...
to the rich gold fields of Barkerville
Barkerville, British Columbia
Barkerville was the main town of the Cariboo Gold Rush in British Columbia, Canada and is preserved as a historic town. It is located on the north slope of the Cariboo Plateau near the Cariboo Mountains east of Quesnel along BC Highway 26, which follows the route of the original access to...
. However, the enormous costs of the road, and its predecessor the Douglas Road
Douglas Road
The Douglas Road, aka the Lillooet Trail, Harrison Trail or Lakes Route, was a goldrush-era transportation route from the British Columbia Coast to the Interior...
and services such as the Gold Escort, left B.C. in debt by the mid-1860s. In 1866, because of the massive debt leftover from the gold rush, the mainland and Vancouver Island became one colony named British Columbia
United Colonies of Vancouver Island and British Columbia
The Colony of British Columbia is a crown colony that resulted from the amalgamation of the two former colonies, the Colony of Vancouver Island and the mainland Colony of British Columbia...
, with its capital in Victoria.
Annexation debate
In 1867, there were three options open: to continue as a British colony, to be annexed by the United States, or to join with the newly formed Dominion of Canada. Financially, becoming officially part of the United States made sense since British Colombia was economically essentially a satellite of San Francisco. The opening of the American transcontinental railroad in 1869 made it possible to travel by ship from Victoria to San Francisco, then by train to Ottawa or Washington in just 24 days. With the gold now gone, most of the American miners had left, and the economic future did not look promising unless B.C. could join the very rapidly growing, rich economies of the Pacific states. There was vocal sentiment in favor of annexation by the merchant community, but there was also a large element from Ontario and the Maritimes that wanted to join Canada, despite the vast distances involved.When American Secretary of State William H. Seward
William H. Seward
William Henry Seward, Sr. was the 12th Governor of New York, United States Senator and the United States Secretary of State under Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson...
negotiated the Alaska Purchase
Alaska purchase
The Alaska Purchase was the acquisition of the Alaska territory by the United States from Russia in 1867 by a treaty ratified by the Senate. The purchase, made at the initiative of United States Secretary of State William H. Seward, gained of new United States territory...
in 1867, it was part of his plan to incorporate the entire northwest Pacific Coast, chiefly for the long-term commercial advantages to the United States in terms of Pacific trade. Seward believed that the people in British Columbia wanted annexation and that Britain would accept this in exchange for the "Alabama claims
Alabama Claims
The Alabama Claims were a series of claims for damages by the United States government against the government of Great Britain for the assistance given to the Confederate cause during the American Civil War. After international arbitration endorsed the American position in 1872, Britain settled...
". In the event, Seward dropped the idea of an exchange and accepted an arbitration plan that settled the Alabama claims for cash. Until the Alaska Purchase and the new Dominion status (which were almost simultaneous), the British had been indifferent to the fate of British Columbia. London now paid attention, and realized the value of B.C. as a base for its imperial trade opportunities in the Pacific and the need of the Royal Navy for a station in the region. Governor Anthony Musgrave
Anthony Musgrave
Sir Anthony Musgrave KCMG was a colonial administrator and governor. He was born at St John’s, Antigua, the third of 11 children of Anthony Musgrave and Mary Harris Sheriff...
proposed an attractive plan for joining Canada, with the Dominion paying off the B.C. debt and building a new Canadian transcontinental railway that would eliminate the reliance on the American transcontinental. Meanwhile, the United States was so focused on issues of Reconstruction, that few Americans picked up on Seward's grand dream to expand Manifest Destiny to the Pacific.
Entry into Canada (1871-1900)
Responsible government
Responsible government is a conception of a system of government that embodies the principle of parliamentary accountability which is the foundation of the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy...
and representative government, led to enormous domestic pressure for British Columbia to join the Canadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation was the process by which the federal Dominion of Canada was formed on July 1, 1867. On that day, three British colonies were formed into four Canadian provinces...
, which had been proclaimed in 1867. The Confederation League, spearheaded by three future premiers of the province — Amor De Cosmos
Amor De Cosmos
Amor De Cosmos was a Canadian journalist, publisher and politician. He served as the second Premier of British Columbia.-Early life:...
, Robert Beaven
Robert Beaven
Robert Beaven , son of James Beaven, was a British Columbia politician and businessman. Beaven moved to British Columbia from Toronto, where he had been educated at Upper Canada College, because of the gold rush. He entered business in Victoria, which was then the capital of the Colony of Vancouver...
, and John Robson
John Robson
John Robson was a Canadian journalist and politician, who served as the ninth Premier of the Province of British Columbia.-Journalist and activist:...
— took a leading role in pushing the colony towards this goal. And so it was on July 20, 1871, that British Columbia became the sixth province to join Canada. In return for entering Confederation, Canada absorbed B.C.'s massive debt, and promised to build a railway from Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
to the Pacific coast within 10 years. In fulfillment of this promise, the last spike
Last Spike (Canadian Pacific Railway)
The Last Spike of the Canadian Pacific Railway was the final spike driven into the Canadian Pacific Railway at Craigellachie, British Columbia at 9:22 am on November 7, 1885...
of the Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
was driven in Craigellachie
Craigellachie, British Columbia
Craigellachie is a locality in British Columbia, located several kilometres to the west of the Eagle Pass summit between Sicamous and Revelstoke...
in 1885.
The mining frontier in B.C. led to the creation of many mines and smelters, mostly through American investment. One of the world's largest smelters still exists today in Trail
Trail, British Columbia
Trail is a city in the West Kootenay region of the Interior of British Columbia, Canada.-Geography:Trail has an area of . The city is located on both banks of the Columbia River, approximately 10 km north of the United States border. This section of the Columbia River valley is located between the...
. The capital and work to be found in B.C. during the turn of 19th century to the 20th century led to the creation of several new towns in B.C. such as Nelson
Nelson, British Columbia
Nelson is a city located in the Selkirk Mountains on the extreme West Arm of Kootenay Lake in the Southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada. Known as "The Queen City", and acknowledged for its impressive collection of restored heritage buildings from its glory days in a regional silver rush,...
, Nakusp
Nakusp, British Columbia
The Village of Nakusp is a small community located on the shores of Upper Arrow Lake, a portion of the Columbia River, in the West Kootenay region of British Columbia...
, Slocan
Slocan, British Columbia
The Village of Slocan, commonly known as Slocan City, is a village in the Slocan Valley of the West Kootenay region of the southeastern Interior of British Columbia, Canada...
, Kimberley
Kimberley, British Columbia
Kimberley is a small city in southeast British Columbia, Canada along Highway 95A between the Purcell and Rocky Mountains. Kimberley was named in 1896 after the Kimberley mine in South Africa. From 1917 to 2001, it was the home to the world's largest lead-zinc mine, the Sullivan Mine...
, Castlegar
Castlegar, British Columbia
Castlegar is the second largest city in the West Kootenay region of British Columbia, Canada. It is located within the Selkirk Mountains at the confluence of the Kootenay and Columbia Rivers. It is a regional trade and transportation centre, with a local economy fueled by forestry, mining and tourism...
, Rossland
Rossland, British Columbia
Rossland is a city in the West Kootenay region of British Columbia.Tucked high in the Monashee Mountains, Rossland is at an elevation of 1023 metres . Population today is approximately 3500; a number that fluctuates from season to season. The population is at its peak during the winter...
, and Salmo
Salmo, British Columbia
Salmo is a village in the West Kootenay region of southeastern British Columbia, Canada. It is located in the Salmo River Valley, surrounded by the Selkirk Mountain range....
. A large coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
empire run by Robert Dunsmuir
Robert Dunsmuir
Robert Dunsmuir was a Scottish-Canadian coal miner, railway developer, industrialist and politician. -Origins in Scotland:...
, and his son and later premier, James Dunsmuir
James Dunsmuir
James Dunsmuir was a British Columbian industrialist and politician. Son of Robert Dunsmuir, he was heir to his family's coal fortune. The Dunsmuir family dominated the province's economy in the late nineteenth century and were a leading force in opposing organized labour...
also developed on Vancouver Island during this era.
As the economy on the mainland continued to improve as a result of improved transportation and increased settlement, other resource-based economic activity began to flourish. Throughout the latter half of the nineteenth century, fishing
Fishery
Generally, a fishery is an entity engaged in raising or harvesting fish which is determined by some authority to be a fishery. According to the FAO, a fishery is typically defined in terms of the "people involved, species or type of fish, area of water or seabed, method of fishing, class of boats,...
, forestry
Logging
Logging is the cutting, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks.In forestry, the term logging is sometimes used in a narrow sense concerning the logistics of moving wood from the stump to somewhere outside the forest, usually a sawmill or a lumber yard...
, and farming
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
(including the planting of extensive orchard
Orchard
An orchard is an intentional planting of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit or nut-producing trees which are grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of large gardens, where they serve an aesthetic as well as a productive...
s in the Okanagan
Okanagan
The Okanagan , also known as the Okanagan Valley and sometimes as Okanagan Country is a region located in the Canadian province of British Columbia defined by the basin of Okanagan Lake and the Canadian portion of the Okanagan River. As of 2009, the region's population is approximately 350,927. The...
region) became the "three F's" on which the new province built its economy — a situation that persisted well into the late twentieth century.
With the booming economy came the expansion of the original fur trading posts into thriving communities (such as Victoria, Nanaimo, and Kamloops). It also led to the establishment of new communities, such as Yale, New Westminster, and — most notably, though a latecomer — Vancouver. The product of the consolidation of the burgeoning mill towns of Granville and Hastings Mill located near the mouth of the Fraser on Burrard Inlet
Burrard Inlet
Burrard Inlet is a relatively shallow-sided coastal fjord in southwestern British Columbia, Canada. Formed during the last Ice Age, it separates the City of Vancouver and the rest of the low-lying Burrard Peninsula from the slopes of the North Shore Mountains, home to the communities of West...
in the later 1860s, Vancouver was incorporated in 1886 following its selection as the railhead for the Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
. Despite a devastating fire which all but wiped out the city three months later, Vancouver quickly became the largest city in the province, its ports conveying both the resource wealth of the province as well as that transported from the prairie provinces by rail, to markets overseas. Vancouver's status as the principal city in the province has endured, augmented by growth in the surrounding municipalities of Richmond
Richmond, British Columbia
Richmond is a coastal city, incorporated in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Part of Metro Vancouver, its neighbouring communities are Vancouver and Burnaby to the north, New Westminster to the east, and Delta to the south, while the Strait of Georgia forms its western border...
, Burnaby, Surrey
Surrey, British Columbia
Surrey is a city in the province of British Columbia, Canada. It is a member municipality of Metro Vancouver, the governing body of the Greater Vancouver Regional District...
, Delta
Delta, British Columbia
Delta is a district municipality in British Columbia, and forms part of Metro Vancouver. Located south of Richmond, it is bordered by the Fraser River to the north, the United States to the south and the city of Surrey to the east...
, Coquitlam, and New Westminster. Today, Metro Vancouver is the third most populous metropolitan area in Canada, behind Toronto and Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
.
20th century
Since the days of the fur trade, British Columbia's economy has been based on natural resourcesNatural Resources
Natural Resources is a soul album released by Motown girl group Martha Reeves and the Vandellas in 1970 on the Gordy label. The album is significant for the Vietnam War ballad "I Should Be Proud" and the slow jam, "Love Guess Who"...
, particularly fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
, logging
Logging
Logging is the cutting, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks.In forestry, the term logging is sometimes used in a narrow sense concerning the logistics of moving wood from the stump to somewhere outside the forest, usually a sawmill or a lumber yard...
and mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
. From the canneries to the mills and mines, B.C.'s resource sector was increasingly the domain of large commercial interests.
With industrialization and economic growth, workers arrived to join in the seemingly boundless prosperity. Increasingly, these workers came from Asia as well as Europe. The mix of cultures and diversity was a source of strength, but also, often, of conflict. The early part of the 20th century was a time of great change and foment between immigrants and the First Nations, all of whom found their lives changing rapidly.
Rise of the labour movement
The dominance of the economy by big business was accompanied by an often militant labour movementTrades and Labour Congress of Canada
The Trades and Labour Congress of Canada was a Canada-wide central federation of trade unions from 1883 to 1956. It was founded at the initiative of the Toronto Trades and Labour Council and the Knights of Labor...
. The first major sympathy strike
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
was in 1903 when railway employees struck against the CPR for union recognition. Labour leader Frank Rogers was killed while picketing at the docks by CPR police during that strike, becoming the British Columbia movement's first martyr. Canada's first general strike occurred following the death of another labour leader, Ginger Goodwin
Albert Goodwin
Albert "Ginger" Goodwin inspired the first General Strike in Canada on August 2, 1918 in Vancouver, British Columbia. This strike preceded the Winnipeg General Strike of 1919, an important moment in Canadian labour history....
, in 1918, at the Cumberland
Cumberland, British Columbia
Cumberland is a town in the Comox Valley on Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada.-History:The village was originally named Union, British Columbia after the Union Coal Company, which was in turn named in honour of the 1871 union of British Columbia with Canada. The town was renamed after...
coal mines on Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island is a large island in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of several North American locations named after George Vancouver, the British Royal Navy officer who explored the Pacific Northwest coast of North America between 1791 and 1794...
. A lull in industrial tensions through the later 1920s came to an abrupt end with the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. Most of the 1930s strikes were led by Communist Party
Communist Party of Canada
The Communist Party of Canada is a communist political party in Canada. Although is it currently a minor or small political party without representation in the Federal Parliament or in provincial legislatures, historically the Party has elected representatives in Federal Parliament, Ontario...
organizers. That strike wave peaked in 1935 when unemployed men flooded the city to protest conditions in the relief camps run by the military in remote areas throughout the province. After two tense months of daily and disruptive protesting, the relief camp strikers
Relief Camp Workers' Union
The Relief Camp Workers' Union was the union into which the inmates of the Canadian government relief camps were organized in the early 1930s. It was affiliated with the Workers' Unity League, the trade union umbrella of the Communist Party of Canada...
decided to take their grievances to the federal government and embarked on the On-to-Ottawa Trek
On-to-Ottawa Trek
The On-to-Ottawa Trek was a long journey where thousands of people had unemployed men protesting the dismal conditions in federal relief camps scattered in remote areas across Western Canada. The men lived and worked in these camps at a rate of twenty cents per day before walking out on strike in...
, but their commandeered train was met by a gatling gun at Hatzic, just east of Mission City
Mission, British Columbia
Mission, the core of which was formerly known as Mission City, is a district municipality in the province of British Columbia, Canada. It is situated on the north bank of the Fraser River overlooking the City of Abbotsford and with that city is part of the Central Fraser Valley. Mission is the...
, and the strikers arrested and interned in work camps for the duration of the Depression.
Race and ethnic relations
Overseas Chinese
Overseas Chinese are people of Chinese birth or descent who live outside the Greater China Area . People of partial Chinese ancestry living outside the Greater China Area may also consider themselves Overseas Chinese....
, which reached as much as $500 per person to enter Canada by 1904. By 1923 the government passed the Chinese Immigration Act
Chinese Immigration Act, 1923
The Chinese Immigration Act, 1923, known in the Chinese Canadian community as the Chinese Exclusion Act, was an act passed by the Parliament of Canada, banning most forms of Chinese immigration to Canada...
, which prohibited all Chinese immigration until 1947. Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
s had to face an amended Immigration Act in 1908 that required Sikhs to have $200 on arrival in Canada, and immigration would be allowed only if the passenger had arrived by continuous journey from India, which was impossible. Perhaps the most famous incident of anti-Sikh racism in B.C. was in 1914 when the Komagata Maru
Komagata Maru
The Komagata Maru incident involved a Japanese steamship, the Komagata Maru, that sailed from Hong Kong to Shanghai, China; Yokohama, Japan; and then to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, in 1914, carrying 376 passengers from Punjab, India. The 356 of passengers were not allowed to land in...
arrived in Vancouver harbour with 376 Sikhs aboard, who were all denied entry. The Komagata Maru spent two months in harbour while the Khalsa Society went through the courts to appeal their case. The Khalsa Society also kept the passengers on the Komagata Maru alive during those two months. When the case was lost, , a Canadian Navy cruiser, towed the Komagata Maru out to sea while thousands of white people cheered from the seawall of Stanley Park
Stanley Park
Stanley Park is a 404.9 hectare urban park bordering downtown Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It was opened in 1888 by David Oppenheimer in the name of Lord Stanley of Preston, the Governor-General of Canada....
.
During the Second World War, security concerns following the bombing of Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
and Canada's entry into the war versus Japan led to controversial measures. The local Japanese-Canadian population was openly discriminated against, being put in internment camps. The Pacific Coast Militia Rangers were formed in 1942 in order to provide an armed presence on the coast in addition to the pre-war fortress garrisons, which were expanded after hostilities. Japanese military attacks against BC amounted to a small number of parachute bombs released from great distance away and by the middle of 1942 the threat of direct attack diminished following defeat at the Battle of Midway
Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway is widely regarded as the most important naval battle of the Pacific Campaign of World War II. Between 4 and 7 June 1942, approximately one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea and six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States Navy decisively defeated...
by US forces. A Pacific Command
Pacific Command (Canadian Army)
Pacific Command was a formation of the Canadian Army created during the Second World War to strengthen and administer home defence facilities on Canada's Pacific Coast against possible Japanese attack. A second major function was to train reinforcements to be sent to the Canadian divisions in...
was created in 1942 also, and was disbanded in 1945. Militia units from southern BC provided cadres for many regiments that eventually fought in Europe, and the Rocky Mountain Rangers sent a battalion to fight the Japanese in the Battle of the Aleutian Islands
Battle of the Aleutian Islands
The Aleutian Islands Campaign was a struggle over the Aleutian Islands, part of Alaska, in the Pacific campaign of World War II starting on 3 June 1942. A small Japanese force occupied the islands of Attu and Kiska, but the remoteness of the islands and the difficulties of weather and terrain meant...
in 1943. Thousands more British Columbians volunteered for the Royal Canadian Navy
Royal Canadian Navy
The history of the Royal Canadian Navy goes back to 1910, when the naval force was created as the Naval Service of Canada and renamed a year later by King George V. The Royal Canadian Navy is one of the three environmental commands of the Canadian Forces...
and Royal Canadian Air Force
Royal Canadian Air Force
The history of the Royal Canadian Air Force begins in 1920, when the air force was created as the Canadian Air Force . In 1924 the CAF was renamed the Royal Canadian Air Force and granted royal sanction by King George V. The RCAF existed as an independent service until 1968...
. Two soldiers, Ernest Alvia Smith and John Keefer Mahony
John Keefer Mahony
John Keefer Mahony VC was a Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.-Details:...
, were awarded the Victoria Cross for actions with BC-based regiments in Italy.
Prohibition
AlcoholAlcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
was prohibited in British Columbia for about four years, from 1917 to 1921. A referendum in 1916 asked BC citizens whether they approved of making alcohol illegal (the other question was whether women had the right to vote). The contested results rejecting prohibition
Prohibition
Prohibition of alcohol, often referred to simply as prohibition, is the practice of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation, import, export, sale, and consumption of alcohol and alcoholic beverages. The term can also apply to the periods in the histories of the countries during which the...
led to a major political scandal that subsequently saw the referendum being overturned and alcohol prohibited. However, by 1921 the failures were so apparent—a thriving black market, arbitrary (often class- and race-based) enforcement and punishment, rampant corruption—that alcohol was established as a commodity subject to government regulation and taxation as it is today. U.S. prohibition in the 1920s and early 1930s led to a thriving business of producing and smuggling alcohol to quench the thirst of BC's southern neighbors. Many of Vancouver's richest families built or consolidated their fortunes in the rum-running business. Some compare today's robust cannabis
Cannabis
Cannabis is a genus of flowering plants that includes three putative species, Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica, and Cannabis ruderalis. These three taxa are indigenous to Central Asia, and South Asia. Cannabis has long been used for fibre , for seed and seed oils, for medicinal purposes, and as a...
-growing industry in BC (the number-one cash crop) to this earlier era.
Columbia River Treaty
In 1961, British Columbia ratified the Columbia River TreatyColumbia River Treaty
The Columbia River Treaty is an agreement between Canada and the United States of America on the development and operation of dams in the upper Columbia River basin for power and flood control benefits in both countries. For more information about the Columbia River Treaty, visit Columbia Basin...
which required the building of three large dams in British Columbia in return for financial compensation related to U.S. hydroelectric power production enabled by the dams. The dams flooded large areas within British Columbia, but would prove to a very stable and renewable source of power for the province.
First Nations
The status of the First NationsFirst Nations
First Nations is a term that collectively refers to various Aboriginal peoples in Canada who are neither Inuit nor Métis. There are currently over 630 recognised First Nations governments or bands spread across Canada, roughly half of which are in the provinces of Ontario and British Columbia. The...
(aboriginal) people of British Columbia is a long-standing problem that has become a major issue in recent years. First Nations were confined to tiny reserves that no longer provide an economic base. They were provided with inadequate education and discriminated against in numerous ways. In many areas they were excluded from restaurants and other establishments. Native people only gained the right to vote in 1960. They were prohibited from possessing alcohol, which rather than preventing problems with this drug, exacerbated them by fostering unhealthy patterns of consumption such as binge drinking. The lives of status Indians are still governed by the Indian Act
Indian Act
The Indian Act , R.S., 1951, c. I-5, is a Canadian statute that concerns registered Indians, their bands, and the system of Indian reserves...
. With the exception of what are known as the Douglas Treaties
Douglas Treaties
The Douglas Treaties , Vancouver Island Treaties or the Fort Victoria Treaties were a series of treaties signed between certain First Nations on Vancouver Island and the Colony of Vancouver Island.-Background:...
, negotiated by Sir James Douglas with the native people of the Victoria
Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria is the capital city of British Columbia, Canada and is located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of about 78,000 within the metropolitan area of Greater Victoria, which has a population of 360,063, the 15th most populous Canadian...
area, no treaties were signed in British Columbia. Many native people wished to negotiate treaties, but the province refused until 1990. Another major development was the 1997 decision of the Supreme Court of Canada in the Delgamuukw v. British Columbia
Delgamuukw v. British Columbia
Delgamuukw v. British Columbia [1997] 3 S.C.R. 1010, also known as Delgamuukw vs. the Queen is a famous leading decision of the Supreme Court of Canada where the Court made its most definitive statement on the nature of aboriginal title in Canada....
case that aboriginal title still exists in British Columbia.
60% of First Nations in British Columbia are aligned with the First Nations Summit. This bring a total of 58 First Nations, but only 20 are said to be in active-negotiations. Three Final Agreements have been settled, with one being rejected by Lheidli T’enneh in 2007. The other two, the Maa-nulth treaty group, a 5 Nuu-chah-nulth member group, and the Tsawwassen First Nation
Tsawwassen First Nation
The Tsawwassen First Nation is a First Nations government whose only Indian reserve is located in the Greater Vancouver area of the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, Canada, adjacent to the South Arm of the Fraser River and the Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal and just north of the international...
. Although these treaties have yet to be ratified by Parliament in Ottawa and Legislature in Victoria, neighboring First Nations are seeking to block these treaties in the courts. A group of Vancouver Island and some mainland First Nations, the WSANEC, Lekwungen, and Semiahmoo
Semiahmoo
Semiahmoo may refer to:*Semiahmoo Bay, south-eastern section of Boundary Bay, bisected by the US-Canada border near White Rock, British ColumbiaIn Canada:*Semiahmoo people, a Coast Salish people*Semiahmoo First Nation, government of the Semiahmoo people...
, are seeking to block to Tsawwassen First Nation treaty, claiming infringement on their rights and land titles. On the westcoast of Vancouver Island, the Ditidaht First Nation is doing the same against the Maa-nulth treaty group. The only treaty, the Nisga'a Treaty
Nisga'a Final Agreement
The Nisga'a Final Agreement, also known as the Nisga'a Treaty, is a treaty settled between the , the government of British Columbia, and the Government of Canada. As part of the settlement in the Nass River valley nearly 2,000 square kilometres of land was officially recognized as , and a 300,000...
(1998) signed in recent years was negotiated outside of the current treaty process
British Columbia Treaty Process
The British Columbia Treaty Process is a land claims negotiation process started in 1993 to resolve outstanding issues - including claims to un-extinguished aboriginal rights - with British Columbia's First Nations....
. There is considerable disagreement about treaty negotiations. Many non-indigenous are vehemently opposed to it. For indigenous, there is mounting criticism of extinguishment of Aboriginal title
Aboriginal title
Aboriginal title is a common law doctrine that the land rights of indigenous peoples to customary tenure persist after the assumption of sovereignty under settler colonialism...
, continued assimilation
Cultural assimilation
Cultural assimilation is a socio-political response to demographic multi-ethnicity that supports or promotes the assimilation of ethnic minorities into the dominant culture. The term assimilation is often used with regard to immigrants and various ethnic groups who have settled in a new land. New...
strategies by attempting to change the indigenous peoples from nations to municipal style government. Therefore, a substantial number of First Nations governments consider the current treaty process inadequate and have refused to participate.
A November 2007 court ruling for the Xeni Gwet'in First Nation
Xeni Gwet'in First Nation
The Xeni Gwet'in First Nation is a First Nations government located in the southwestern Chilcotin District in the western Central Interior region of the Canadian province of British Columbia...
has called future participation in the process into question. The judge ruled that the Xeni Gwet'in
Xeni Gwet'in
The Xeni Gwet'in, also known as the Stone Chilcotin, are a First Nations people whose traditional territory is located in the southern Chilcotin District of the Canadian province of British Columbia, on the inland flank of the Coast Mountains west of the Fraser River...
could demonstrate aboriginal title
Aboriginal title
Aboriginal title is a common law doctrine that the land rights of indigenous peoples to customary tenure persist after the assumption of sovereignty under settler colonialism...
to half of the Nemaia Valley, and that the province had no power over these lands. Under the BC treaty process, negotiating nations have received as little as 5% of their claimed land recognized. Grand Chief Stewart Phillip
Stewart Phillip
Stewart Phillip is an Okanagan Aboriginal leader who has served as President of the Union of BC Indian Chiefs. Being a chief of the Penticton in British Columbia, he has advocated for Aboriginal rights for the First Nations in that province and particularly in the Okanagan region.In 2002, Phillip...
, president of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, has called the court victory a "nail in the coffin" of the B.C. treaty process.
Indigenous peoples
- Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest CoastIndigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest CoastThe Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of the Pacific Northwest Coast, their descendants, and many ethnic groups who identify with those historical peoples. They are now situated within the Canadian Province of British Columbia and the U.S...
- DunnezaDunnezaThe Dane-zaa are a First Nation of the large Athapaskan language group; their traditional territory is around the Peace River of the provinces of Alberta and British Columbia, Canada...
- DakelhDakelhThe Dakelh or Carrier are the indigenous people of a large portion of the Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada.Most Carrier call themselves Dakelh, meaning "people who go around by boat"...
- BabineBabineIn its broader sense, Babine refers to the Athabascan Indians who speak the Babine dialect of the Babine-Witsuwit'en language in the vicinity of the Babine River, Babine Lake, Trembleur Lake, and Takla Lake in the central interior of British Columbia, Canada....
- Wet'suwet'enWet'suwet'enWet'suwet'en are a First Nations people who live on the Bulkley River and around Broman Lake and Francois Lake in the northwestern Central Interior of British Columbia...
- Babine
- OkanaganOkanagan peopleThe Okanagan people, also spelled Okanogan, are a First Nations and Native American people whose traditional territory spans the U.S.-Canada boundary in Washington state and British Columbia...
- Haida
- Sto:loStó:loThe Sto:lo , alternately written as Stó:lō, Stó:lô or Stó:lõ and historically as Staulo or Stahlo, and historically known and commonly referred to in ethnographic literature as the Fraser River Indians or Lower Fraser Salish, are a group of First Nations peoples inhabiting the Fraser Valley of...
- KaskaKaskaThe Kaska or Kaska Dena are a First Nations people living mainly in northern British Columbia and the southeastern Yukon in Canada. The Kaska language originally spoken by the Kaska is an Athabaskan language....
- Ktunaxa
- Kwakwaka'wakwKwakwaka'wakwThe Kwakwaka'wakw are an Indigenous group of First Nations peoples, numbering about 5,500, who live in British Columbia on northern Vancouver Island and the adjoining mainland and islands.Kwakwaka'wakw translates as "Those who speak Kwak'wala", describing the collective nations within the area that...
- GitxsanGitxsanGitxsan are an indigenous people whose home territory comprises most of the area known as the Skeena Country in English...
- Musqueam
- St'at'imcSt'at'imcThe St'át'imc are an Interior Salish people located in the southern Coast Mountains and Fraser Canyon region of the Interior of the Canadian province of British Columbia.St'át'imc culture displayed many features typical of Northwest Coast peoples: the...
- In-SHUCK-ch
- Lil'wat
- Nisga'aNisga'aThe Nisga’a , often formerly spelled Nishga and spelled in the Nisga’a language as Nisga’a, are an Indigenous nation or First Nation in Canada. They live in the Nass River valley of northwestern British Columbia. Their name comes from a combination of two Nisga’a words: Nisk’-"top lip" and...
- Nuu-chah-nulth
- NuxálkNuxalkNuxálk are an indigenous people native to Bella Coola, British Columbia in Canada. The term can refer to:* Nuxálk language, a moribund Salishan language.* Nuxalk Nation, the name of the Nuxálk group in the First Nations....
- SekaniSekaniSekani is the name of an Athabaskan First Nations people in the Northern Interior of British Columbia. Their territory includes the Finlay and Parsnip River drainages of the Rocky Mountain Trench. The neighbors of the Sekani are the Babine to the west, Dakelh to the south, Dunneza to the east, and...
- Wuikinuxv
- SecwepemcSecwepemcThe Secwepemc , known in English as the Shuswap people, are a First Nations people residing in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Their traditional territory ranges from the eastern Chilcotin Plateau and the Cariboo Plateau southeast through the Thompson Country to Kamloops and the Shuswap...
- SinixtSinixtThe Sinixt are a First Nations People...
- Sḵwxwú7mesh
- TagishTagishThe Tagish or Tagish Khwáan are a group of Athabaskan First Nation people that lived around Tagish Lake and Marsh Lake, in the Yukon Territory of Canada. Tagish people intermarried heavily with Tlingit people from the coast and the Tagish language is almost extinct...
- TahltanTahltanTahltan refers to a Northern Athabaskan people who live in northern British Columbia around Telegraph Creek, Dease Lake, and Iskut.-Social Organization:...
- HaislaHaislaThe Haisla are an indigenous people living at Kitamaat in the North Coast region of the Canadian province of British Columbia. Their indigenous Haisla language is named after them...
- Nicola
- Tsilhqot'inTsilhqot'inThe Tsilhqot'in are a Northern Athabaskan First Nations people that live in British Columbia, Canada...
- Nlaka'pamuxNlaka'pamuxThe Nlaka'pamux , commonly called "the Thompson", and also Thompson River Salish, Thompson Salish, Thompson River Indians or Thompson River people) are an indigenous First Nations/Native American people of the Interior Salish language group in southern British Columbia...
- Tlingit
- Tsetsaut
- TsimshianTsimshianThe Tsimshian are an indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest Coast. Tsimshian translates to Inside the Skeena River. Their communities are in British Columbia and Alaska, around Terrace and Prince Rupert and the southernmost corner of Alaska on Annette Island. There are approximately 10,000...
- HeiltsukHeiltsukThe Heiltsuk are an Indigenous First Nations of the Central Coast region of the Canadian province of British Columbia, centred on the island communities of Bella Bella and Klemtu. The government of the Heiltsuk people is the Heiltsuk Nation...
- SaulteauxSaulteauxThe Saulteaux are a First Nation in Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia, Canada.-Ethnic classification:The Saulteaux are a branch of the Ojibwe nations. They are sometimes also called Anihšināpē . Saulteaux is a French term meaning "people of the rapids," referring to...
European empires
- Former colonies and territories in CanadaFormer colonies and territories in CanadaFormer colonies, territories, boundaries, and claims in Canada prior to the current classification of provinces and territories. In North America, ethnographers commonly classify Aboriginals into ten geographical regions with shared cultural traits and by related linguistic dialects...
- Spanish EmpireSpanish EmpireThe Spanish Empire comprised territories and colonies administered directly by Spain in Europe, in America, Africa, Asia and Oceania. It originated during the Age of Exploration and was therefore one of the first global empires. At the time of Habsburgs, Spain reached the peak of its world power....
- Russian EmpireRussian EmpireThe Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
- British EmpireBritish EmpireThe British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
Important figures
By nationality, in chronological order of influence to the region:- NativesAboriginal peoples in CanadaAboriginal peoples in Canada comprise the First Nations, Inuit and Métis. The descriptors "Indian" and "Eskimo" have fallen into disuse in Canada and are commonly considered pejorative....
:- MaquinnaMaquinnaMaquinna was the chief of the Nuu-chah-nulth people of Nootka Sound, during the heyday of the maritime fur trade in the 1780s and 1790s on the Pacific Northwest Coast...
, Nuu-chah-nulth]chiefTribal chiefA tribal chief is the leader of a tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies with social stratification under a single leader emerged in the Neolithic period out of earlier tribal structures with little stratification, and they remained prevalent throughout the Iron Age.In the case of ... - Chief NicolaNicola (chief)Nicola , also Nkwala or N'kwala, was an important First Nations political figure in the fur trade era of the British Columbia Interior as well as into the colonial period...
, leader of the eponymous Nicola people and Grand Chief of the Okanagan - Klatassine (Klatsassan), Tsilhqot'inTsilhqot'inThe Tsilhqot'in are a Northern Athabaskan First Nations people that live in British Columbia, Canada...
chiefTribal chiefA tribal chief is the leader of a tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies with social stratification under a single leader emerged in the Neolithic period out of earlier tribal structures with little stratification, and they remained prevalent throughout the Iron Age.In the case of ... - Joe CapilanoJoe CapilanoJoe Capilano , was a leader of the Sḵwxwú7mesh , who called him Sa7plek . He fought for the recognition of Native rights and lifestyle.Capilano spent his youth fishing and hunting...
(Khatsahlano), Skwxwu7mesh chiefTribal chiefA tribal chief is the leader of a tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies with social stratification under a single leader emerged in the Neolithic period out of earlier tribal structures with little stratification, and they remained prevalent throughout the Iron Age.In the case of ... - Chief Dan GeorgeDan GeorgeChief Dan George, OC was a chief of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation, a Coast Salish band located on Burrard Inlet in North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He was also an author, poet, and an Academy Award-nominated actor....
, Tsleil-waututhTsleil-Waututh First NationThe Tsleil-Waututh First Nation, also known as the Burrard Indian Band or Burrard Band, is a First Nations government in the Canadian Province of British Columbia...
(Burrard) chiefTribal chiefA tribal chief is the leader of a tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies with social stratification under a single leader emerged in the Neolithic period out of earlier tribal structures with little stratification, and they remained prevalent throughout the Iron Age.In the case of ...
and actor
- Maquinna
- SpaniardsSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
:- Vasco Núñez de BalboaVasco Núñez de BalboaVasco Núñez de Balboa was a Spanish explorer, governor, and conquistador. He is best known for having crossed the Isthmus of Panama to the Pacific Ocean in 1513, becoming the first European to lead an expedition to have seen or reached the Pacific from the New World.He traveled to the New World in...
(1475–1519), Spanish explorer and conquistadorConquistadorConquistadors were Spanish soldiers, explorers, and adventurers who brought much of the Americas under the control of Spain in the 15th to 16th centuries, following Europe's discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus in 1492...
from Jerez de los CaballerosJerez de los CaballerosJerez de los Caballeros is a town of south-western Spain, in the province of Badajoz. It is situated on two heights overlooking the River Ardila, a tributary of the Guadiana, 12 miles east of the Portuguese frontier. The old town is surrounded by a Moorish wall with six gates. The newer portion is...
, claimed possession of the Pacific Ocean and all adjoining lands in the name of the Spanish sovereigns in 1513. - Juan José Pérez HernándezJuan José Pérez HernándezJuan José Pérez Hernández , often simply Juan Pérez, was an 18th century Spanish explorer. He was the first European to sight, examine, name, and record the islands near present-day British Columbia, Canada...
(1725–1775), Majorcan born Spanish explorer, first European to exploreExplorationExploration is the act of searching or traveling around a terrain for the purpose of discovery of resources or information. Exploration occurs in all non-sessile animal species, including humans...
the region in 1774. - Bruno de HecetaBruno de HecetaBruno de Heceta y Dudagoitia was a Spanish Basque explorer of the Pacific Northwest. Born in Bilbao of an old Basque family, he was sent by the Viceroy of New Spain, Antonio María Bucareli y Ursúa, to explore the area north of Alta California in response to information that there were colonial...
(1744–1807), BasqueBasque Country (autonomous community)The Basque Country is an autonomous community of northern Spain. It includes the Basque provinces of Álava, Biscay and Gipuzkoa, also called Historical Territories....
born Spanish explorer, explored the region in 1775. - Juan Francisco de la Bodega y QuadraJuan Francisco de la Bodega y QuadraJuan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra was a Spanish naval officer born in Lima, Peru. Assigned to the Pacific coast Spanish Naval Department base at San Blas, in the Viceroyalty of New Spain , this navigator explored the Northwest Coast of North America as far north as present day Alaska.Juan...
(1743–1794), LimaLimaLima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín rivers, in the central part of the country, on a desert coast overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Together with the seaport of Callao, it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima...
n born Spanish explorer, explored the region in an expedition in 1775 along with Bruno de HecetaBruno de HecetaBruno de Heceta y Dudagoitia was a Spanish Basque explorer of the Pacific Northwest. Born in Bilbao of an old Basque family, he was sent by the Viceroy of New Spain, Antonio María Bucareli y Ursúa, to explore the area north of Alta California in response to information that there were colonial...
. - Esteban José Martínez, SevillanSevilleSeville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
born Spanish explorer who founded the Spanish fort in Nootka SoundNootka SoundNootka Sound is a complex inlet or sound of the Pacific Ocean on the rugged west coast of Vancouver Island, in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Historically also known as King George's Sound, as a strait it separates Vancouver Island and Nootka Island.-History:The inlet is part of the...
in 1789. It can be considered the first formal colonyColonyIn politics and history, a colony is a territory under the immediate political control of a state. For colonies in antiquity, city-states would often found their own colonies. Some colonies were historically countries, while others were territories without definite statehood from their inception....
in the region (prior to that there was only a trade post founded by the EnglishmanEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
John MearesJohn MearesJohn Meares was a navigator, explorer, and maritime fur trader, best known for his role in the Nootka Crisis, which brought Britain and Spain to the brink of war.- Career :...
). - Gonzalo López de HaroGonzalo López de HaroGonzalo López de Haro was a Spanish explorer, notable for his expeditions in the Pacific Northwest in the late 18th century....
, accompanied Esteban José Martínez in the 1789 expedition. - Francisco de ElizaFrancisco de ElizaFrancisco de Eliza y Reventa was a Spanish naval officer, navigator, and explorer. He is remembered mainly for his work in the Pacific Northwest...
, made an expedition to Nootka Sound in 1790 to rebuild the Spanish fort abandoned by Esteban José Martínez. - Pere d'Alberní (1747–1802), CatalanCataloniaCatalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
born Spanish soldierSoldierA soldier is a member of the land component of national armed forces; whereas a soldier hired for service in a foreign army would be termed a mercenary...
and explorer from TortosaTortosa-External links:* *** * * *...
, Captain of the First Free Company of Volunteers of Catalonia appointed in Nootka Sound. His mission was to rebuild the fort, after Esteban José Martínez had abandoned it. He went with his company in the expedition of Francisco de ElizaFrancisco de ElizaFrancisco de Eliza y Reventa was a Spanish naval officer, navigator, and explorer. He is remembered mainly for his work in the Pacific Northwest...
, in 1790. - Salvador FidalgoSalvador FidalgoSalvador Fidalgo y Lopegarcía was a Spanish explorer who commanded an exploring expedition for Spain to Alaska and the Pacific Northwest during the late 18th century.-Early career:...
, CatalanCataloniaCatalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
born Spanish explorer from La Seu d'UrgellLa Seu d'UrgellLa Seu d'Urgell is a town located in the Catalan Pyrenees in Spain. La Seu d'Urgell is also the capital of the comarca Alt Urgell, head of the judicial district of la Seu d'Urgell and the seat of Bishop of Urgell, one of the Andorra co-princes...
, made an expedition to Nootka Sound in 1790. - José María NarváezJosé María NarváezJosé María Narváez was a Spanish naval officer, explorer, and navigator notable for his work in the Pacific Northwest of present-day Canada. In 1791, as commander of the schooner Santa Saturnina, he led the first European exploration of the Strait of Georgia, including a landing on present-day...
, Spanish explorer, discovered Point Grey (modern day Vancouver, British ColumbiaBritish ColumbiaBritish Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
) on July 5, 1791.
- Vasco Núñez de Balboa
- British or from the British Isles
- Francis DrakeFrancis DrakeSir Francis Drake, Vice Admiral was an English sea captain, privateer, navigator, slaver, and politician of the Elizabethan era. Elizabeth I of England awarded Drake a knighthood in 1581. He was second-in-command of the English fleet against the Spanish Armada in 1588. He also carried out the...
, British privateerPrivateerA privateer is a private person or ship authorized by a government by letters of marque to attack foreign shipping during wartime. Privateering was a way of mobilizing armed ships and sailors without having to spend public money or commit naval officers... - James CookJames CookCaptain James Cook, FRS, RN was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer who ultimately rose to the rank of captain in the Royal Navy...
, British explorer - John MearesJohn MearesJohn Meares was a navigator, explorer, and maritime fur trader, best known for his role in the Nootka Crisis, which brought Britain and Spain to the brink of war.- Career :...
, British explorer - George VancouverGeorge VancouverCaptain George Vancouver RN was an English officer of the British Royal Navy, best known for his 1791-95 expedition, which explored and charted North America's northwestern Pacific Coast regions, including the coasts of contemporary Alaska, British Columbia, Washington and Oregon...
, British explorer - Alexander Mackenzie, British explorer
- David ThompsonDavid Thompson (explorer)David Thompson was an English-Canadian fur trader, surveyor, and map-maker, known to some native peoples as "Koo-Koo-Sint" or "the Stargazer"...
, British explorer - James DouglasJames Douglas (Governor)Sir James Douglas KCB was a company fur-trader and a British colonial governor on Vancouver Island in northwestern North America, particularly in what is now British Columbia. Douglas worked for the North West Company, and later for the Hudson's Bay Company becoming a high-ranking company officer...
, first Governor of British Columbia - Matthew Baillie BegbieMatthew Baillie BegbieSir Matthew Baillie Begbie was born on the island of Mauritius, thereafter raised and educated in the United Kingdom...
, first Chief Justice of British Columbia
- Francis Drake
- The CanadasCanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and the Maritimes- Simon FraserSimon Fraser (explorer)Simon Fraser was a fur trader and an explorer who charted much of what is now the Canadian province of British Columbia. Fraser was employed by the Montreal-based North West Company. By 1805, he had been put in charge of all the company's operations west of the Rocky Mountains...
, fur company explorer - Francis Jones BarnardFrancis Jones BarnardFrancis Jones Barnard , often known as Frank Barnard Sr., was a prominent British Columbia businessman and Member of Parliament in Canada from 1879 to 1887....
, expressman and entrepreneur (Ontario) - Amor de CosmosAmor De CosmosAmor De Cosmos was a Canadian journalist, publisher and politician. He served as the second Premier of British Columbia.-Early life:...
, newspaperman and Premier (Nova Scotia) - W.A.C. BennettW.A.C. BennettWilliam Andrew Cecil Bennett, PC, OC was the 25th Premier of the Canadian province of British Columbia. With just over 20 years in office, Bennett was and remains the longest-serving premier in British Columbia history. He was usually referred to as W.A.C...
, retailer and Premier (New Brunswick)
- Simon Fraser
Places
- Pacific NorthwestPacific NorthwestThe Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...
- Alaska
- British ColumbiaBritish ColumbiaBritish Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
- Colony of British ColumbiaColony of British ColumbiaThe Colony of British Columbia was a crown colony in British North America from 1858 until 1866. At its creation, it physically constituted approximately half the present day Canadian province of British Columbia, since it did not include the Colony of Vancouver Island, the vast and still largely...
- New CaledoniaNew Caledonia (Canada)New Caledonia was the name given to a district of the Hudson's Bay Company that comprised the territory largely coterminous with the present-day province of British Columbia, Canada. Though not a British colony, New Caledonia was part of the British claim to North America. Its administrative...
- Columbia DistrictColumbia DistrictThe Columbia District was a fur trading district in the Pacific Northwest region of British North America in the 19th century. It was explored by the North West Company between 1793 and 1811, and established as an operating fur district around 1810...
- Washington
- OregonOregonOregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
- Oregon CountryOregon CountryThe Oregon Country was a predominantly American term referring to a disputed ownership region of the Pacific Northwest of North America. The region was occupied by British and French Canadian fur traders from before 1810, and American settlers from the mid-1830s, with its coastal areas north from...
- British Columbia ghost towns
- Stikine TerritoryStikine TerritoryThe Stickeen Territories , also colloquially rendered as Stickeen Territory, Stikine Territory, and Stikeen Territory, was a territory of British North America whose brief existence began July 19, 1862, and concluded July of the following year. The region was split from the North-Western...
- Queen Charlotte IslandsQueen Charlotte IslandsHaida Gwaii , formerly the Queen Charlotte Islands, is an archipelago on the North Coast of British Columbia, Canada. Haida Gwaii consists of two main islands: Graham Island in the north, and Moresby Island in the south, along with approximately 150 smaller islands with a total landmass of...
- Vancouver IslandVancouver IslandVancouver Island is a large island in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of several North American locations named after George Vancouver, the British Royal Navy officer who explored the Pacific Northwest coast of North America between 1791 and 1794...
- Colony of Vancouver IslandColony of Vancouver IslandThe Colony of Vancouver Island , was a crown colony of British North America from 1849 to 1866, after which it was united with British Columbia. The united colony joined the Dominion of Canada through Confederation in 1871...
- Nootka SoundNootka SoundNootka Sound is a complex inlet or sound of the Pacific Ocean on the rugged west coast of Vancouver Island, in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Historically also known as King George's Sound, as a strait it separates Vancouver Island and Nootka Island.-History:The inlet is part of the...
Events
- Nootka CrisisNootka CrisisThe Nootka Crisis was an international incident and political dispute between the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Spain, triggered by a series of events that took place during the summer of 1789 at Nootka Sound...
- Nootka ConventionNootka ConventionThe Nootka Conventions were a series of three agreements between the Kingdom of Spain and the Kingdom of Great Britain, signed in the 1790s which averted a war between the two empires over overlapping claims to portions of the Pacific Northwest coast of North America.The claims of Spain dated back...
- Oregon TreatyOregon TreatyThe Oregon Treaty is a treaty between the United Kingdom and the United States that was signed on June 15, 1846, in Washington, D.C. The treaty brought an end to the Oregon boundary dispute by settling competing American and British claims to the Oregon Country, which had been jointly occupied by...
- British Columbia Gold RushesBritish Columbia Gold RushesThe presence of gold in the region that is now British Columbia is mentioned in old legends that, in part, led to its discovery. The Strait of Anian, claimed to have been sailed by Juan de Fuca for whom today's Strait of Juan de Fuca is named, was described as passing through a land "rich in gold,...
- Oregon boundary disputeOregon boundary disputeThe Oregon boundary dispute, or the Oregon Question, arose as a result of competing British and American claims to the Pacific Northwest of North America in the first half of the 19th century. Both the United Kingdom and the United States had territorial and commercial aspirations in the region...
- Alaska Boundary DisputeAlaska Boundary DisputeThe Alaska boundary dispute was a territorial dispute between the United States and Canada . It was resolved by arbitration in 1903. The dispute had been going on between the Russian and British Empires since 1821, and was inherited by the United States as a consequence of the Alaska Purchase in...
- Pig WarPig WarThe Pig War was a confrontation in 1859 between the United States and the British Empire over the boundary between the US and British North America. The territory in dispute was the San Juan Islands, which lie between Vancouver Island and the North American mainland...
- Columbia River TreatyColumbia River TreatyThe Columbia River Treaty is an agreement between Canada and the United States of America on the development and operation of dams in the upper Columbia River basin for power and flood control benefits in both countries. For more information about the Columbia River Treaty, visit Columbia Basin...
- Komagata MaruKomagata MaruThe Komagata Maru incident involved a Japanese steamship, the Komagata Maru, that sailed from Hong Kong to Shanghai, China; Yokohama, Japan; and then to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, in 1914, carrying 376 passengers from Punjab, India. The 356 of passengers were not allowed to land in...
- Japanese Canadian internmentJapanese Canadian internmentJapanese Canadian internment refers to confinement of Japanese Canadians in British Columbia during World War II. The internment began in December 1941, following the attack by carrier-borne forces of Imperial Japan on American naval and army facilities at Pearl Harbor...
Other history pages
- History of the west coast of North AmericaHistory of the west coast of North AmericaThe human history of the west coast of North America is believed to stretch back to the arrival of the earliest people over the Bering Strait, or alternately along a now-submerged coastal plain, through the development of significant pre-Columbian cultures and population densities, to the arrival...
- List of ships in British Columbia
- List of Royal Navy ships in the Pacific Northwest
Further reading
- See Bibliography of British ColumbiaBibliography of British Columbia-Surveys:* Barman, Jean. The West Beyond the West: A History of British Columbia U. of Toronto Press, 1991. 430pp* Francis, Daniel, ed. Encyclopedia of British Columbia. Madeira Park, B.C.: Harbour, 2000. 806 pp....
for a more extensive guide to resources. This is a basic guide to major works.- Barman, Jean. The West Beyond the West: A History of British Columbia U. of Toronto Press, 1991. 430pp
- Carlson, Roy L. and Bona, Luke Dalla, eds. Early Human Occupation in British Columbia. Vancouver: U. of British Columbia Press, 1996. 261 pp.
- Carty, R. K., ed. Politics, Policy, and Government in British Columbia. Vancouver: U. of British Columbia Press, 1996. 381 pp.
- Francis, Daniel, ed. Encyclopedia of British Columbia. Madeira Park, B.C.: Harbour, 2000. 806 pp.
- Griffin, Harold. Radical Roots: The Shaping of British Columbia. Vancouver: Commonwealth Fund, 1999.
- Hak, Gordon. Turning Trees into Dollars: The British Columbia Coastal Lumber Industry, 1858-1913. U. of Toronto Press, 2000. 239 pp.
- Harris, Cole. The Resettlement of British Columbia: Essays on Colonialism and Geographical Change. Vancouver: U. of British Columbia Press, 1997. 314 pp.
- Hayes, Derek. Historical Atlas of British Columbia and the Pacific Northwest: Maps of Exploration. Vancouver: Cavendish, 1999. 208 pp.
- Johnston, Hugh, ed. The Pacific Province: A History of British Columbia. Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre, 1996. 352 pp.
- McGillivray, Brett. Geography of British Columbia: People and Landscapes in Transition. Vancouver: U. of British Columbia Press, 2000. 235pp
- Muckle, Robert J. The First Nations of British Columbia. Vancouver: U. of British Columbia Press, 1998. 146pp.
- Norris, John. Strangers Entertained: A History of Ethnic Groups in British Columbia. Vancouver: Evergreen Press, 1971. 254 pp.
- Ormsby, Margaret A. British Columbia: A History (Macmillan, 1958) online edition
- Recksten, Terry. The Illustrated History of British Columbia. Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre, 2001. 280 pp.
- Woodcock, George. British Columbia: A History of the Province. Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre, 1990. 288 pp.
External links
- British Colonist newspaper in Victoria, complete text Dec. 1858 to June 1910, searchable
- British Columbia History Internet/Web Site, 1995–2004, compiled by historian and archivist David Mattison, was succeeded by the British Columbia History Portal, 2003–present.
- First Nations Languages of British Columbia contains information about the native languages of British Columbia.
- BC History Journal
- "Coastal Moving Image Gallery," 1920s film clips of BC First Nations taken by anthropologist Harlan I. Smith, from BC Archives website.
- CBC Digital Archives: BC 150: ‘Splendour without diminishment’