The Development of BC

British ColumbiaBritish Columbia was one of the last areas in Canada to be settled by European settlers. This guide will examine early immigration to BC through to confederation with Canada. We have an interesting history full of gold, guns and a shameful amount of discrimination against minorities.

Oregon TerritoryPrior to the 19th century BC

was home to 100 000 First Nations from tribes ranging from the Haida all the way to the Kwakwaka’wakw

Way back in 1819 the British and Americans decided that a border be drawn from Ontario to the East of the Rockies along the 49th parallel

The area between the Rockies and the pacific ocean became known as the Oregon Territory

Aboriginal Tribes of BC

As there were few Europeans living here at the time, the British and Americans were unsure who should govern this areaWho was left out in this consideration?

The Hudson’s Bay Company did not want the area settled as that would limit their fur trading

The Americans, who had recently purchased Mississippi from the French wanted to expand westwardWhat was the word for the American belief that

they were to rule all of North America?Many Americans began to settle south of the

Columbia River, which is now Portland, Oregon

Then and Now

Fort VancouverCreated in 1824 by HBC

manager George SimpsonWas built on the north

bank of the Columbia River

It was a great location and it was made the main trading post in the Oregon Territory John McLoughlin (a

French Canadian) was put in charge

LOOK!- there are two Vancouvers on this map!

We are talking about the one down in Oregon.

McLoughlinHe was a smart

manKnowing that the

Americans wanted to settle in the area he gave them supplies and money to build south of the River

This limited American involvement in the HBC’s fur trade

Simpson shakes things up1841, George

Simpson was not happy with the development of the fur trading posts on the Pacific Coast

He decided to cut costs and closed all forts on the coast, with the exception of Fort Simpson...

Fort Simpson in the winter of 1873.

Built by the Hudson's Bay Company in 1834, The fort comprised a trade shop, a warehouse, officer's quarters, a mess hall, and houses and shops for Bay Company employees.

Two bastions, each with four guns, were situated at opposite corners of a 5.5 meter palisade of thick cedar planks.

The post was closed in 1911. After 1915, when the last buildings were burned down the settlement came to be known as Port Simpson.

The BeaverThe Beaver was the

first steamship used on the Pacific Coast

Used by Simpson to help with the fur trade

It would travel up and down the coast, eliminating the need for costly forts...according to Simpson

It was used by the HBC for 50 years

McLoughlin gets angryMcLoughlin was not too

happy about 15 years of his work getting closed down

To make matters worse his son was killed in a fight and Simpson recommended a charge of justifiable homicide for the killer

McLoughlin retired shortly after from the HBC, he is now known as the Father of Oregon in the United States

Do you think it would have been a wiser move for the HBC to encourage settlement in the Oregon Territory?

Was McLoughlin doing the right thing by encouraging American settlement south of Fort Vancouver? Should he not have helped them at all?

Did Simpson make the right decision to close the forts along the west coast?

How did the Beaver change the way furs were traded?

Discussion

Time to Draw the LineWith the rising

American population the British felt it was time to establish a more permanent border

Fearing this, Simpson began to close Fort Vancouver and created Fort Victoria on Vancouver island, with the hope that the island would remain in British Hands

54 40 or Fight!In 1844 James Polk was

elected as President of the US

Part of his campaign slogan was 54 40 or fight

This referred to the 54˚ 40’ N latitude

This failed thankfully and the border was just continued along the 49th parallel

With the exception of Vancouver island

Vancouver Isle and James Douglas

Vancouver island was turned over to James Douglas who became the governor in 1851

Douglas encourage rapid settlement of the area by offering land for $5 an acre

He also convinced the British to build a naval base near Fort VictoriaCoal was discovered in

Nanaimo which helped persuade them to build the base there

James and AmeliaDouglas married a 16

year old Cree women named Amelia

She was a strong willed woman

They had 13 childrenShe saved his life when

a Dakleh (Ka-kelh) Chief wanted to kill him for violating the sanctity of his house

The Douglas TreatiesDouglas realized early on

that in order for European settlers to be successful on Vancouver Island they had to peacefully obtain the land

He negotiated 14 treaties in a four year period

When he paid the First Nations for their land it acknowledged Aboriginal Title to the land

This would have huge lasting impact on BC in the 20th century

GOLD

California Gold RushGold was

discovered in California in 1848

Thousands of men travelled to the Sacramento River to try and hit it rich

Within a few years it had all been mined out

A few made a lot of money, most ended up broke and unable to get home

Fraser River Gold Rush1857 an HBC trader went

to Douglas informing that he had found gold along the banks of the Thompson River

Douglas feared a similar Gold Rush akin to what he saw in California

By 1858 there were gold prospectors along the shores of the Thompson and Fraser

By the end of 1858, 10 000 Americans were in BC

Why did Simpson not want a huge influx of gold miners in BC?

Why were thousands of Americans in BC a problem?

Who do you think these gold prospectors would have had the most problems with and why?

Discussion

Conflicts between the miners and First Nations were very common during the rush

In 1858 several gold miners were killed by members of the Nlaka’pamux tribe (Ing-khla-kap-muh)This was in retaliation to an attack on a Nlaka’pamux

women by the minersThe Americans formed several militias, some with

peaceful intentions, others...not so muchThe issue was resolved peacefully thankfully, but it

scared Douglas as the miners organized the militias on their own

Fraser Canyon War

Cariboo Wagon RoadIt was difficult and

dangerous to reach the gold fields of the upper Fraser River

Douglas ordered the construction of the Cariboo Wagon Road in 1862 It took three years to

complete and cost $750 000

By the time it was completed the gold rush was nearly over

This left BC greatly in debt

Named after Billy Barker who participated in the California Gold Rush

Struck gold on Williams Creek 1862 which led to the creation of the town around it

When the road reached the town, it began to boom with nearly 10 000 inhabitantsCensus data from 1861 put the population of Victoria

at 2350 at this timeIt developed quite the nightlife with dancers brought

direct from Germany – “Hurdy Gurdy Girls”Many Black and Chinese immigrants came to live

there as well to open businesses and pan for gold

Barkerville

September 16, 1868 most of Barkerville was destroyed by a fire

When the gold started to run low in the 1870s people began to move out

By 1920 it was a ghost town1958 the province restored Barkerville and made it a tourist attraction

It now looks like it did at the end of the 1860s

Barkerville before and after the fire

Vancouver IslandPopulation of

Vancouver Island 1855First Nations 35 000Non-First Nations 774

Run by James DouglasUntil 1856 it was an

autocratic societyForce in 1856 to

create a seven member legislative assembly

Only those who owned property could vote (40 people)

Smallpox1862 an American miner

brought smallpox to Victoria It spread quickly among the

populationColonists were vaccinated

and treatedFirst Nations were

quarantinedOn Haida Gwaii 70% died

Villages that had been there for thousands of years were now gone

By the time the epidemic had run its course, over half of the First Nations in BC had died

Joining of the Two ColoniesAfter the Gold Rush ended

the population of the two colonies (British Columbia and Victoria) was less than 10 000 non first nations

Both colonies were in tremendous debt$300 000 Victoria$1 000 000 BC

They were refused loans from the banks and Britain said they would only finance only one colony, so in 1866 they united

ConfederationistsIt would solve the

colony’s financial problems as Canada would take on their debt

They demanded a road be built from the great lakes to New West

Wanted to stay with Britain OR join the United States

The US was booming and they were closer to Washington, Oregon state than Ontario

ConfederationAnti-Confederationists

1871Those who wanted to

join the US sent around a petition in VictoriaThey only got 125

signatures, the population was 3000

The colony sent a delegation to talk to Prime Minister Macdonald

Macdonald agreed to all of their terms and even added on the railway promise

IndustryForestry emerged as a

dominant industry in BC early on

1865 Mills were beginning to appear in the lower mainland

Hastings Mill and Moodyville

Specialized in logging “BC Toothpicks”

These were logs that were so large that they were prized around the world to build ship masts

Gassy JackThe Vancouver area

was quite “dry” until 1867 when John “Gassy Jack” Deighton arrived

He opened a saloon that became extremely popular

It encouraged others to open saloons as well

Gastown was named after him

ImmigrationOne of the first major

immigrant groups to arrive were the Kanakas People of Hawaiian

DescentThe HBC originally hired

them to work at the trading posts

Married First Nations women and started families

When the border was drawn at the 49th parallel they moved north to BC

Settled in what is now Stanley Park

Began working in the mills

Victoria Pioneer Rifle CorpsDuring the Gold Rush

many Black Americans fled to Canada knowing that Britain did not allow slavery

James Douglas welcomed them and helped them find work

These new immigrants asked Douglas to allow them to form a militia to help defend their new home

Chinese ImmigrationLargest group of non-

European immigrants to arrive in BC

Originally came up from California during our gold rush

They worked old American claims which could be bought cheaply and produce decent money with patience

They also opened many stores and restaurants to serve the communities

DiscriminationMany groups arose to

protest the Chinese settling into their towns

The Knights of Labour demanded that the government remove all Chinese immigrants from BC

They also boycotted businesses that sold to Chinese customers

More DiscriminationChinese Contractors

Chinese men who brought immigrants to BC

They made fortunes off this new slave trade

Chinese workers were paid a fraction of their European counterparts

Many believed that the Chinese were a treat because they “could not assimilate”

The Government steps inOnce the railway had

finished the Government realized they no longer needed Chinese labour

1885 Royal Commission on Chinese Immigration

Goal was to limit immigrants from China

$50 Head TaxOnly 1 Chinese

passenger per 50 tonnes of cargo