108-616: Justice Institute of British Columbia ( JIBC ) is a public, post-secondary educational institution in New Westminster , British Columbia , Canada, that is focused on training professionals in the justice, public safety and social services fields. JIBC also has campuses in Victoria , Kelowna , Chilliwack , Pitt Meadows , and Maple Ridge . JIBC offers degrees, diplomas and applied certificates, as well as on-site professional workshops and training, through its 11 divisions: The Police Academy
216-517: A 2.5-diamond-rated hotel, The Inn at the Quay , a large condominium tower and townhouse complex was built, accessed from the older Columbia Street area of downtown by an overpass. The impetus provided by this project has spilled over onto the inland side of the rail tracks, with new tower developments focusing on the area southwest of 8th Street (the area known formerly as "the Swamp" and Chinatown). As of July 2007,
324-490: A 9.75-metre-tall (32.0 ft) tin soldier which was given the title of the world's largest by the Guinness Book of World Records back in 2002. In the 2021 Canadian census conducted by Statistics Canada , New Westminster had a population of 78,916 living in 36,099 of its 37,737 total private dwellings, a change of 11.2% from its 2016 population of 70,996. With a land area of 15.62 km (6.03 sq mi), it had
432-510: A Federal Heritage Building is confined to the building's footprint. The blacksmith shop was first built in 1973, and then rebuilt in 1975. It features a working forge and live demonstrations of blacksmithing. The cooperage was built in 1992, slightly south of the original, and features all the required tools for barrel making and other woodworking. The Depot was reconstructed in 1997 and is mainly used as an exhibition area and administration building. The original building would have been used as
540-767: A Wednesday of the festival, elementary school students gather at Queen's Park Stadium to dance, and the May Queen is crowned. Douglas College , a major post-secondary institution in Greater Vancouver , has a campus in New Westminster. The college has an enrollment of 14,000 students and offers degrees, associate degrees, and two-year career and University Transfer programs to local, national and international students. The Justice Institute of British Columbia offers training to municipal police forces, fire departments, provincial corrections, court services, and paramedics with
648-602: A bike lane and reverse angle parking. This was done to encourage more foot and bicycle traffic. Major high-rise or renovation projects are completed or nearing completion. By May 2012, these include the Plaza 88 development which includes three condominium towers, the complete renovation of the Columbia which is now a cabaret style theatre for concerts, weddings and fundraisers, and the home of Lafflines Comedy Club. The new $ 25 million Westminster Pier Park officially opened on June 16, 2012, and
756-546: A cabaret style theatre, it is now called The Columbia, home of Lafflines Comedy Club. Douglas College also offers post-secondary training in theatre, stagecraft and music, as well as non-credit courses in music for all ages and ability levels, through the Douglas College Community Music School. Theatre productions and music concerts at Douglas College take place in the Laura C. Muir Performing Arts Theatre and
864-706: A chunk of Columbia Street's historical character. One of the most well-known of these businesses was Copp's Shoes, which had not changed between its 1925 opening and its closure in early 2013. The westernmost neighbourhood in the city, Connaught Heights, began life as District Lot 172 after the Royal Engineers surveyed the land in the 1860s. In 1892, when the official civic boundaries for New Westminster were set, they only included its original city and suburban lots, thus leaving District Lot 172 disincorporated. The City of Burnaby also chose not to incorporate District Lot 172 when its official civic boundaries were set, resulting in
972-402: A dockside street and market, and also the location of the original Chinatown, Front Street was converted into a truck-route bypass and elevated parkade during the 1960s in an effort to provide increased parking for adjacent Columbia Street. In recent decades it has been the focus of the city's thriving antiques and second-hand trade, which is also concentrated on 12 Street. It has also been used as
1080-497: A fire which destroyed a similar building in 1839, and was the only building which survived the demise of the Fort as an active trading post. The Mavis family, who later purchased the land, used it as a barn for a number of years, until Fort Langley was recognized as a site of historic significance in 1923. Many of the other buildings at the fort are reconstructions. The Big House is a reconstructed two-storey log-structure erected in 1958, and
1188-510: A hipped roof; also reconstructed in 1958. The servants' quarters portrays the living conditions of three different HBC employees. The building was used to display barrel-making until 1992, when the display was moved to the newly built cooperage. The servants' quarters and the Big House were both erected using the Red River frame construction method. The Big House and servants' quarters designation as
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#17328519343421296-683: A location in feature films such as Rumble in the Bronx (substituting for the Bronx), I, Robot (as a futuristic Chicago), Shooter (doubling for Philadelphia, with the Fraser River being the Delaware River), and New Moon . In early 2016, a partial demolition of the parkade commenced as part of the City's continued efforts to revitalize and improve their waterfront area. The original colonial Government House
1404-418: A more business-oriented approach to commerce and dismissed the pretensions of the older community. Despite being granted a municipal council, the mainlanders in New Westminster also pressed for a legislative assembly to be created for British Columbia, and were infuriated when Governor Douglas granted free port status to Victoria, which stifled the economic growth of the Fraser River city. Moreover, to pay for
1512-586: A museum in 1931. The fort's other structures and palisades were reconstructed by Parks Canada in the latter half of the 20th century. Before Fort Langley was established, the area of the Fraser Valley has been home to the Sto:lo people for millennia. The Sto:lo people used the Fraser River as a major source of resources and enabled them to travel and interact with neighbouring Indigenous communities. The area of
1620-421: A museum out of the storehouse. Parks Canada took control of the site in 1955, and a joint Federal-Provincial program reconstructed three buildings in time for the centennial of the founding of British Columbia in 1958. In 1978, the site became a national historic park, and has consisted of 8.5 hectares (21 acres) since 1985. In 2019, the students of Langley Fine Arts School worked alongside the community members of
1728-567: A new civic centre and office tower named The Anvil Centre on Columbia Street at Begbie Street completed Sept. 2014. The Salient Group built a tower on top of the Trapp + Holbrook buildings (while restoring the facade) and another condominium called Northbank was built at the east entrance of Columbia Street. Close to the Trapp building, a major fire razed the E.L. Lewis Building and the Hamley Block on October 13, 2013, displacing 30 businesses and destroying
1836-536: A number of student awards, scholarships, and bursaries. In addition to a general student bursary, students can apply for various external awards and other forms of financial aid. New Westminster New Westminster (colloquially known as New West ) is a city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia , Canada, and a member municipality of the Metro Vancouver Regional District . It
1944-538: A population density of 5,052.2/km (13,085.2/sq mi) in 2021. A legacy of early 20th century settlement, the Queensborough neighbourhood has a large South Asian population, primarily of Punjabi Sikh descent. The 2016 census found that English was spoken as mother tongue by 50.47% of the population. The next most common mother tongue language was Tagalog , spoken by 4.5% of the population, followed by Mandarin at 4.4%, and Punjabi at 3.5%. According to
2052-573: A recess to settle the resulting uproar and allow the member from Nanaimo a chance to sort out his speaking notes and his spectacles, the Speaker John Sebastian Helmcken (from Victoria) refused to allow Franklyn a "second" chance to speak. The subsequent vote was 13 to 8 against New Westminster. With the entry of British Columbia into the Dominion of Canada in 1871, as the sixth province, New Westminster's economic prospects improved, but
2160-466: A ripple before us, except when a fish rose to the surface or broods of wild ducks fluttered away. It was suggested by Moody and the Royal Engineers, Columbia Detachment that the site be proclaimed "Queensborough". Governor James Douglas proclaimed the new capital with this name on February 14, 1859. The name "Queensborough", however, did not appeal to London and it was Queen Victoria who named
2268-428: A visitor centre and a largely reconstructed trading post that contains ten structures surrounded by wooden palisades. Fort Langley was initially established in 1827 in present-day Derby . The fort's operations were later relocated to present-day Langley with the new fort completed in 1839. However, the new fort would be rebuilt in the following year, after a fire ravaged the trading post. The fort continued to see use by
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#17328519343422376-632: Is 15.62 square kilometres (6.03 sq mi). New Westminster has changed markedly over time and by the results of its incorporation into the wider urbanization of the Lower Mainland. (See also: Architecture of Greater Vancouver. ) In 1878, the Government of Canada opened the British Columbia Penitentiary , the first federal penitentiary west of Manitoba. "BC Pen", or simply "the Pen", as it
2484-427: Is a sister publication to The Georgia Straight : both are owned by Overstory Media Group. New Westminster also had a community humour magazine called Piffle. Piffle is the creation of Columbian Newspaper sports writer Ron Loftus. When Ron retired, he sold Piffle to another Columbian reporter Chris Sargent, who published the magazine for the last 14 years. The city has several live performance venues, ranging from
2592-442: Is a two-storey asymmetrical red brick building with steeply pitched bellcast roofs. The building, which was built in 1899, is a classic example of CPR's signature Château -styled railway stations. In 1911, two wings were added to the station, and in 1973, the ageing train station was converted into a branch of The Keg restaurant chain. In 2013, however, the restaurant closed its doors to the public due to structural issues surrounding
2700-586: Is because area was then boggy ground of low value for the stone and brick buildings of the main part of downtown up Columbia Street to the northeast; and also close to the river and the railway. Chinatown was destroyed in the Great Fire of 1898 and only partly rebuilt afterwards, with a church and cultural and community events hall the first to be started. Until the 1964 completion of the Highway 1 freeway , which bypassed New Westminster to its north, Columbia Street,
2808-518: Is located here. Fort Langley National Historic Site Fort Langley National Historic Site , commonly shortened to Fort Langley , is a former fur trading post of the Hudson's Bay Company in the community of Fort Langley of Langley , British Columbia , Canada. The national historic site sits above the banks of the Bedford Channel across McMillan Island . The national historic site contains
2916-741: Is named Another Beer Co and it is located in Sapperton, close to where the Labatts Brewery was in the Brewery District, since 2019. Also located in Sapperton are the Royal Columbian Hospital , Sapperton Station , Braid Station , and the TransLink (British Columbia) headquarters. Development of an uptown commercial area around 6th Street and 6th Avenue started in 1954, with the opening of Woodward's department store. Added momentum came with
3024-652: Is the Queens Park Arena, longtime home to the legendary New Westminster Salmonbellies professional lacrosse team, as well as an open-air stadium used for baseball and field sports. The Burr Theatre (originally the Columbia Theatre), named for New Westminster native Raymond Burr, was operated by the Raymond Burr Performing Arts Society who produced professional -quality mysteries and comedies between October 2000 and January 2005. February 2005 saw
3132-408: Is the largest building enclosed within the palisades of the fort. The exterior of the log-hewn structure is whitewashed. The Big House is a reconstruction of the living quarters of James Murray Yale and his wife; and William Henry Newton and his wife, Emmaline (Tod) Newton The servants' quarters is a one-and-a-half storey rectangular timber structure with a whitewashed exterior, and is covered with
3240-708: Is where all municipal police officers in British Columbia receive their basic training, as well as special constables, municipal reserve and BC Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Auxiliary Constable . The Academy also offers advanced police training courses, and training for security and gaming officers. Paramedics , firefighters , sheriffs , corrections officers , probation officers, peace officers , family justice counsellors, mediators , law enforcement, Bylaw Enforcement Officers, emergency management and security professionals, Emergency Social Services volunteers and search and rescue volunteers are also trained by
3348-682: The 2021 census , religious groups in New Westminster included: The Columbian , originally the British Columbian , British Columbia's second newspaper, was founded in New Westminster by John Robson (later premier of British Columbia ). By the mid-20th century, it had long since been eclipsed by the Vancouver newspapers, and published its last issue on November 15, 1983, after a run of 123 years. CKNW , one of Canada's first private news radio, hot-line and talk stations, began broadcasting from studios in New Westminster on April 1, 1944, originally in
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3456-626: The Fraser Canyon War as a pre-emptive move to forestall any drives for annexation to the US. The decline of the fort over the next 30 years was attributed to three factors. First, the advent of paddle wheelers on the Fraser meant that river traffic was extended to Fort Hope and Fort Yale . Second, the capital of the colony was established at New Westminster, British Columbia and later moved to Victoria . Finally, competition for goods and services undercut
3564-640: The Fraser Gold Rush , as all travel to the goldfield ports of Yale and Port Douglas was by steamboat or canoe up the Fraser River . However, Colonial Office secretary Edward Bulwer-Lytton "forgot the practicalities of paying for clearing and developing the site and the town" and the efforts of Moody's engineers were continuously hampered by insufficient funds, which, together with the continuous opposition of Douglas, "made it impossible for [Moody's] design to be fulfilled". Governor Douglas spent little time in New Westminster and had little affection for
3672-683: The Laich-kwil-tach , but when this threat died down, firearms became mainly symbolic yet infrequent items of trade. 1829 and 1831 were the most successful years for the fort's fur trading operations, each year netting 2,500 skins. Salmon pickling was begun by staff of the fort, creating nearly 300 barrels in 1831. Also a disappointment to the HBC was Simpson's discovery that the Fraser was not as navigable as he had imagined. Along with Archibald McDonald (who would later replace McMillan at Fort Langley), Simpson travelled from York Factory to Fort St. James ,
3780-541: The BC broadcasting industry where many notable reporters and broadcasters had their start. New Westminster is served by two publications: New Westminster Record , part of the Glacier Media chain, which publishes online. In May 2022, New West Anchor , a biweekly newsletter delivering news and event listings via email, was launched by former CKNW and CityNews Vancouver journalist Ria Renouf. Colloquially known as The Anchor , it
3888-668: The British Columbia Ambulance Service. The Institute operates a Centre for Conflict Resolution , a Centre for Leadership and Community Learning, Executive Programs , a Public Safety Seminar Series, and the Aboriginal Leadership Diploma Program. Boucher Institute of Naturopathic Medicine (BINM), the only Naturopathic medical school in western Canada, offering the N.D. degree in Naturopathic Medicine in both 4-year and 6-year programs
3996-686: The British government and the Sto:lo, settler or company occupation of the land was illegal. After John Jacob Astor 's Pacific Fur Company sold its assets in the Oregon Country to the North West Company following the War of 1812 , Astor's Fort Astoria was renamed Fort George and became the main depot for Pacific interior trade . Pelts collected in the northern New Caledonia district travelled south along
4104-523: The Columbia Detachment of Royal Engineers ("Sappers"), whose camp was on the hill now occupied by the Fraserview neighbourhood. It is the location of the historic Fraser Cemetery, which rivals Victoria's Ross Bay Cemetery for the number of historically significant graves and monuments. Sapperton is the home of the first commercial brewery to operate in British Columbia known as the "City Brewery". Over
4212-646: The Fraser River to Fort Alexandria , then overland via a route known as the Brigade Trail to Fort Okanagan then along the Columbia River to Fort George on the coast. The Oregon Country/ Columbia District was shared between the British and Americans as a result of the Treaty of 1818 , but the treaty was to expire in 1828 and since Fort George stood on the south side of the Columbia River, it would likely be awarded to
4320-638: The Fraser Valley is described as being “one of the most economically productive regions of the Pacific Northwest” pre-contact. Within this area, the Sto:lo people developed highly complex social hierarchies, artistic traditions, and architecture. As the Royal Proclamation of 1763 affirmed the property rights of First Nations throughout British North America , the land belonged to the Sto:lo nation, and without signing nation to nation treaties between
4428-523: The Hudson's Bay Company until 1886, when the company ceased to operate the site as a trading post. By the 1920s, only one building remained at the site, the fort's storehouse. The site was later was designated as a National Historic Site of Canada in 1923. The historic site operated as a learning resource for the North American fur trade in the 19th century, with the fort's storehouse having been reopened as
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4536-736: The Hyack Festival, is distinguished by the Ancient and Honourable Hyack Anvil Battery Salute , a tradition created by The New Westminster Fire Department during colonial times as a surrogate for a 21-gun salute . With no cannons available in the early colony, the Fire Department—known as the Hyacks, from the Chinook Jargon for "fast" or "quick", here derived from its use as a command for "hurry up!"— improvised by placing gunpowder between two anvils,
4644-484: The Indigenous peoples of the Fraser Valley who experienced a loss of their trading relationship with the HBC and encroachment onto their land by settlers. Non-native settlement on the Fraser river compromised Indigenous access to their traditional fishing sites and land, leading to a disruption in the regularity of their traditional practices. Moreover, legal restrictions on the trade of Indigenous catch made it difficult for
4752-577: The JIBC. It also offers programs in leadership, conflict resolution and emergency management. Hong Kong Fire Services also used JIBC for additional advanced training for their EMS personnel. JIBC currently offers two four-year degrees: The Institute collaborates with the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) on SUSS's Minor in Paramedicine and Emergency Response. JIBC students can apply for
4860-590: The Kwantlen Nation as a part of the project This is Kwantlen , to increase Indigenous representation in Fort Langley. Photographs and biographies of Kwantlen First Nation members were displayed outside of the Fort Langley National Historic Site and throughout Fort Langley during April and May 2019. The national historic site is situated where the second Fort Langley was built in 1839, above
4968-775: The Massey Theatre adjacent to New Westminster High School, to the Burr Theatre, a converted cinema on Columbia Street, and two theatrical venues in Queens Park (One being the Bernie Legge Theatre, home of the Vagabond Players, which were formed in 1937.) The Royal City Musical Theatre, a long-established New Westminster tradition, uses the Massey, while comedy and mystery theatricals use the stages in Queens Park. Also in Queens Park
5076-648: The Massey Theatre. The main feature of the New Westminster Museum and Archives (NWMA) is the 1865 Irving House , which is said to be the oldest intact house in the BC Lower Mainland. In the museum are treasures such as the 1876 coach used by Lord Dufferin , then Governor General of Canada , to tour the new province of British Columbia including Barkerville via the Cariboo Road . The city's archives hold corporate and personal treasures such as 1859 maps of
5184-415: The Pen's grounds have been filled with newly built townhouses and condominiums and parkland. Below the main complex on the waterfront the prison's old armoury still stands as part of a new waterfront park; this was also the location of the prison's wharf which was much-used when steamboat was the main means of transportation within the Lower Mainland and for some years after. The mental hospital for children,
5292-552: The Pre-emption Act of 1860, Moody settled the Lower Mainland and selected the site and founded the new capital, New Westminster. Moody and the Royal Engineers were trained in settlement and selected the site because of its defensibility: it was farther from the American border than the site of the colony's proclamation, Fort Langley , possessed "great facilities for communication by water, as well as by future great trunk railways into
5400-413: The Quay's commercial component had noticeably decreased, with many vacancies, compared to the much more active Lonsdale Quay Market in North Vancouver . Responding to the decrease of business, the ownership group closed the Westminster Quay Market for renovations. The market re-opened as The River Market in September 2010 with Donald's Market as the main anchor. The Westminster Quay is also known to house
5508-405: The Register of the Government of Canada Heritage Buildings. Along with the rest of the Greater Vancouver region, in 2020 New Westminster experienced the worst air quality in the world due to the combined effects of the 2020 Western American wildfires and a fire at the old Pier at the quay. In 2022, efforts were made within the city to phase-out the "Royal City" moniker and undergo a rebrand of
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#17328519343425616-448: The Royal City would lose out again, this time to the new railway terminus town of Vancouver , when the Canadian Pacific Railway was extended to the shores of Burrard Inlet , even though a spur of the railway did reach New Westminster in 1886. In 1898, a fire destroyed downtown New Westminster, and in 1916 the federal government shut down the "common" reserves set aside for Coastal First Nations people who visited New Westminster during
5724-411: The Royal Windsor Hotel, then at a few other locations in the city, before moving to downtown Vancouver from its final New Westminster location at 8th and McBride, which it occupied from 1967 onwards. Although it has broadcast from Vancouver for the better part of half a century, it is still licensed to New Westminster and its callsign still includes the letters "NW" for New Westminster. It is a mainstay of
5832-454: The Sto:lo, a second at the end of the month, and the palisade walls were completed in early September. Some of the Hudson's Bay men were nervous about the Indigenous people of the Fraser, and the bastions were completed first "to command respect in the eyes of the Indians, who begin, shrewdly, to conjecture for what purpose the Ports and loopholes are intended." After the stockade was complete only Indigenous people with furs were allowed past
5940-418: The Stó:lo to trade fish to make a living. The social and political consequences of this influx of adventurers led the British Parliament to establish a crown colony on the Pacific Mainland. While some might have projected Fort Langley as the capital of the newly created colony, Colonial military commander, Colonel Moody of the Royal Engineers, Columbia Detachment , deemed it militarily indefensible and ordered
6048-399: The United States in any boundary agreement. After the North West Company merged with the Hudson's Bay Company in 1821, the HBC administrator George Simpson suggested the creation of Fort Vancouver on the northern bank of the Columbia, but that it serve as secondary post to a larger trade hub further north near the mouth of the Fraser River. Simpson felt such a location would help secure
6156-474: The area being outside any municipal jurisdiction. In 1911, the original landowner subdivided the land into residential lots that followed the grid established by neighbouring New Westminster; the first residential home had only been built a year prior. In 1912, the BC Electric Railway took advantage of this by building the "Connaught Hill" station at Tenth Avenue for the new interurban electric tramway, which connected New Westminster with Vancouver. The station
6264-411: The banks of the Bedford Channel across from McMillan Island . The grounds of the historic site is approximate 8.4 hectares (21 acres). The national historic site initially comprised 0.4 hectares (0.99 acres) when it was acquired by the federal government in 1924; although the property grew in size in subsequent decades, including two major expansions. The site was first expanded during the 1950s with
6372-483: The building of suburban malls with free parking is generally conceded to have "killed" Columbia Street, which fell into a slump despite the building of a large parkade above nearby Front Street in the 50s and 60s. Department stores (other than the Army and Navy) left downtown as the Uptown area continued to develop to become New Westminster's main retail and services centre. In October 2006, Columbia Street underwent reconstruction to change to one lane in both directions, with
6480-447: The centre of trade for New Caledonia, before assembling a group of men (including James Murray Yale , who would later replace McMillan) to descend the Fraser towards Fort Langley. Their party found that travel down the Fraser was relatively easy until it forked with the Thompson River , after which the powerful rapids and sheer cliffs convinced Simpson the passage would be "certain Death, in nine attempts out of Ten." At least some part of
6588-425: The city after Westminster , that part of the British capital of London where the Parliament Buildings were, and are to this day, situated. From this naming by the Queen, the City gained its official nickname, "the Royal City". A year later New Westminster became the first City in British Columbia to be incorporated and have an elected municipal government. It became a major outfitting point for prospectors coming to
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#17328519343426696-568: The city drawn by the Royal Engineers and official city records. Other heritage artifacts in the city include the 1937 Samson V paddlewheeler, the 1890s armouries, 1850s historic cannons, two of the old BC Pen buildings, numerous cemeteries, and dozens of heritage homes, many of which are from the 19th century. The Museum is affiliated with Canadian Museums Association , the Canadian Heritage Information Network , and Virtual Museum of Canada . New Westminster's May Day celebration began in 1870 and continues today as an important civic tradition, lending
6804-407: The city the distinction of having the longest-running May Day celebration of its type in the British Commonwealth . Within BC, at least four other communities still celebrate May Day: Port Coquitlam, Ladner in Delta (whose May Day Festival began in 1896), Bradner in Abbotsford, and The Sunshine Coast's Pender Harbour. The May Day festival, held on the Victoria Day weekend and more formally known as
6912-444: The city's logo and mottos. New Westminster is located on the Burrard Peninsula , mainly on the north bank of the Fraser River . It is 19 kilometres (12 mi) southeast of the City of Vancouver proper, adjacent to Burnaby and Coquitlam and across the Fraser River from Surrey and Delta. A portion of New Westminster called Queensborough is located on the eastern tip of Lulu Island , adjacent to Richmond . The total land area
7020-424: The city; and the feelings were amply repaid by the citizens of New Westminster, who avidly supported Colonel Moody's city-building efforts and castigated the governor, who preferred to remain for the most part isolated in distant Victoria . In contrast to Victoria, where settlers from England had established a strong British presence, New Westminster's early citizens were largely Canadians and Maritimers, who brought
7128-402: The clouds there is a sublimity that deeply impresses you. Everything is large and magnificent, worthy of the entrance to the Queen of England's dominions on the Pacific mainland. [...] My imagination converted the silent marshes into Cuyp -like pictures of horses and cattle lazily fattening in rich meadows in a glowing sunset. [...] The water of the deep clear Frazer was of a glassy stillness, not
7236-523: The coast by boat. Such strong competition kept the price of pelts very high, much higher than Hudson's Bay was paying elsewhere. McMillan was advised by his superiors to intentionally undersell Americans in order to force them out of the region and assure a monopoly for the HBC. This came in the form of a trade tariff on that Indigenous people that they identified as a trading disadvantage where five beaver skins were required to receive one two-and-a-half point HBC blanket . Second, Indigenous people living along
7344-450: The coast from ocean-based American competition, and believed the Fraser to be more navigable than the Columbia River. He sent Chief Trader James McMillan to explore the region, and McMillan proposed an area near the Salmon River suitable to agriculture, and where fish were plentiful. James McMillan returned to the Fraser River with 24 men, including four Iroquois , two Native Hawaiian Kanaka , and one Métis worker, in 1827 to begin
7452-405: The construction of New Westminster on the high north bank of the Fraser River many miles downstream due to its much more defensible position. On 19 November 1858, the proclamation that established the Colony of British Columbia was read out by James Douglas , who was named the colony's first governor. Douglas made the proclamation on his journey upriver to confront American miners in the wake of
7560-536: The construction of Fort Langley (named for Thomas Langley, a prominent HBC director ) 50 kilometres (31 mi) from the mouth of the Fraser River. The construction of this fort represented the first permanent contact of European settlers with Indigenous peoples on the Fraser River. This site was not the same as today's fort, but 4 km to the northwest at what was known by local Indigenous people as snaqʷaməx, and later called Old Fort Langley and finally renamed Derby in 1858 (now only farmland). But when they arrived at
7668-457: The construction of the Queensborough Bridge resulted in the demolition of property in Connaught Heights Waterworks District, showing further interaction between the city and district. The first of two referendums to vote on incorporating Connaught Heights Waterworks District into the City of New Westminster was held in 1961, which failed to achieve enough positive votes to proceed with incorporation. Construction of Connaught Heights Elementary School
7776-521: The day of the vote, one member of the assembly, William Cox (one of the colony's Gold Commissioners and a Victoria supporter), shuffled the pages of the speech that William Franklyn from Nanaimo (a New Westminster supporter) intended to give, so that Franklyn lost his place and read the first paragraph three times. Cox then popped the lenses of Franklyn's glasses from their frames so that the Nanaimo representative could see nothing at all of his speech. After
7884-486: The downtown core of New Westminster close to the city's waterfront, was the main commercial retail and service centre for the Fraser Valley and nearby areas of Burnaby and Coquitlam. Known as "the golden mile", it hosted major department stores such as Eaton's, Kresge's and Woolworths as well as long-established New Westminster retailers. This was a time when road travel to Vancouver remained distant for Valley communities, and daily interurban rail service to and from Chilliwack
7992-426: The end of July, five of the men were incapacitated with gonorrhea , another with " venereal disease ", and all the horses were either dead, crippled, or exhausted. Despite these setbacks and the heavy brambles at the site, the remaining 19 men began to clear the land in preparation for the fort. The men at the fort were entirely at the mercy of the Sto:lo people, as they lacked the skills and knowledge to survive off of
8100-619: The expense of building roads into the Interior of the colony, Douglas imposed duties on imports into New Westminster. In 1866, the Colony of British Columbia and the Colony of Vancouver Island were united as "British Columbia". However, the capital of the Colony of Vancouver Island, Victoria , was made the capital of the newly amalgamated Colony of British Columbia following a vote in the House of Assembly. On
8208-463: The farm had "potatoes abundant" along with 750 bushels of wheat, 500 bushels of oats and 600 bushels of peas. Catholic Missionary Modeste Demers traveled to Fort Langley and performed religious services for the staff and neighboring Indigenous, baptising over 700 children in 1841. Despite baptizing many, white men would still administer beatings to Indigenous people who did not behave in a colonially respectful manner. Due to its strategic location on
8316-627: The fishing season. In 1916 the remaining land on Poplar Island was turned over to the BC government. From 1927 to 1969, the British Columbia Shore Station Oceanographic Program was collecting coastal water temperature and salinity measurements from New Westminster every day for the Department of Fisheries and Oceans . In 1991, the New Westminster Armoury was recognized as a Federal Heritage building on
8424-591: The gate. A number of buildings were built through autumn, and Fort Langley was officially completed on November 26. Native laborers resided in a camp a short distance from the station. During the first few years, trade in furs with the Stó:lō, the Indigenous people (Fraser River), was surprisingly poor from the HBC point of view. Firstly, traders from Boston controlled most of the Maritime Fur Trade , travelling along
8532-409: The grounds of the historic site does contain the archeological remains and remnants of structures dating to the 19th century fort. Most buildings are used to provide interpretive services for visitors, although two buildings within the fort are also used for maintenance and artifact storage. In addition to structures built inside the fort, the site also contains a visitor centre, built in 1997 outside
8640-501: The head of the Royal Engineers, Columbia Detachment , having been hand picked to "found a second England on the shores of the Pacific". Moody "wanted to build a city of beauty in the wilderness" and planned his city as an iconic visual metaphor for British dominance, "styled and located with the objective of reinforcing the authority of the Crown and of the robe". Subsequent to the enactment of
8748-465: The interior", and possessed an excellent port. Moody was also struck by the majestic beauty of the site, writing in his letter to Blackwood: The entrance to the Fraser is very striking—Extending miles to the right & left are low marsh lands (apparently of very rich qualities) & yet fr [ sic ] the Background of Superb Mountains—Swiss in outline, dark in woods, grandly towering into
8856-580: The journey from the north would have to be made overland to bypass the Fraser Canyon and Hell's Gate . As part of its plan to rid itself of American competition, the HBC sought to corner the market in Alaska by securing a monopoly on trade with the Russian American Company in 1839. McMillan went to many lengths to ensure that the Indigenous people were kept at a distance during the construction of
8964-460: The land. To ensure lasting economic relationships with the Sto:lo, the men at the fort were encouraged to take Sto:lo women as their wives. The economic and social patterns adopted by the settlers post-contact illustrates their dependency on the Sto:lo (the original inhabitants of the land). Potatoes were planted in a garden during the establishment of Fort Langley. The first bastion was built by mid-August in order to defend against another attack by
9072-531: The monopoly the Hudson's Bay Company had formerly enjoyed. In 1886, Fort Langley ceased to be a company post. In 1923, the Canadian government designated Fort Langley as a National Historic Site and erected a commemorative plaque near the storehouse. At this time, the site consisted only of the one building and 0.40 hectares (1 acre) of land. From 1931 to 1956, the Native Sons and Daughters of British Columbia operated
9180-542: The north arm of the Fraser from the southern end of the city. Queensborough is today a growing housing area with its own distinct identity. Some new condominium complexes have been built adjacent to the Westminster Quay development. In the Chinook Jargon, "Koonspa", an adaptation of the name Queensborough, is the usual name for New Westminster as a whole. Sapperton was originally a "suburb" of New Westminster, named for
9288-582: The northern boundary of the Oregon Territory of the U.S. and in the path of the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush , Fort Langley grew dramatically. It played a key role in the establishment of the 49th parallel as the international boundary with the U.S. and was the staging point for prospectors heading up the Fraser Canyon in search of their fortune. The gold rush represented a turning point for many of
9396-506: The palisades of the fort. The fort is bounded by timber palisades. The location of the fort's original palisades were identified through archaeological investigation in the years after the fort was designated a national historic site in 1923. A two-storey bastion built out of logs and topped with a pyramid-shaped roof is built along the northeast palisades walls. The northeast bastion is a small irregularly shaped square windows and two doors are situated on its second level, providing access to
9504-410: The reconstruction of several buildings, in conjunction with British Columbia's centennial; and again during the 1990s. Ten structures are situated inside the palisades of the fort, although the only structure that dates back to the 19th century is the fort's storehouse. The other nine buildings in the fort are reconstructions of the fort's original structures, built during the 20th century. However,
9612-405: The relocation of the public library from downtown to uptown in 1958. In 1992 Woodward's was expanded and modernized into a shopping centre and took the name Woodwards Place. With the bankruptcy of Woodward's in 1993, the name of the centre was changed to Royal City Centre Mall. Moody Park is an important recreational area in the uptown area. Opposite Sapperton's north end, New Westminster's West End
9720-419: The river were not particularly interested in hunting or trapping, since they lived primarily on salmon . The Stó:lō initiated trade of salmon with the HBC, which would later become an important export of the Fort. As they had little contact with Europeans, they were quite self-sufficient and not in serious need of European goods. In the first year, guns were in high demand by the Stó:lō to fend off attacks from
9828-408: The second fort. The location of the fort was moved four kilometres upstream in 1839 and changed its focus to farming, fish, and cranberry harvesting, rather than the fur trade. Although the fort was completed in 1839, a fire destroyed much of the fort in 1840 necessitating its reconstruction once again. Trading was now only allowed through a wicket, with sentries posted on the second story. In 1840
9936-474: The smaller, more intimate Studio Theatre from September to April. Every year, New Westminster hosts the New West Cultural Crawl to showcase the city's unique and talented artists. The unique Mushtari Begum Festival of Indian Classical Music and Dance, debuted in 2012, is produced by internationally acclaimed artists Cassius Khan and Amika Kushwaha to preserve the rare Indian arts, and is partnered with
10044-549: The southwest side of the Burrard Peninsula and roughly at the centre of the Greater Vancouver region. The area now known as New Westminster was originally inhabited by Kwantlen First Nation . The discovery of gold in BC and the arrival of gold seekers from the south prompted fear amongst the settlers that Americans may invade to take over this land. Richard Clement Moody arrived in British Columbia in December 1858, at
10152-487: The theatre reopen as a vaudeville theatre with three major productions by The Heartaches Razz Band and in February 2006 collaboration with The Screaming Chicken Theatrical Society produced the first Annual Vancouver International Burlesque Festival . The theatre was sold by the City of New Westminster through a public request for proposal process to the owner of Lafflines Comedy Club. After extensive renovations to convert it into
10260-442: The then-114-year-old structure. As of 2023, the train station is occupied by Kelly O'Bryan's, a BC Irish restaurant and pub chain. Queensborough was the name originally chosen for the colonial capital by Royal Engineer commander Colonel Richard Clement Moody . When Queen Victoria designated New Westminster instead as her new capital's name, the name Queensborough became applied to New Westminster's portion of Lulu Island , across
10368-457: The top one upturned, and igniting the charge from a safe distance, hurling the upper anvil into the air. Each year, in preparation for May Day, local schoolchildren are taught to dance around a maypole with colourful ribbons. Elections are held at elementary schools in the city, and, from them one girl is selected to become the year's May Queen , and two students from each school to become members of her "May Queen Suite" and "Royal Knights." On
10476-411: The wall's galleries. The northeast bastion was rebuilt in 1957. As a reconstruction, the bastion's designation as a Federal Heritage Building is confined to the building's footprint. The fort's storehouse is a rectangular one and a half storey building with a hipped roof. The storehouse is the only remaining structure that dates back to the original fur trading fort. It was rebuilt in the 1840s after
10584-416: The years the brewery changed hands and was operated by Labatts until it closed in 2005. In its place is a recent condo development known as the "Brewery District", although there is no brewery on the premises. New Westminster does have two breweries currently. One is named Steel & Oak which opened its doors in 2014 and is situated on the other end of the Westminster Quay. The other brewery in New Westminster
10692-477: Was completed in 1963, and the school was opened and joined the New Westminster School District the following year. A second referendum was held in 1964, which garnered enough positive votes to make Connaught Heights Waterworks District part of New Westminster. By 1965, the amalgamation was officially complete, with Connaught Heights becoming the newest neighbourhood in New Westminster. Originally
10800-569: Was founded by Major-General Richard Moody as the capital of the Colony of British Columbia in 1858 and continued in that role until the Mainland and Island colonies were merged in 1866 . It was the British Columbia Mainland's largest city from that year until it was passed in population by Vancouver during the first decade of the 20th century. It is located on the banks of the Fraser River as it turns southwest towards its estuary, on
10908-510: Was known (and also in old days as the " skookum house " in the English- Chinook Jargon patois common in early BC), was located between the Sapperton neighbourhood and what is now Queen's Park . It housed maximum-security prisoners for the next 102 years, closing in 1980. The original centre block of the Pen still stands and has been converted into offices. The Gatehouse, steps leading up to it and old Coal House still stand. The rest of
11016-471: Was located approximately where Royal City Manor is now. It was originally occupied by Colonel Richard Moody , who commanded the Columbia Detachment of Royal Engineers who established the city. Rarely used by Governor Douglas, its first full-time vice-regal resident was Governor Frederick Seymour . A former Canadian Pacific Railway station is adjacent to the New Westminster Skytrain station . It
11124-513: Was located to the west of the BC Pen and was adjacent to the offramps of the Pattullo Bridge. After it was closed, the derelict main building was, except for the tower entrance, destroyed by fire on July 9, 2008. In October 2011, all remaining old structures were leveled and cleared, to the joy of some former residents who had bad memories of their childhood experiences. New Westminster's Chinatown
11232-412: Was named for Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn . This station became the namesake for the neighbourhood, while the modern SkyTrain tracks follow the path of this historic tramway. Initially, the provincial government neglected the district, but as the density of residents increased so did the quality of amenities and civic services. In 1939, when there were approximately 200 homes, funding
11340-473: Was once fairly separate from the city proper, and has a neighbourhood commercial node along 12th Street and 20th Street approximately between London Street and Eighth Ave. The 12th Street area features antique and one-of-a-kind stores. Westminster Quay was a mid-1980s development to revitalize New Westminster and accompanied the development of the SkyTrain line to Vancouver. In addition to a large public market and
11448-482: Was one of the earliest established in the mainland colony and initially the second-largest after Victoria's . Prior to the rise of Vancouver's Chinatown it was the largest on the mainland following Barkerville 's wane as a centre of population. It was located along Front Street. A second Chinatown opened in an area known as "The Swamp" at the southwestern edge of downtown, bounded roughly by Royal Avenue, Columbia Street, and 8th and 12th Streets. The "Swamp" name
11556-579: Was secured to improve the water and electric services under the Municipality Improvements Assistance Act 1938 . Before the improvements, District Lot 172 was designated as Connaught Heights Waterworks District under the Water Act. Following these improvements, land was set aside for a school and parksite. By the 1950s, the notion of incorporating Connaught Heights Waterworks District into New Westminster became more commonplace. In 1960,
11664-569: Was still in place (the service ended in 1950). The quality of shops was such that even Vancouverites would make the trip by interurban rail or, later on, via Kingsway (originally called the Westminster Highway or Westminster Road), to shop on Columbia Street. In addition to the retailers, Columbia Street was home to major movie houses, the Columbia and the Paramount, rivalling in size and quality to those on Vancouver's Theatre Row. The freeway and
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