BRITISH COLUMBIA TO 1896 Chapter 6

VANCOUVER ISLAND

“54° 40’ OR FIGHT” Mid-1840’s—US wanted to expand its territory 1844—James Polk ran for president His slogan: “54° 40’ or fight” He won and in 1845, tried to negotiate with British government for the Oregon Territory Neither wanted war the 1818 boundary was extended along the 49th parallel to the Pacific Ocean British kept control of Vancouver Land south of Vancouver became American

James Douglas 1848—British government created the Crown colony of Vancouver Island James Douglas became governor Did not like Americans Encouraged British settlement in the colony Thought prospective colonists should receive a free grant of land British government wanted to recreate the English class system

English Class System Settlers purchased land at 1 an acre PROCESS RESULT Settlers purchased land at 1 an acre Minimum 20 acre purchase Settlers who bought over 100 acres had to bring 5 people to work the land Small numbers of landowners Many servants to farm the land 1849—all settlers were ex-HBC workers

Mining Starts 1840’s—Coal discovered near Nanaimo Immigrants arrived to be miners Royal Navy became their first customer Esquimalt harbor established next to Fort Victoria as a naval base Warships needed a supply of coal Mid-1850’s—more mines established at Cumberland north of Vancouver Island

Landed Gentry Royal Navy were ‘gentlemen’ and were a big part of Victorian social life Came from the privileged class in England Douglas liked social gatherings but: Didn’t like the Royal Navy for not owning any land but still being of a high class He and ex-HBC workers didn’t like the landed gentry because they were shunned and prejudiced

Legislative Assembly 1856—Douglas created a Legislative Assembly Response to ex-HBC’s complaints: Vancouver Island was becoming a private club for the landed gentry Was small with 7 voted representatives Only landowners could vote About 40 of 450 adult citizens owned land Douglas wanted final say in the colony Assembly could pass resolutions but not enforce them Could grant monies for the government’s use This took power from the landed gentry because they did not have property and therefore could not vote

NATIVE NEGOTIATIONS 1855—774 immigrants on Vancouver Island and over 30,000 aboriginal peoples Douglas had to negotiate with them to attract more settlers so the colony would grow They had lived there longer and had all of the rich farmland between Fort Victoria and Nanaimo Douglas’s idea: They would surrender the land They would have fishing and hunting rights on the surrendered land

A TREATY 1854—One of his treaties where ‘our’ refers to the Native peoples: The conditions of, or understanding of, this sale is this, that our village sites and enclosed fields are to be kept for our own use, for the use of our children, and for those who may follows after us; and the land shall be properly surveyed hereafter. It is understood, however , that the land itself, with these small exceptions, becomes the entire property of the white people forever; it is also understood that we are at liberty to hunt over the unoccupied land, and to carry on our fisheries as formerly.

COMPENSATION Each family got an annual £210 shillings Seemed Douglas was leasing the land Governments of Britain, Canada and BC know the aboriginal peoples had title to the lands Douglas treaties were the only of the sort to be negotiated in the 19th Century

GOLD RUSHES

A FANTASY People believed they could run along a creek pick up fist-sized nuggets and be wealthy overnight How to find gold in real life: Stake a claim (buy a spot) that you and maybe your workers would work Sink a mine shaft down to bedrock and bring it to the surface Gold-bearing clay and sand would be washed away to reveal gold Was a very tedious process

SACRAMENTO GOLD RUSH 1848—Gold was discovered along the Sacramento River in California 1849—Thousands left their jobs and homes to travel to California Went overland across the US Went overseas around the tip of South America and up the Pacific Few survived the journey Few survivors got rich Few made it back

49’ERS Yeah, a football team Named after the prospectors who showed late and ended up working for original claim holders Late-comers were broke and unemployed by the mid-1850’s Moved to Washington and Oregon after the gold rush ended

RIVER RUSHES 1857—HBC trader arrived in Fort Victoria with 2 vials of gold dust which he panned in the Thompson River He presented the gold to Governor Douglas Douglas feared the news of a gold rush would bring floods of greedy miners into his colony Winter of 1857-58—His fear became a reality Ex-California rushers moved up to the banks of the Thompson and Fraser Rivers

SAN FRANCISCO 1858—Word reached San Francisco Hundreds of unemployed miners tried to book tickets on any ship going north First ship to arrive was the Yosemite April 25, 1858 about 450 miners landed in Fort Victoria Ships continued to arrive End of the Summer—Over 10,000 miners were working on the Fraser River Mostly Americans

TOO MANY AMERICANS Douglas was afraid of territorial expansion of the US Contacted the Colonial Office in London Made Douglas Governor of the Crown colony of BC 1859—Britain sent a group of Royal Engineers under Colonel Richards Moody Provided a level of military authority in the new colony They surveyed the region, giving technical assistance in building roads and towns

CARIBOO

CARIBOO GOLD RUSH 1859—Gold deposits in the Fraser River had been depleted Miners thought the gold has eroded from a larger source upstream The moved upstream, searching for the source 1860-61—Miners found the source that fed the Fraser River: The Cariboo region in south central BC

The Cariboo Road 1860’s—Douglas realized his colony wasn’t getting any profit from the mining All gold taken from BC was taxable Douglas decided to build a road to the goldfields This would ensure gold left via the Fraser and not US territory It would also promote settlement and encourage economic development

THE ROUTES Lake Harrison and Lillooet River Long Route Short Route Lake Harrison and Lillooet River Took some steamer routes along the interior Easier Expensive Through the Fraser Canyon Dangerous Cheaper This route was chosen for the cost, although it was more difficult to make 1862—Construction started

THE COMPLETION A marvellous feat of engineering Covered 650Km from Yale along the Fraser Canyon to the new centre of Cariboo, Barkerville Took 4 years to complete Over $750 000 Mid-1860’s—Gold rush was ending Gold revenues were falling fast when road was completed The colony took the loss hard and did not recover for a long time

BRITISH COLUMBIA

NEED FOR UNION Rapid loss of population and revenue hurt the two colonies Suffered great financial losses Representatives from BC and Vancouver Island wanted to join the colonies This would help economically 1866—Vacouver Island had a $300 000 debt BC had just over $1 000 000 of debt May—Both colonies found out their local bank credit had run out

BC IS BORN British colonial office agreed with the idea of uniting the BC and Vancouver Island colonies Did not want to give large subsidies August 6, 1866—British government formally united the two colonies to form British Columbia Governor Seymour; more popular, became the new colony’s governor Legislative Assembly was established with 23 members Only 9 were elected 5 representatives from the mainland and 4 from the Island

? UNION WAS NOT THE CURE? Union did not solve their problems Population continued to decline Money problems also continued A more permanent solution was needed ?

FACTIONS OF CONFEDERATION There were three groups: Strongly opposed Confederation Supported Confederation Supported annexation by the US Mostly Victoria businessmen 1868-1870—Debate was never-ending BC’s future was unknown

A STEP TOWARDS CONFEDERATION 1868—Election held for Legislative Assembly Mainland—Candidates supported confederation Island—Candidates were against confederation Governor Seymour died suddenly while touring the northern communities Anthony Musgrave, John A. Macdonald’s personal friend, was Seymour’s successor Macdonald had recommended Musgrave Instructions from the British Colonial Office: Get BC to join Canada as quickly as possible

CONFEDERATION ACHIEVED Musgrave promised an entirely elected Legislature once Confederation was reached With a promised responsible government, terms of Confederation was accepted collectively July 20, 1871—British Columbia officially joined Canada

CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILROAD

CPR PROPOSITION Elected mainland representatives supported Confederation January, 1868—Forwarded resolutions to the government of Canada Proposed that Canada be responsible for BC’s debt Federal government should build a transcontinental railway as a link to the East Resolutions were overpowered in the Legislative Assembly by a vote of 12-4 Mainland representatives spent the year promoting Confederation through the press Believed only the public’s support could convince the governor and his supporters

ANNEXATIONISTS Circulated a petition to be sent to President Grant in Washington In Victoria, a population of 3000, only 125 signatures were collected Annexation was not popular Musgrave decided to co-opt the anti-confederation supporters They would make a policy on the terms of union and travel to Ottawa together to present the proposition Canadian government agreed and construction was to begin within 2 years and be completed in 10

RAILWAY SURVEY Macdonald had no idea of the cost of the railway Interior BC was mostly unknown Federal government sent out surveyors to find all possible routes This bought time to find a way to finance the railway 2 major groups: Island politicians wanted the railway to go across the central interior down the Homathco Rive to Bute Inlet, across the Georgia Strait to the Island Mainland politicians wanted the route through the Fraser Canyon to the Burrard Inlet

“BATTLE OF THE ROUTES” Alexander Mackenzie succeeded John A. Macdonald as Prime Minister He was reluctant to build the railway 1870’s—Groups pressured the government to pick their route for the CPR 1878—21 routes has been considered for personal benefit

NO METROPOLIS 1881—Port Moody was the designated terminus for the CPR Speculators bought land, buying into the future metropolis 1884—William Van Horne arrived to make the precise location for the terminus Discovered the harbour was made of tidal flats Could not hold deep-sea vessels needing to dock to load and unload cargo Continues his search for anchorage

NEW TERMINUS 1884—William Van Horne arrived in Port Moody and was greeted by David Oppenheimer He took Horne around Gastown and rowed him through the inner and outer harbours Horne was impressed by the amount of land that could be used for the terminus Oppenheimer offered half his land to the CPR as well as other landholders to seal the deal Smart because he knew the price of land would skyrocket with the CPR terminus there 1885—CPR was completed

VANCOUVER

THE YOUNGEST COMMUNITY Youngest major community in BC Other major centres started with fur trade or the Cariboo Gold Rush During this time settlers were discouraged because: Burrard Inlet isn’t fed by a major river Vancouver’s peninsula is covered by a dense forest

“GASSY JACK” 1865—Hastings Sawmill opened south of the inlet North of the inlet Swell Moody opened a mill in what is now North Vancouver 1868—“Gassy Jack” Deighton opened a saloon near the Hastings Mill because it was dry Other stores and saloons were opened Called “Granville” or “Gastown” after the founder

DAVID OPPENHEIMER Moved to the slightly populated area near the Burrard Inlet in the decline of the Cariboo Gold Rush Thought it would become a major port Was confident that Vancouver would win the “Battle of the Routes” and become the terminus 1877—Bought a huge amount of land south of the inlet

“THE FATHER OF VANCOUVER” By 1885—Oppenheimer owned most of the land in Vancouver 1888—Ran for mayor and won by acclamation In 4 years of being mayor he: Concentrated on infrastructure Laid pipes under Burrard Inlet to carry water from watersheds on the north shore Much of Vancouver’s water comes from this source today Built a sewage system Bankrolled an electric streetcar system and a power company called BC Electric to run the system Donated land for school, parks and with a new city council, established Stanley Park as a permanent green space Encouraged steamer companies to open the area to trade across the Pacific

VOCABULARY

People Responsible Government: Contractor: Landed Gentry: Title: a government in which the executive council is responsible to the legislative assembly, whose members are representatives of the people one who supplies workers the British upper class “landed” in another country established or recognized right to something

Verbs to go back and try to extract more gold from and area after is has already been worked to sell work at a lower price than average to bring someone into a group by capitalizing on their strengths, even if they disagree with you the legal right to mine gold, or other minerals, on a specific piece of land to search for gold by panning gravel to increase the price of something dramatically To rework: To undercut: To co-opt: To stake claim: To pan: To inflate:

Money Shilling: Subsidy: Black Market Economy: Head Tax: Frugal: Speculators: Bankrolled: an old British coinage, about one twentieth of a pound a directs financial aid from a higher level of government an illegal or completely unregulated economy where normal price controls do not apply a tax imposed on each person entering a country careful with money people who buy and sell land for profit funded

Land an imaginary line north or south of the equator Parallel: a low-lying marsh solid rock underneath looser materials suck as soil a town that provides services to people engaged in one main industry a chief city Parallel: Tidal Flat: Bedrock: Service Town: Metropolis:

GOLD RUSH