Do you have a favourite spot in BC we should know about?
Contact getawaybc.com
Editor, Cheryl MacKinnon Or click here to submit a calendar event
Two cities share a proud heritage
Thursday, May 31st, 2007 by GetawayBC.com
Burnaby and New Westminster share a proud history as a couple of B.C.’s pioneer settlements.
It was 1859, when New Westminster was selected as the first capital of the new colony of British Columbia and officially named by Queen Victoria, after her favourite part of London. And although the legislature was later moved to Victoria, New Westminster retained its “Royal City” moniker.
That same year, Robert Burnaby led a survey party with local aboriginal guides to explore the wilderness surrounding Burnaby Lake in 1859. Burnaby was the private secretary to Colonel R.C. Moody of the Royal Engineers who founded New Westminster. Today, the lake, and of course the city, are named in his honour.
New Westminster’s history is filled firsts. In addition to being B.C.’s first capital, it was the first city in Western Canada and a year after its founding it became the first city to have an elected municipal government.
The fortunes of the city have ebbed and flowed since those early days. In the 1800s, primary resources such as lumber and fishing dominated the economy, but those gave way to heavy industry and manufacturing in the first half of the 1900s, which then gave way to retail from the mid 1950s to the ’70s. Today the health care sector, followed by the manufacturing and educational service sectors have the highest concentration of jobs in New Westminster.
New Westminster, with a population of nearly 59,000, is roughly 15 square kilometres and is in the centre of the Lower Mainland along the north banks of the Fraser River with views of the Golden Ears Mountains, Mount Baker and the Fraser River estuary. The spectacular view from all areas of the city make urban life here very special.
Royal City residents often describe the city as having the feeling of a small town with an identity all its own and a pride in what it has. It is not just a suburb of a larger community, but has traditions and character that set it apart. May Day, the Ancient and Honourable Hyack Anvil Battery Salute, Hyack Festival, and FraserFest, are known throughout the area.
The Royal City also has an array of beautiful homes and buildings, heritage and modern, which speak of a continuing enthusiasm for architecture and design.
New Westminster’s neighborhoods supply attractions of their own. They thrive on their own local history with connections that cross the community: Queensborough with its ethnic roots and strong association with fishing and the river; Sapperton with the former B.C. Penitentiary, brewery and hospital; Downtown with its founding importance and drive to reclaim its vitality; Queen’s Park with its commanding collection of fine homes; the West End, later in developing but now embracing its own unique identity; Uptown, deriving its initial impetus from a Woodward’s store; and Kelvin, Brow of the Hill, Brunette, Connaught Heights, Glenbrook … they all have stories of their own.
In Burnaby, the earliest pioneers settled in around 1850 and Burnaby developed very slowly until 1887, when the Canadian Pacific Railway was extended into Vancouver from Port Moody.
Travel between the new port city and the old capital city led to construction of the country’s first interurban electric tramline in 1891 (today’s SkyTrain Expo line follows the same route). The tramline opened the area to farming and settlement, and local residents banded together to form the new Municipality of Burnaby on Sept. 24, 1892.
By 1892, Burnaby had its first park along with a store, post office, two schools and a church. Within five years, the population in South Burnaby had grown to 400. The opening of the Barnet Mill in North Burnaby in 1900 started a second settlement within the municipality.
By 1930, Burnaby had shed its early agricultural beginnings and had grown to become the third largest municipality in B.C. In 1992, Burnaby celebrated its 100th anniversary by becoming the City of Burnaby.
Today, Burnaby is B.C.’s third-largest city with a population of more than 205,000 and covers an area of 85.6 square kilometres (38.07 square miles). It has evolved from a predominantly suburban, bedroom community to an urban centre in its own right serving as a regional focus for a variety of business, recreation and education activities. ;