Fort Langley National Historic Site
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Fort Langley, is a Parks Canada National historic site, a former trading post of the Hudson's Bay Company, now located in the village of Fort Langley, British Columbia. It is commonly referred to as "the birthplace of British Columbia."
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[edit] History
[edit] Early Use
The fort was built in 1827 under the direction of James McMillan, Chief Trader of the Hudson's Bay Company. It was located 50 kilometres (30 miles) from the mouth of the Fraser River, and named after Thomas Langley, a prominent HBC director.[2] The Hudson Bay Company's objectives for building the fort were to set up a fur trading post and farm to supply food to the various trading posts west of the Rocky Mountains.
The location of the fort was moved four kilometres upstream in 1839 due to an agreement with the Russian American Company that changed its focus to farming, rather than the fur trade. The fort burned down in 1840 and was rebuilt.
[edit] Birthplace of British Columbia
Due to its strategic location on 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 social and political consequences of this influx of adventurers led the British Parliament to establish a crown colony on the Pacific Mainland. Fort Langley was the location of the proclaimation of the Crown Colony of British Columbia in 1858 by James Douglas, the colony's first governor.
[edit] Decline
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 and later moved to Victoria. Finally, competition for goods and services undercut the monopoly the Hudson Bay Company had formerly enjoyed. In 1886, Fort Langley ceased to be a company post.
[edit] Historical revival
In 1923, the Canadian government named Fort Langley as a site of national historic importance and erected a commemorative plaque near the storehouse. The site was established as a Parks Canada National historic site in 1955. The restoration of the fort was completed for the centennial of the founding of British Columbia in 1958.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b Fort Langley National Historic Site National Geographic Destinations
- ^ First Fort Langley National in The Langley Story Illustrated
