Bulkley Valley
Encyclopedia
British Columbia Interior
The British Columbia Interior or BC Interior or Interior of British Columbia, usually referred to only as the Interior, is one of the three main regions of the Canadian province of British Columbia, the other two being the Lower Mainland, which comprises the overlapping areas of Greater Vancouver...
of British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
Geography
The 257 km long Bulkley RiverBulkley River
The Bulkley River in British Columbia is a major tributary of the Skeena River. The Bulkley is 257 km long with a drainage basin covering 12,400 km²....
runs through the valley which is bounded on the west by the Hudson Bay Mountain range and on the east by the Babine Mountains. The northern boundary of the valley is usually considered the Bulkey's confluence with the Skeena River
Skeena River
The Skeena River is the second longest river entirely within British Columbia, Canada . The Skeena is an important transportation artery, particularly for the Tsimshian and the Gitxsan - whose names mean "inside the Skeena River" and "people of the Skeena River" respectively, and also during the...
at Hazelton
Hazelton, British Columbia
Hazelton is a small town located at the junction of the Bulkley and Skeena Rivers in northern British Columbia, Canada. It was founded in 1866 and has a population of 293...
, although it is sometimes placed further south near Moricetown
Moricetown
Moricetown is a Wet'suwet'en village in Central British Columbia, Canada. The current village was built during early 1900s. Evidence of inhabitants date back to around 4,000 years ago. The original name of the village was 'Kyah Wiget...
. The valley's southern edge is at Bulkley Lake, part way between Houston
Houston, British Columbia
Houston is a forestry, mining and tourism town in the Bulkley Valley of the Northern Interior of British Columbia, Canada. Its urban population is approximately 3600 people, with approximately 2000 in the surrounding rural area. It is known as the "Steelhead Capital" and it has the world's largest...
and Burns Lake
Burns Lake, British Columbia
thumb|309px|right|Burns Lake's welcome signBurns Lake is a rural village in the North-Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada, incorporated in 1923...
.
The Bulkley, a smaller stream running through Houston and the Morice join just west of Houston. At the point of their joining they become the Bulkley, not the Morice despite the fact the Morice is larger. This was done by Poudrier, a government cartographer whom, it is rumoured, never saw the region.
History
Wet'suwet'en
Wet'suwet'en are a First Nations people who live on the Bulkley River and around Broman Lake and Francois Lake in the northwestern Central Interior of British Columbia...
people have called the valley home for thousands of years. With the neighbouring Gitxsan
Gitxsan
Gitxsan are an indigenous people whose home territory comprises most of the area known as the Skeena Country in English...
, they had their Aboriginal title in the area affirmed by the Supreme Court of Canada
Supreme Court of Canada
The Supreme Court of Canada is the highest court of Canada and is the final court of appeals in the Canadian justice system. The court grants permission to between 40 and 75 litigants each year to appeal decisions rendered by provincial, territorial and federal appellate courts, and its decisions...
with its Delgamuukw decision of 1997.
The valley is named for the river, which is after American Engineer Charles Bulkley, who oversaw the construction of the telegraph line
Russian American Telegraph
The Russian–American Telegraph, also known as the Western Union Telegraph Expedition and the Collins Overland Telegraph, was a $3,000,000 undertaking by the Western Union Telegraph Company in 1865-1867, to lay an electric telegraph line from San Francisco, California to Moscow, Russia.The route was...
through the area in the 1860s.
The Grand Trunk Railway
Grand Trunk Railway
The Grand Trunk Railway was a railway system which operated in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario, as well as the American states of Connecticut, Maine, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The railway was operated from headquarters in Montreal, Quebec; however, corporate...
was constructed through the valley by 1914, and development hastened thereafter. Today, Highway 16 traverses the entire valley.
Economy
Ranching began in the valley around the turn of the 20th century, but has been surpassed in economic importance by the forest industry and more recently, tourism.There has also been mining activities in the valley.
Communities
The main communities in the Bulkley Valley (South to North):- HoustonHouston, British ColumbiaHouston is a forestry, mining and tourism town in the Bulkley Valley of the Northern Interior of British Columbia, Canada. Its urban population is approximately 3600 people, with approximately 2000 in the surrounding rural area. It is known as the "Steelhead Capital" and it has the world's largest...
- TelkwaTelkwa, British ColumbiaTelkwa is a village located along British Columbia Highway 16, nearly 15 km southeast of the town of Smithers and 350 km west of the city of Prince George, in northwest British Columbia, Canada....
- SmithersSmithers, British ColumbiaSmithers is a town located in northwestern British Columbia, Canada, approximately halfway between Prince George and Prince Rupert. Smithers is located in the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako....
- MoricetownMoricetownMoricetown is a Wet'suwet'en village in Central British Columbia, Canada. The current village was built during early 1900s. Evidence of inhabitants date back to around 4,000 years ago. The original name of the village was 'Kyah Wiget...
Other settler communities (past and present) include: South Bulkley, Topley, Walcott, Perow, Quick, Tatlow and Evelyn
See also
- Skeena-Bulkley Valley Federal Electoral DistrictSkeena—Bulkley ValleySkeena—Bulkley Valley is a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-Geography:...
- Bulkey Valley-Stikine Provincial Electoral DistrictBulkley Valley-StikineBulkley Valley-Stikine was a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Canada from 1991 to 2009.- Demographics :-MLAs:*Frank Arthur Calder, CCF/NDP ; Social Credit *Al Passarell, NDP...