British Columbia

British Columbia (BC) is located on the westernmost part of Canada and is renowned for its scenic natural beauty. It was the sixth Canadian province formed in 1871.

Geography
The province of British Columbia has the Pacific Ocean to the west, Alaska to the northwest, and to its north lie the Yukon and Northwest Territories. Alberta province lies on the east of British Columbia, and towards the south, there are the Washington, Idaho, and Montana states of U.S.A. British Columbia’s land area occupies about 364,800 sq mi, while the rugged coastline extends for approximately 17,000 mi. There are several parks as well as protected areas in British Columbia. Some of the national parks include:

• Glacier National Park
• Gulf Islands National Park Reserve
• Kootenay National Park
• Yoho National Park
• Mount Revelstoke National Park

Climate
British Columbia enjoys mainly mild and temperate climate and is known for the warmest and finest weather in entire Canada. British Columbia’s weather ranges from moderate (marine) to continental and is predominantly influenced by the Pacific Ocean, the towering mountains, the westerly winds blowing through the region and the northern latitude of the province. The northern part of British Columbia has colder winters and cooler summers compared to the remaining parts of the province.

History
Stone tools discovery on the Beatton River close to Fort St. John point to human habitation in British Columbia to more than 11500 years back. Explorations by James Cook during the 1770s and George Vancouver in 1792 firmly established British control on the coastal area, towards the north and western sides of Columbia River. Most of the explorers were primarily concerned with furthering the fur trade. The building of trading posts under the banners of North West Company and Hudson Bay Company led to the development of a strong British presence in the area.

Demographics
English ethnic origin percentage is the highest in British Columbia followed by Scottish, Irish, German, Chinese, French, East Indian and others. Large proportions of immigrants have lived in this province for 30 years or so. British Columbia also contained the highest visible minorities’ population compared to other Canadian provinces.

Economy
British Columbia’s economy mainly was based on forestry industry and mining. Employment in resource areas has fallen with time, and jobs nowadays have been concentrated in the retail/service and construction sectors. The film industry in British Columbia is known as Hollywood North. Vancouver is the third biggest film producing location in the continent apart from Los Angeles and New York City. Economic activity in relation to mining has witnessed dramatic changes in British Columbia.

Cities
Victoria is the capital city of British Columbia. The city of Vancouver has the highest population. Other main cities of this province include:

• Surrey
• Burnaby
• Richmond
• Coquitlam
• Delta
• New Westminster
• Pitt Meadows
• Maple Ridge

Famous people
Some of the famous personalities of British Columbia include:

• Elaine Tanner – female Canadian swimmer
• Manzo Nagano – Earliest Japanese settler in Canada
• Patrick Morrow – Photojournalist, climber
• Dennis Chitty – World’s lemmings expert