Insights Into Métis History

Insights Into Métis History

This video was made to provide insights into the Métis people and their contributions to British Columbia. Western and Northern Canada had a unique political environment for 200 years. The Hudson's Bay Company was the legal government according to King Charles II Charter. Parliament tried several times to overturn the Charter and open the vast territory to settlement but it failed. It was only in 1858 when the West Coast statutory grant expired and finally in 1870 with the purchase by Canada that settlement could proceed.
Government in Proto-British Columbia

Government in Proto-British Columbia

For 150 years the Nation State has been the dominant for of government. People today can hardly imagine anything else. But for most of history a host of other forms have thrived.

The Company State was both fully business and fully government. The Hudson Bay Company and East India Company were the largest. Between them they governed ten percent of the Earth’s surface and population.

Can You Speak British Columbian? Part II

Can You Speak British Columbian? Part II

Chinook Wawa is linked with the history of British Columbia. We might even call one form of it British Columbian.

Many languages lent words to Chinook Wawa: Nootka Jargon, French Canadien, Salishan Chehalis, and of course, Chinook.

We might even call one form of it British Columbian. Part aboriginal, part non-aboriginal, many words come from an earlier hybrid language – Nootka Jargon.

The Borders of British Columbia

The Borders of British Columbia

If British Columbia were a country it would rank 31st in size. BC is bigger than France and Germany combined. Four times the size of Britain. Almost three times that of Japan.
BC’s Deadly Smallpox Epidemic

BC’s Deadly Smallpox Epidemic

During the Cariboo Gold Rush, a ship with hundreds of miners from San Fransisco arrived in Victoria. One of them had smallpos. It takes 12 days to get symptoms and become infectious: the rip had taken four days. The infected miner shared a room with others who got sick.
Can You Speak British Columbian?

Can You Speak British Columbian?

Chinook Wawa is linked with the history of British Columbia. We might even call one form of it British Columbian.

James Cook and his midshipman George Vancouver sojourned at Nootka Sound. Their Nuuchahnulth word lists became a Nootka Jargon that spread through the Maritime Fur Trade.

Supported by Chief Concomly and the Chinook Nation, Fort George became the Canadian depot for Columbia furs. French-speaking traders married into Chinook families and learned a Broken Chinook.

Losing Columbia

Losing Columbia

The loss of the heartland of what was Columbia and then became British Columbia was the defining drama of our history. Yet it is largely ignored in many history books.
Columbia: the Forgotten History of British Columbia

Columbia: the Forgotten History of British Columbia

Columbia, or Proto British Columbia, was the direct precursor of our province and its tragic story haunted the important figures of our early history. Its story contains important lessons and inspiration for our future.

The North West Company established the first long-term presence on the West Coast. It created two administrative districts called New Caledonia in the north, run from Fort St. James and Columbia in the south, run from Fort George (now called Astoria). When the North West Company was taken over by the Honorable Hudson Bay Company these territories were amalgamated into one called Columbia.