988,342,726 visitors served.

Victoria

Port and capital of British Columbia, Canada, on the southeastern tip of Vancouver Island, overlooking the Strait of Juan de Fuca, 132 km/83 mi west of mainland Vancouver; population (2001 est) 74,100. It is a manufacturing, tourist, and retirement centre, and has a naval base. Industries include shipbuilding, food-processing, sawmilling, fishing, and the manufacture of chemicals, clothing, and furniture.

History

Founded in 1843 as a fur-trading post of the Hudson's Bay Company, Victoria was incorporated in 1852, and became a city in 1862. It became capital of the Crown colony of Vancouver Island in 1849, and capital of British Columbia in 1868; the colonies merged in 1866. Victoria lost out economically to Vancouver after 1886 when the railway reached the mainland city.

Features The Provincial Legislative Buildings 1894-97 form Victoria's most imposing architectural structure; nearby is the famous Empress Hotel (1898). Victoria College (1903) became the University of Victoria in 1964, and the city has a symphony orchestra and theatre. Places of interest include the Royal British Columbia Museum, containing major displays of the region's natural history, culture, and history, and a high-tech Open Ocean exhibit; the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory; the Maritime Museum of British Columbia; and the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria. Fort Rodd Hill National Historic Park lies nearby on the coast. Emily Carr House (1864) was the residence of local painter and writer Emily Carr, noted for her paintings of British Columbian landscapes and peoples. Whale-watching is a popular tourist attraction.

Victoria is the western terminus of the Trans-Canada Highway.

Early history Native Canadian Salish peoples inhabited the site before the arrival of the Hudson Bay Company in 1843. The company's trading post, founded as Fort Camosun, was later renamed in honour of young Queen Victoria. Settlers were brought in by the Puget Sound Agricultural Company, a subsidiary of Hudson Bay. In the 19th century, the harbour became a major port for the British Navy's Pacific Fleet. During the gold rush of the 1850s, Victoria became a supply base for prospectors travelling to the mainland.

Boeing Company, the

British Columbia

Fleming, Richard Howell

Vancouver Island