The human geography of southeastern Vancouver Island, 1842-1891
Date
1969
Authors
Floyd, Patrick Donald
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Abstract
In the latter half of the Nineteenth Century the human geography of Southeastern Vancouver Island was significantly altered four times. These changes were largely the result of new economic functions being introduced to the area. The Victoria region has been the subject of a number of historical and geographic studies, but they have been topical in nature rather than regional. This study endeavours to describe and analyze the changing patterns in the human geography which followed each change in economic function.
The approach used is to present a series of cross-sections, in which the regional geography of the area is analyzed in depth. A brief historical background is given for each cross-section, describing the change in function that occurred. In this study five cross-sections are used. The first describes Southeastern Vancouver Island when it was used only by the Salish Indians. The second describes the area during the administration of the Hudson's Bay Company. The third deals with the human geography in the period following the Gold Rush. The last two cross-sections describe the geography before and after the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1885. The study ends with Victoria still the dominant center in British Columbia. By the end of the century Vancouver had passed Victoria in size and economic importance, but the overshadowing of Victoria as the economic center of the province was only relative, because in many respects the Victoria region continued to grow.
This study does not provide any new theories on the history of Southeastern Vancouver Island. Rather, it is a geographer's view of change in an area that played an important role in the cultural and economic history of British Columbia in the Nineteenth Century. By stressing the concept of place, the idea of a continually changing landscape is emphasized. The cross-section approach clearly illustrates the change from one period to the next. The study also illustrates the role that culture plays in changing the landscape. At each stage the dominant economic group had a different view of the value of Southeastern Vancouver Island, and attempted to shape it to meet the group's needs.