Gold and the early settlement of British Columbia: 1858-1885
department or school: Arts, Faculty of
department or school: Geography, Department of
data provider: DSpace
degree campus: UBCV
creator: Bunn, Agnus Macleod
issued: 2011-09-20T16:22:10Z
issued: 1965
related degree: Master of Arts - MA
degree grantor: University of British Columbia
description: Mining frontiers have rarely attracted the attention of geographers because of the transitory nature of settlement in such areas. However, a more stable pattern of settlement emerges if the area of study is broadened to include the supply centres for the mines and the transportation routes along which the supplies were carried. The permanent impact of mining on settlement occurred in these service centres and along the main transportation routes leading to the mines. This study examines the nature of the permanent impact on British Columbia of the gold rushes which occurred between I858 and 1866. These rushes established a new pattern of settlement which remained until the coming of the railway in 1885, and, later, they acted as guidelines in the development of settlement. The British Columbia frontier was part of a larger frontier which was opened in California in 1848 and spread northward and eastward in the ensuing twenty years. San Francisco early secured a dominant position as the manufacturing centre for this frontier area, and it retained this position throughout the period of the British Columbia gold rushes. As a result, British Columbia remained within San Francisco's hinterland from 1858 to 1885 and most of the gold mined was shipped to the San Francisco Mint to pay for manufactured goods. The main flow of gold arrived when the United States Government was in very great need of gold to hack its borrowing for the conduct of the Civil War. The determination of the Colonial Government of British Columbia to secure political autonomy in spite of economic dependence on the United States led to the construction of costly wagon roads from east to west across the mountain barrier of the Coast ranges. These roads funneled trade from the interior of the Province through the Lower Fraser Valley to New Westminster and Victoria and thus avoided the traditional Columbia fur trade supply routes which lay in United States Territory. The wagon roads inaugurated a new era …
aggregated CHO: https://circle.library.ubc.ca/rest/handle/2429/37481
note: GOLD AND THE EARLY SETTLEMENT OF BRITISH COLUMBIA, 1858-1885 by ANGUS MACLEOD GUNN B.Ed., University of British Columbia, 1961 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS in the Department of Geography We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA September, 1965 In p r e s e n t i n g t h i s t h e s i s i n p a r t i a l f u l f i l m e n t o f t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s f o r an advanced degree a t t h e U n i v e r s i t y o f B r i t i s h C o l u m b i a , I a g r e e t h a t t h e L i b r a r y s h a l l make i t f r e e l y a v a i l a b l e f o r r e f e r e n c e and s t u d y . I f u r t h e r a g r e e t h a t p e r -m i s s i o n f o r e x t e n s i v e c o p y i n g o f t h i s t h e s i s f o r s c h o l a r l y p u r p o s e s may be g r a n t e d by t h e Head o f my Department o r by h i s r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s . . I t i s u n d e r s t o o d t h a t c o p y i n g o r p u b l i -c a t i o n o f t h i s t h e s i s f o r f i n a n c i a l g a i n s h a l l not be a l l o w e d w i t h o u t my w r i t t e n p e r m i s s i o n . Department o f Geography The U n i v e r s i t y o f B r i t i s h Columbia Vancouver 8, Canada Date r^K^- iw- 2 7 I^Ls ii ABSTRACT Mining f r o n t i e r s have r a r e l y a t t r a c t e d the a t t e n t i o n of geographers because of the t r a n s i t o r y nature of settlement i n such a r e a s . However, a more s t a b l e p a t t e r n of settlement emerges i f the a r e a of study i s broadened to i n c l u d e the supply c e n t r e s f o r the mines and the t r a n s p o r -t a t i o n r o u t e s a l o n g which the s u p p l i e s were c a r r i e d . The permanent impact of mining on settlement o c c u r r e d i n these s e r v i c e c e n t r e s and a l o n g the main t r a n s p o r t a t i o n r o u t e s l e a d i n g to the mines. T h i s study examines the nature of the permanent impact on B r…
has type: Thesis/Dissertation
is shown at: 10.14288/1.0104826
language: eng
degree discipline: Geography
provider: Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
publisher: University of British Columbia
rights: For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.
scholar level: Graduate
type: Text
identifier URI: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/37481