Bulkley Valley
The Bulkley Valley is located in west central British Columbia, Canada.
Geography
The 257 km long Bulkley River runs through the valley which is bounded on the west by
the Hudson Bay Mountain range and on the east by the Babine Mountains. The northern boundary of the valley is usually considered
the Bulkey's confluence with the Skeena River at Hazelton, although it is sometimes placed further south near Moricetown. The valley's southern edge is at Bulkley Lake, part way between
Houston and Burns
Lake.
The Bulkley, a smaller stream running through Houston and the Morice join just west of Houston. At the point of their joining
they become the Bulkley, not the Morice despite the fact the Morice is larger. This was done by Poudrier, a government
cartographer whom, it is rumoured, never saw the region.
History
The Wet'suwet'en people have called the valley home for thousands of years. With the neighbouring Gitxsan, they had their Aboriginal title in the area affirmed by the Supreme Court of Canada with its Delgamuukw decision of 1997.
The valley is named for the river, which is after American Engineer Charles Bulkley, who
oversaw the construction of the telegraph line through the area in the
1860s.[1] The Grand
Trunk Railway was constructed through the valley by 1914, and development hastened thereafter.
Today, Highway 16 traverses the entire valley.
Economy
Ranching began in the valley around the turn of the 20th century, but has been surpassed in economic importance by the forest
industry and more recently, tourism. There has also been mining activities in the valley.
Communities
The main communities in the Bulkley Valley (South to North):
Other settler communities (past and present) include: South Bulkley, Topley, Walcott, Perow, Quick, Tatlow and Evelyn
See also
- Skeena-Bulkley Valley Federal Electoral District
- Bulkey Valley-Stikine Provincial Electoral District
References
- ^ "Bulkey River". Encyclopedia of British Columbia. Harbour Publishing. 2000
External links
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