 Richmond, British Columbia is on Lulu Island, the larger of the two red islands |
|
| Geography | |
|---|---|
  Lulu Island (British Columbia)
|
|
| Location | Fraser River |
| Coordinates | 49°10′05″N 123°04′50″W / 49.16806°N 123.08056°W |
| Country | |
|
Canada
|
|
| Province |  British Columbia |
| City | City of Richmond |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 168,162 |
Lulu Island is the geographic name of the island making up most of the City of Richmond, a major suburb of Vancouver, British Columbia. It is situated between the two principal arms of the Fraser River estuary downstream from City of New Westminster, a part of which, the Queensborough community, is included at the extreme eastern end of the island. The Middle Arm of the Fraser River separates it on the northwest from Sea Island, the site of the Vancouver International Airport but also part of the City of Richmond. At the western edge of the island lies Sturgeon Bank, a large sandbank which falls off into the Strait of Georgia on its western edge.
History
Lulu Island was named in 1862 for Lulu Sweet,[1] a popular showgirl, possibly of Kanaka (Hawaiian) origin, who was dating the mayor of New Westminster when the island was named (she had bought property there).
The island enjoyed good connections to the new port city of Vancouver thanks to the Lulu Island & Steveston Railway line of the British Columbia Electric Railway, which began at what is today the north end of the Granville Street Bridge. The route of the Lulu Island Railway is today the so-called Arbutus Corridor, which runs west through Kitsilano before turning south to Kerrisdale and Marpole before crossing the North Arm of the Fraser to reach Lulu Island and the City of Richmond.
The southwestern corner of Lulu Island is home to Steveston, a fishing port and now-busy tourist centre that has a history interconnected with that of the Japanese-Canadians prior to their internment to the Interior during World War II.
Geohazards
Because the island is composed partly of glacial silt brought down by the Fraser River, there is a fear of liquefaction of its sands if a strong-enough tremor were to shake it. In such an eventuality, it is anticipated that large portions of it would slide west into the Strait of Georgia, causing incalculable destruction.[2]
References
- ^ BCGNIS listing "Lulu Island"
- ^ Christian, H.A.; D.J. Woeller, P.K. Robertson, and R.C. Courtney (1997). "Site investigations to evaluate flow liquefaction slides at Sand Heads, Fraser River delta" (PDF). Can. Geotech. J. 34: 384–397. doi:. http://article.pubs.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/ppv/RPViewDoc?_handler_=HandleInitialGet&journal=cgj&volume=34&calyLang=eng&articleFile=t97-004.pdf. Retrieved 2006-07-27.
Coordinates: 49°10′05″N 123°04′50″W / 49.16806°N 123.08056°W
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
