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Canadian Historic Sites: Occasional Papers in Archaeology and History No. 20
The History of Fort Langley, 1827-96
by Mary K. Cullen
Preface
On 5 May 1925 the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada
unveiled a commemorative plaque on the site of Fort Langley, "the First
Trading Post on the Pacific Coast of Canada" and the "Birthplace of the
Colony of British Columbia." Fort Langley National Historic Park was
created in 1955 and in 1956 the governments of Canada and British
Columbia jointly undertook a partial restoration of the fort centering
around the surviving original building. An intensive cooperative effort
involving Eastern and Western historians, architects, archivists and
other interested citizens resulted in the completion of the first phase
for the centenary of the crown colony of British Columbia in 1958. Since
then the absence of a single comprehensive history of the fort has
tended to obscure the direction of future site development. To meet this
need, in September 1969 the National Historic Parks and Sites Branch
started a research project intended to bring together existing
information and unearth new data on Fort Langley. The story which
emerged from this search became the basis of the interpretative
historical display installed at the Big House in 1971. It is presented
as "The History of Fort Langley, 1827-96."
The National Historic Parks and Sites Branch acknowledges with
gratitude the cooperation of the Hudson's Bay Company, the Public
Archives of Canada, the Provincial Archives of British Columbia and
other libraries and institutions in making primary source material
relating to Fort Langley available for study. Besides granting access to
its microfilm collection in the Public Archives of Canada, the Hudson's
Bay Company generously gave the author leave to consult its photographic
material in Winnipeg and post-1870 documentation in London and to have
maps, sketches, photos and advertisements copied for publication.
Quotation of Company sources are published with the permission of the
Hudson's Bay Company.
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