Vancouver Island, located in British Columbia, Canada, is the largest Pacific island east of New Zealand. While the city of Vancouver stands on the North American mainland, Victoria, the capital city of British Columbia, is located on the island.

The island was first explored by Europeans when British and Spanish expeditions arrived in the late 18th century. It was originally named Quadra's and Vancouver's Island in commemoration of the friendly negotiations held by Spanish commander of the Nootka Sound settlement, Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra, and by British naval captain George Vancouver in Nootka Sound in 1792, to find a solution to the Nootka Crisis. Quadra's name was eventually dropped and it has since been known solely as Vancouver Island. It is one of several North American locations named after George Vancouver, the British Royal Navy officer who explored the Pacific Northwest coast of North America between 1791 and 1794.

Along with most of the southern Gulf Islands, plus various minor islands offshore from its southern end, the southern part of Vancouver Island is the only part of British Columbia (and of Western Canada) that lies south of the 49th Parallel. The area has one of the warmest climates in Canada and since the mid-1990s has been mild enough in a few areas to grow subtropical Mediterranean crops such as olives and lemons.

Vancouver Island was a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1871 to 1874. It was created when the province of British Columbia joined Confederation in 1871.

Like other ridings established in that year, a by-election was called to fill the seat until the general election of 1872. The riding was composed of all those parts of the former Crown Colony of Vancouver Island and adjoining islands and islets, excluding the area around the capital, Victoria District. The 1871 names were all temporary pending ratification of the riding system by the provincial legislature. In 1872, this riding was abolished, and replaced by Vancouver riding.

Election results

Note: Winners of each election are in bold.

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This page lists all historical and current federal and provincial electoral districts on Vancouver Island.

Federal

Current

Historical

All Vancouver Island ridings other than those immediately in and around Victoria are descended from the original Vancouver Island riding, which existed only as a temporary measure from the province's joining confederation in 1871 until elections with legally-mandated electoral districts was held the following year. At that time the Vancouver Island riding was renamed simply Vancouver and its counterpart Victoria District was renamed Victoria.

Provincial

Current

Vancouver (ⁱ/væŋˈkuːvər/ or /vænˈkuːvər/) officially the City of Vancouver, is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada.

The 2011 census recorded 603,502 people in the city, making it the eighth largest Canadian municipality. The Greater Vancouver area of around 2.4 million inhabitants is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country, the second largest city on the United States–Canada border, and the most populous in Western Canada. Vancouver is one of the most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities in Canada; 52% of its residents have a first language other than English. Vancouver is classed as a Beta global city. The City of Vancouver encompasses a land area of about 114 square kilometres, giving it a population density of about 5,249 people per square kilometre (13,590 per square mile). Vancouver is the most densely populated Canadian municipality, and the fourth most densely populated city with over 250,000 residents in North America, behind New York City, San Francisco, and Mexico City.

Vancouver was a steam-run bark built and operated by the Hudson's Bay Company to serve on the route between London, England and Fort Victoria on Vancouver Island in what is now the province of British Columbia, Canada. Other vessels committed to the route were Columbia and Cowlitz, but Vancouver was the first of the three to enter Victoria harbour, and the first vessel to sail directly from England to enter that port, in 1845. Other vessels in the company's service were Nereid and Cadboro.

Vancouver was 324 tons burthen, and had six guns and a crew of 24 men.

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References

Pacific Central Station in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada is a railway station which acts as the western terminus of Via Rail's cross-country The Canadian to Toronto and the northern terminus of Amtrak’s Cascades to Seattle and Portland.

Pacific Central Station is adjacent to the Vancouver SkyTrain Main Street – Science World Station. Westbound trains go into downtown near hotels, businesses and other attractions. End of the line is at Waterfront Station (formerly the Canadian Pacific station), offering connections to the Seabus, West Coast Express commuter trains and other bus lines. Eastbound locals head into the suburbs, such as Burnaby and New Westminster.

The station also provides intercity coach service, being the head office and bus depot of Pacific Coach Lines and the main Vancouver terminal for Greyhound Canada. Also Malaspina bus, which serves the Sunshine Coast communities of Gibsons, Sechelt and Powell River. The station is wheelchair-accessible and is staffed with full Via services.