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Hudson's Hope is a
district municipality A district municipality is a designation for a class of municipalities found in several locations, including Canada, Lithuania, and South Africa. Canada British Columbia Under provincial law, municipalities in British Columbia are to be desi ...
in northeastern
British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, for ...
, Canada, in the Peace River Regional District. Having been first settled along the Peace River in 1805, it is the third-oldest European-Canadian community in the province, although it was not incorporated until 1965. Most jobs in the economy are associated with the nearby
W. A. C. Bennett Dam The W. A. C. Bennett Dam is a large hydroelectric dam on the Peace River in northern British Columbia, Canada. At high, it is one of the world's highest earth fill dams. Construction of the dam began in 1961 and culminated in 1968. At the da ...
and
Peace Canyon Dam The Peace Canyon Dam is a large hydroelectric dam on the Peace River in northern British Columbia, Canada. It is located southwest of Hudson's Hope, downstream from the W.A.C. Bennett Dam. The high concrete dam, completed in 1980, impounds ...
, and
timber Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, w ...
logging Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks or skeleton cars. Logging is the beginning of a supply cha ...
. There is debate about the origin of Hudson's Hope's name. One theory derives the word "Hudson's" from the
Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business di ...
and "Hope" from the Scottish word "hope" meaning a "small enclosed valley". Another theory has the name derived from a prospector named Hudson who came to the area searching for gold.Peace Liard Employment Development Association. (October 1985). ''Peace Liard Economic Profile''. page 53. The District of Hudson's Hope slogan is the "Playground of the Peace".


History

Nomadic aboriginal Dene zaa tribes originally occupied the area. Alexander Mackenzie and his team of
voyageurs The voyageurs (; ) were 18th and 19th century French Canadians who engaged in the transporting of furs via canoe during the peak of the North American fur trade. The emblematic meaning of the term applies to places (New France, including th ...
became the first Europeans to travel through as they canoed westward along the Peace River in 1793. Simon Fraser followed in 1805 and established a
North West Company The North West Company was a fur trading business headquartered in Montreal from 1779 to 1821. It competed with increasing success against the Hudson's Bay Company in what is present-day Western Canada and Northwestern Ontario. With great weal ...
fur-trading outpost, the Rocky Mountain Portage House, at the foot of the canyon directly across the river from the current townsite. This was the only significant portage site on the Peace River between
Fort Chipewyan Fort Chipewyan , commonly referred to as Fort Chip, is a hamlet in northern Alberta, Canada, within the Regional Municipality (RM) of Wood Buffalo. It is located on the western tip of Lake Athabasca, adjacent to Wood Buffalo National Park, app ...
and Fort McLeod. The
Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business di ...
took control of the fort after merging with the North West Company in 1821 but abandoned it in 1823 after a massacre in the nearby Fort St. John outpost. The HBC opened a new trading post on the southern river banks in 1866 to compete against free traders coming in from the west. (Hudson's Bay Company Archives B.39/b/18 p. 57) Though its origins are unclear, the name ''Hudson's Hope'' was first recorded in 1868. Theories on its origin include an explorer named Hudson searching for the Northwest Passage, or a prospector named Henry Hudson searching for gold, or the use of the English and Scottish word ''hope'', meaning a small enclosed valley. In 1899 the fort was moved to the townsite's present-day location on the north bank to better serve those portaging northwestwards. Much of the area was explored by prospectors and surveying crews as the Peace River Block was opened to mineral staking in 1908 and homestead claims in 1912. A permanent settlement was established in 1912 by a police officer, who was previously stationed in Fort St. John, and a friend from Victoria, who staked the first homestead. Others joined them as they travelled through Edmonton, Dunvegan, and Fort St. John to found the communities of Beryl Prairie and Lynx Creek. Soon, as other settlers came, they built a post office, hotel, and church around the trading post. In 1923 settlers opened the first school. Coal was discovered a few years earlier and used locally. Commercial coal mining, attempted in 1923, was not successful due to the isolation and high transportation costs to other markets. Construction of the
Alaska Highway and runs westward along the north bank of the Peace River through the townsite, Lynx Creek, and Farrel Creek. From the townsite, the W.A.C. Bennett Dam is west. In total, the district maintains of paved and of unpaved roadsReed Construction (2005). ''Municipal Redbook: An Authoritative Reference Guide to Local Government in British Columbia'', Burnaby, BC, 23. with most of the businesses located along the Beattie Road portion of Highway 29. Community facilities and some residential areas are located between Beattie Road and the Peace River, and more residential areas are located on hills north of the downtown area. The Hudson's Hope Airport, west of town, is a small airport with a -long paved runway that handles private and chartered flights. The closest commercial airport, with regularly scheduled flights, is approximately to the east, near Fort St. John. The closest regional bus stop and rail station is about to the south, in Chetwynd. The town draws its
drinking water Drinking water is water that is used in drink or food preparation; potable water is water that is safe to be used as drinking water. The amount of drinking water required to maintain good health varies, and depends on physical activity level, ...
from the Peace River, and chlorinates and distributes it through of watermains.
Sewage Sewage (or domestic sewage, domestic wastewater, municipal wastewater) is a type of wastewater that is produced by a community of people. It is typically transported through a sewer system. Sewage consists of wastewater discharged from reside ...
is collected through of
sanitary sewers A sanitary sewer is an underground pipe or tunnel system for transporting sewage from houses and commercial buildings (but not stormwater) to a sewage treatment plant or disposal. Sanitary sewers are a type of gravity sewer and are part of an ...
and processed in a two-cell
lagoon A lagoon is a shallow body of water separated from a larger body of water by a narrow landform, such as reefs, barrier islands, barrier peninsulas, or isthmuses. Lagoons are commonly divided into '' coastal lagoons'' (or ''barrier lagoons ...
system. The municipality funds weekly garbage collection from households in the townsite and transfer stations in the rural communities. Electrical power is supplied by the provincially owned
BC Hydro The British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority, operating as BC Hydro, is a Canadian electric utility in the province of British Columbia. It is the main electricity distributor, serving more than 4 million customers in most areas, with the exce ...
and natural gas by the privately owned Pacific Natural Gas.


Economy and education

Hudson's Hope has a predominantly resource-based economy. The community was founded as a trading post along a portage trail but with sternwheelers and steamships navigating the Peace River in the 1800s resource extraction, such as logging and farming, began. The town's economy turned towards construction starting in the 1960s with the Bennett Dam followed by the Peace Canyon Dam. Additional staff have been employed with the dams’ museums and tour-related activities.BC Stats (February 8, 2006)
"Hudson's Hope District Municipality" (pdf)
''Community Facts'', Retrieved 12 March 2006.
The only school in the municipality is the Hudson's Hope Elementary-Secondary School, administered by School District 60 Peace River North. The school, constructed in 1993, teaches students from
kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cen ...
to
grade 12 Twelfth grade, 12th grade, senior year, or grade 12 is the final year of secondary school in most of North America. In other regions, it may also be referred to as class 12 or Year 13. In most countries, students are usually between the ages of 17 ...
and has an enrollment of about 220 students.
Northern Lights College Northern Lights College (NLC) is an institution that provides post-secondary education to residents of Northern British Columbia. It currently has campuses and access centers in eight communities across the northern third of British Columbia, wi ...
offers courses at the Hudson's Hope Learning Centre that focus on the oil and gas industry, as well as adult basic, continuing, and
vocational education Vocational education is education that prepares people to work as a technician or to take up employment in a skilled craft or trade as a tradesperson or artisan. Vocational Education can also be seen as that type of education given to an i ...
.


Culture and recreation

The Hudson's Hope Museum is located in the old Hudson's Bay Store, built in 1942. It has exhibits on the area's prehistory (i.e. dinosaur fossils, bones and tracks), frontier times (i.e. aboriginal, North West Company and the Hudson's Bay Company artifacts), and boom times (i.e. construction of Bennett and Peace Canyon dams). Both dams have museums and offer tours. The museum at the Bennett Dam focuses on the massive engineering and construction programs to build the reservoir and world's largest earth-filled dam. The museum at the Peace Canyon Dam focuses on the natural history of the area, especially the dinosaur finds that were discovered during construction of the dam. The town maintains a library, skating arena, curling rink, and an outdoor heated swimming pool. The Hudson's Hope Community Hall is used for theatrical performances, dances, and public meetings. Annual events include a rodeo in June, a fall fair in August, and a torchlight parade in December. The district operates three public parks: Beattie Park with a playground and visitor information centre, Centennial Park with its chainsaw carvings and totem poles, and Memorial Park with tennis courts, swimming pool and toboggan hill. Outside the townsite, the district helps maintain the Beryl Prairie Community Park, and Jamieson Woods Nature Preserve. Williston Lake, Dinosaur Lake, Cameron Lake and the Peace River are used for canoeing, kayaking, sailing and fishing. In addition to private campgrounds, the district operates four campgrounds. King Gething Park and Alwin Holland Park, both named after 1920s–30s pioneers, are fully serviced campgrounds and RV parks on the north bank of the Peace River, west of the townsite. Dinosaur Lake Campground near the Peace Canyon dam and Cameron Lake Campground near North Cameron Lake were both taken over by the district in 1989 from the province.


Government and politics

The District of Hudson's Hope has a council-manager form of
municipal government A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...
. A mayor and six councillors are elected
at-large At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent a whole membership or population (notably a city, county, state, province, nation, club or association), rather than ...
every three years, along with one trustee to the
school district A school district is a special-purpose district that operates local public primary and secondary schools in various nations. North America United States In the U.S, most K–12 public schools function as units of local school districts, w ...
. Such a system results in candidates who appeal to the majority of voters. In a December 2, 2012 by-election, Gwen Johansson was elected as the mayor of Hudson's Hope, replacing Karen Anderson. In November 2011 Karen Anderson had been elected mayor. She had first been elected mayor in 2008, defeating former mayor Lenore Harwood. The mayor is appointed by the council as the District's representative on the Board of Directors of the Peace River Regional District. Hudson's Hope is situated in the
Peace River North Peace River North is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Canada. It was created under the name North Peace River by the ''Constitution Amendment Act, 1955'', which split the old riding of Peace Ri ...
provincial electoral district and is represented by
Pat Pimm Pat Pimm (born March 31, 1957) is a Canadian politician, who was elected as a BC Liberal Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in the 2009 provincial election, and represented the riding of Peace River North. He has lived in ...
in the
Legislative Assembly of British Columbia The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia is the deliberative assembly of the Parliament of British Columbia, in the province of British Columbia, Canada. The Legislative Assembly meets in Victoria. Members are elected from provincial ...
. Prior to Pimm, the town was represented by
Richard Neufeld Richard Neufeld (born November 6, 1944) was a Canadian Senator for British Columbia from his being appointed by the Right Hon. Prime Minister Stephen Harper in December 2008 until his aging out of the Canadian Senate upon his 75th birthday on ...
who was first elected as a
Member of the Legislative Assembly A member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) is a representative elected by the voters of a constituency to a legislative assembly. Most often, the term refers to a subnational assembly such as that of a state, province, or territory of a country. S ...
in the 1991 provincial election with the
BC Social Credit Party The British Columbia Social Credit Party, whose members are known as Socreds, was the governing provincial political party of British Columbia, Canada, for all but three years between the 1952 provincial election and the 1991 election. For fou ...
taking 31% of votes cast at the Hudson's Hope polls and re-elected with the Reform Party of BC in
1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 800, causing the plane to crash and killing everyone o ...
with 44% support, with the
BC Liberal Party The British Columbia Liberal Party, often shortened to the BC Liberals, is a centre-right provincial political party in British Columbia, Canada. The party currently forms the Official Opposition. Subsequent to the 2020 British Columbia general ...
in
2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a multi-national coalition in an invasion of Afghanist ...
and
2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; " Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discover ...
with 57% and 41%Elections BC (2005)
Peace River South Electoral District (pdf)
, ''Statement of Votes, 2005''. Retrieved on November 18, 2005.
from Hudson's Hope polls, respectively. Federally, Hudson's Hope is located in the
Prince George—Peace River A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...
riding, which is represented in the
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...
by
Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...
Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...
Bob Zimmer Bob Zimmer (born October 20, 1968) is a Canadian politician and a Member of Parliament in the House of Commons of Canada. He was elected to represent the riding of Prince George—Peace River in the 2011 election, and re-elected in the 2015 e ...
. Prior to Zimmer, the town was represented by
Jay Hill Jay D. Hill (born December 27, 1952) is a Canadian politician who served as the Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) for the riding of Prince George—Peace River in British Columbia from 1993 to 2010. He served as Government House Leader ...
who was first elected in 1993, then re-elected in 1997, 2000, 2004, and 2006 with 79%,Elections Canada
36th and 37th General Elections: Official Voting Results: Poll-by-poll Results
''Elections Canada On-Line, General Information''. Retrieved on January 22, 2006. (Requires user to download database.)
75%, 64%,Elections Canada (2004)

''Official Voting Results/Résultats officiels du scrutin''. Retrieved on November 18, 2005. (Requires navigation to Prince George—Peace River)
and 66%.Elections Canada (2006)
Prince George—Peace River
''Thirty-ninth General Election 2006 — Poll-by-poll results, Official Voting Results''. British Columbia. Retrieved on 12 February 2007.
support from Hudson's Hope polls, respectively. Before Hill the riding was represented by Frank Oberle of the Progressive Conservative Party from 1972 to 1993. Oberle served as Minister of State for Science and Technology from 1985 to 1989 and Minister of Forestry from 1990 to 1993.Library of Parliament (2006)
Oberle, The Hon. Frank, P.C.
''Federal Political Experience''. Retrieved on January 22, 2006.


See also

* Beryl Prairie, British Columbia


Footnotes


References

*


External links

* {{authority control District municipalities in British Columbia Populated places in the Peace River Regional District Hudson's Bay Company trading posts Populated places established in 1805 1805 establishments in the British Empire