Cumberland is an incorporated village municipality east of Perseverance Creek, near the east coast of central

Vancouver Island Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are o ...

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, ...

. The

Comox Valley The Comox Valley is a region on the east coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, that includes the city of Courtenay, British Columbia, Courtenay, the town of Comox, British Columbia, Comox, the village of Cumberland, British Columb ...

community is west of BC Highway 19 and is by road about northwest of

Nanaimo Nanaimo ( ) is a city on the east coast of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. As of the Canada 2021 Census, 2021 census, it had a population of 99,863, and it is known as "The Harbour City." The city was previously known as the "H ...

and southwest of Courtenay.

Prospecting & preliminary activity

Although First Nations had long known the existence of coal in the area, J.W. Mackay discovered coal near today's town site while exploring in 1852. Armed with such knowledge, Sam Cliffe formed a syndicate, which in 1869 staked claims on Perseverance (formerly Coal) Creek that flows northwest into

Comox Lake Comox Lake is a glacier fed freshwater lake located in mid-Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. It is located northwest of the smaller Beaufort Lake in the Comox Valley near Cumberland, British Columbia, and about 10km southwest of Courte ...

. The group hacked a trail to today's Royston. Their Union Coal Mining Co., named to honour the 1871 union of British Columbia with Canada, graded sections for a rail bed along this route. A sawpit was established about half way, with some wooden rails cut and laid for a horse-drawn tramway. Unable to raise further capital when funds were exhausted, development work ceased. In 1887,

Robert Dunsmuir Robert Dunsmuir (August 31, 1825April 12, 1889) was a Scottish-Canadian coal mine developer, owner and operator, railway developer, industrialist and politician in British Columbia. He was recognized as a National Historic Person by the governm ...

bought the enterprise and incorporated the Union Colliery Co. He arranged for a sawmill to be brought to the mine area. After unloading at today's Royston, oxen hauled the machinery. Only of the earlier rail bed remained passable. For the gap, Grant and Mounce built a wagon road while advancing, taking two to three months to reach the mine.

Railways

See Railway to Union Bay.

Coalmining

Coal production was 31,204 tons in 1889, and 66,556 tons in 1892. By 1897, the mine was yielding 700 to 1,000 tons per day, and employed 600 men. In 1910,

Sir William Mackenzie Sir William Mackenzie (October 17, 1849 – December 5, 1923) was a Canadian railway contractor and entrepreneur. Born near Peterborough, Canada West (now Ontario), Mackenzie became a teacher and politician before entering business as the ow ...

purchased all the Dunsmuir mines through his Canadian Collieries (Dunsmuir). In 1912, the colliery established a

hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and ...

plant on the

Puntledge River The Puntledge River is a small river on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. It joins the Tsolum River to form the Courtenay River, which enters the Strait of Georgia at the city of Courtenay. Name origin The name is derived from that ...

, which supplied the whole Comox Valley. Total miners killed in a single coal dust explosion at Cumberland were 64 in 1901, 21 in 1903, 18 in 1922, and 33 in 1923. In 1912, management locked out protesting Cumberland miners who took an idle day. Industrial action spread, and all unionized Vancouver Island miners were on strike by summer 1913. Strikebreakers were protected by special police, until riots broke out at Cumberland, which prompted the BC government to send in troops. Tsable River mine, about west of Buckley Bay was the final Canadian Colleries mine operating on Vancouver Island. The miners were based at Cumberland. On closure in 1960, an employee-owned smaller operation ran until final closure in 1966.

Early settlement

The company village was originally named Union after the Union Coal Company. In 1894, adjacent to the neighbourhood, a new townsite of Cumberland was laid out with lots for sale. Exports from the

Cumberland Coalfield The Cumberland Coalfield is a coalfield in Cumbria, north-west England. It extends from Whitehaven in the south to Maryport and Aspatria in the north. Geology The following coal seams occur within the Coal Measures Group in this coalfield.Briti ...

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

were known for a high quality also found at the Union mine. Consequently, the principal avenues of Maryport, Windermere, Penrith, Derwent, Allen and Keswick, were named after places in

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 19 ...

County. In 1898, the Cumberland name was adopted for incorporation as a city, and to replace Union for the post office. In 1895, the hospital began in

James Dunsmuir James Dunsmuir (July 8, 1851 – June 6, 1920) was a Canadian industrialist and politician in British Columbia. He served as the 14th premier of British Columbia from 1900 to 1902 and the eighth lieutenant governor of British Columbia from 19 ...

's former residence. Later additions were nine rooms in 1901, a 10-bed ward in 1904, and Jubilee Wing in 1924. Ultimately 41 beds and 6 bassinets existed. In 1977, the hospital closed. In 1897, the Cumberland-Union Water-Works Company commenced piping water from Hamilton Creek. In 1949, the then City of Cumberland purchased the system. The 1933 fire destroyed 18 businesses and 11 houses. The hotels affected were the Cumberland, the King George and the Victory. The Cumberland, opened in 1894, was immediately rebuilt, and operated until November 2020. The King George, built in 1911, also rebuilt, closed in 2014. Escaped and built a few years earlier, the Waverley Hotel still operates. Cumberland (07) (9584601988)

Opened as an opera house in 1914, the historic Ilo-Ilo Theatre began showing silent movies, and held dances. Rebuilt after a 1932 fire, the theatre closed in 1957. Discussions are ongoing to restore the building.

Later settlement

In 1958, the community reincorporated as the Village of Cumberland. In 1969, the

Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; french: Gendarmerie royale du Canada; french: GRC, label=none), commonly known in English as the Mounties (and colloquially in French as ) is the federal police, federal and national police service of ...

(RCMP) detachment closed, and the three officers moved to Courtenay. Over recent decades, Cumberland has become a significant destination for outdoor recreation, culture and tourism. The location is a bedroom community for Courtenay. Cumberland Lake Park Campground is west. The village prepared the Economic Development Strategy 2018–2023 to address challenges.

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; french: Statistique Canada), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and cultur ...

, Cumberland had a population of 4,447 living in 1,840 of its 1,918 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 3,753. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.

Religion

According to the 2021 census, religious groups in Cumberland included: *

Irreligion Irreligion or nonreligion is the absence or rejection of religion, or indifference to it. Irreligion takes many forms, ranging from the casual and unaware to full-fledged philosophies such as atheism and agnosticism, secular humanism and a ...

(3,555 persons or 81.2%) *

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

(725 persons or 16.6%) *

Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in the ...

(25 persons or 0.6%) *Other (70 persons or 1.6%)

Coal Creek Historic Park

About west was a Chinatown, the population peaking at around 2,000, served by 100 business establishments. Residents drained the wetlands, planted market gardens, and created one of Canada's largest Chinese communities by the end of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. Many of the unemployed left during the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. A 1935 fire destroyed half the buildings. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

many buildings were dismantled and the materials salvaged. In 1963, a lack of funds derailed plans to restore the buildings as an historical tourist attraction. During that decade, collectors ransacked what remained of the site. The rod and gun club leased the area until 2001. About west of Cumberland was a Japanese hamlet, comprising about 36 homes and two general stores. The women operated a traditional tea garden at Comox Lake 1914–1939. The residents permanently abandoned the site in 1942 on their relocation to

internment Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simpl ...

camps for

Japanese Canadian are Canadian citizens of Japanese ancestry. Japanese Canadians are mostly concentrated in Western Canada, especially in the province of British Columbia, which hosts the largest Japanese community in the country with the majority of them living ...

s during

. Weldwood (now called West Fraser Timber), which had purchased large tracts of land from the colliery, gifted the site encompassing the Chinese and Japanese settlements to the Village of Cumberland in 2002. Provisionally called Perseverance Creek Historic Park, the present name was adopted in 2008.

Notable people

* Bob Auchterlonie (1969– ), naval officer *

Thomas Audley Bate Thomas Audley Bate (March 12, 1913 – September 21, 1967) was a Canadian politician. He served in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia is the deliberative assembly of the Parliamen ...

(1913–1967), politician *

Albert Goodwin Albert "Ginger" Goodwin (May 10, 1887–July 27, 1918), nicknamed Ginger for his bright red hair, was a migrant coal miner who advocated for workers' rights and promoted the cause of unions in British Columbia, Canada. Angered by the working ...

(1887–1918), labour activist * Robert Grant (1854–1935), politician *

Terry Tobacco Charles Terence "Terry" Tobacco (born 2 March 1936) was a Canadian Olympic athlete. Biography Originally from the village of Cumberland on Vancouver Island, Tobacco first got noticed at the age of 15 when he won both the 100 and 220 yard races a ...

(1936– ), athlete *

Wong Foon Sien Wong Foon Sien (; 7 July 1899 – 31 July 1971), also simply known as Foon Sien, was a Canadian journalist and labour activist. He devoted time to a number of civil and human rights organizations, was one of the early leaders of the Chinese Bene ...

(1899–1971), labour activist

Footnotes

References

External links

* {{coord, 49, 37, 14, N, 125, 1, 34, W, scale:60000, display=title Villages in British Columbia Populated places in the Comox Valley Regional District