Quesnel (Kee-nel in French) is a city located in the

Cariboo Regional District {{Infobox settlement , name = Cariboo , official_name = Cariboo Regional District , other_name = , native_name = , native_name_lang = , nickname = , sett ...

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. Located nearly evenly between the cities of Prince George and Williams Lake, it is on the main route to northern British Columbia and the

Yukon Yukon (; ; formerly called Yukon Territory and also referred to as the Yukon) is the smallest and westernmost of Canada's three territories. It also is the second-least populated province or territory in Canada, with a population of 43,964 as ...

. Quesnel is located at the

confluence In geography, a confluence (also: ''conflux'') occurs where two or more flowing bodies of water join to form a single channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main stem); o ...

of the

Fraser River The Fraser River is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Blackrock Mountain in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia just south of the City of Vancouver. The river's annual ...

and Quesnel River. Quesnel's metropolitan area has a population of 23,146 making it the largest urban center between Prince George and

Kamloops Kamloops ( ) is a city in south-central British Columbia, Canada, at the confluence of the South flowing North Thompson River and the West flowing Thompson River, east of Kamloops Lake. It is located in the Thompson-Nicola Regional District, w ...

. Quesnel is a

sister city A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inter ...

to Shiraoi, Japan. Quesnel hosted the 2000

British Columbia Winter Games The BC Winter Games are an amateur sporting event held in British Columbia, Canada on every other (even-numbered) year. The next BC Winter Games are scheduled to be held in Greater Vernon, BC from March 23 to 26, 2023. History The BC Games ...

, a biennial provincial amateur sports competition. To the east of Quesnel is Wells, Barkerville, and

Bowron Lake Provincial Park Bowron Lake Provincial Park is a provincial park located in northern British Columbia, Canada, roughly east of the city of Quesnel. Other nearby towns include Wells and the historic destination of Barkerville. Once a popular hunting and fishin ...

, a popular

canoe A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle. In British English, the ter ...

ing destination in the

Cariboo Mountains The Cariboo Mountains are the northernmost subrange of the Columbia Mountains, which run down into the Spokane area of the United States and include the Selkirks, Monashees and Purcells. The Cariboo Mountains are entirely within the province of ...

History

Long before the arrival of prospectors during the

Cariboo Gold Rush The Cariboo Gold Rush was a gold rush in the Colony of British Columbia, which later joined the Canadian province of British Columbia. The first gold discovery was made at Hills Bar in 1858, followed by more strikes in 1859 on the Horsefly Rive ...

of 1862, the Southern Carrier (

Dakelh The Dakelh (pronounced ) or Carrier are the indigenous people of a large portion of the Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada. The "Carrier" name was derived from an English translation of ''Aghele'', the name from the neighbouring Sekan ...

) people lived off the land around Quesnel, occupying the area from the

Bowron Lakes Bowron Lake Provincial Park is a provincial park located in northern British Columbia, Canada, roughly east of the city of Quesnel. Other nearby towns include Wells and the historic destination of Barkerville. Once a popular hunting and fishing ...

in the east to the upper

Blackwater River A blackwater river is a type of river with a slow-moving channel flowing through forested swamps or wetlands. As vegetation decays, tannins leach into the water, making a transparent, acidic water that is darkly stained, resembling black tea ...

and Dean River in the west. The Southern Carrier Nation were known among themselves as ‘Uda Ukelh’, meaning ‘people who travel by boat on water early in the morning’. The name "Quesnel" is derived from

Jules Maurice Quesnel Jules-Maurice Quesnel (October 25, 1786 – May 20, 1842) was a fur trader, member of the Beaver Club, businessman and political figure in Canada East. He was born Julien-Maurice Quesnel in Montreal in 1786, the son of Joseph Quesnel, and st ...

, who accompanied Simon Fraser on his journey to the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the conti ...

. Quesnel came to be called 'Quesnelle Mouth' to distinguish it from Quesnel Forks, up river. In 1870, it had been shortened to Quesnelle and by 1900, it was spelled the way it is now. Quesnel is located along the gold mining trail known as the Cariboo Wagon Road and was the commercial centre of the

. It also marks one end of the Alexander MacKenzie Heritage Trail. Because of its location on the

, it was also an important landing for sternwheelers from 1862 to 1886 and then, from 1909 until 1921. The last sternwheeler on the upper Fraser was Quesnel's own namesake craft, and home town product, the ''

Quesnel Quesnel or Quesnell means "little oak" in the Picard language, Picard dialect of French language, French. It is used as a proper name and may refer to: Places * Le Quesnel, a commune the Somme department in France * Quesnel, British Columbia, a c ...

''. Quesnel was incorporated in 1928.

Geography and climate

* Location: * Elevation: * Average annual snowfall: * Average annual rainfall: * Frost free days: 179 * Average winter temperature: * Extreme minimum temperature: * Average summer temperature: * Extreme maximum temperature: * Time Zone:

Pacific Time Zone The Pacific Time Zone (PT) is a time zone encompassing parts of western Canada, the western United States, and western Mexico. Places in this zone observe standard time by subtracting eight hours from Coordinated Universal Time ( UTC−08:00 ...

Climate

Considering it is located inland and around the

53rd parallel north The 53rd parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 53 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane. It crosses Europe, Asia, the Pacific Ocean, North America, and the Atlantic Ocean. At this latitude the sun is visible for 16 hours, ...

, Quesnel's

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freez ...

(

Dfb DFB may refer to: * Deerfield Beach, Florida, a city * Decafluorobutane, a fluorocarbon gas * Dem Franchize Boyz, former hip hop group, Atlanta, Georgia * Dfb, Köppen climate classification for Humid continental climate * Distributed-feedback ...

) is mild by Canadian standards, being subject to marine airflows from the Pacific. Overnight lows are still cool even in summer, but daytime temperatures average above in that season according to Environment and Climate Change Canada. The highest temperature ever recorded in Quesnel was on 17 July 1941. The coldest temperature ever recorded was on 31 December 1927 and 17 January 1950.

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 cultu ...

, Quesnel had a population of 9,889 living in 4,508 of its 4,766 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 9,879. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. According to the same census, Quesnel had a

census agglomeration The census geographic units of Canada are the census subdivisions defined and used by Canada's federal government statistics bureau Statistics Canada to conduct the country's quinquennial census. These areas exist solely for the purposes of stat ...

population of 23,113, which represented a decrease from 23,146 in the 2016 census. The median household income in 2015 for Quesnel was $60,651, which is slightly below the British Columbia provincial average of $69,995. As of 2018, the population of Quesnel is estimated to be a little over 10,000 people living within the city, with roughly 13,000 people living outside the city limits but within the metro area.

Ethnicity

Religion

According to the 2021 census, religious groups in Quesnel 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 ...

(6,050 persons or 62.5%) *

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 popula ...

(3,260 persons or 33.7%) *

Sikhism Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...

(185 persons or 1.9%) *

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

(70 persons or 0.7%) *

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

(15 persons or 0.2%) * Indigenous Spirituality (10 persons or 0.1%) *Other (90 persons or 0.9%)

Economy

Quesnel is a city known for its forestry, particularly the production of pulp and lumber. Forestry is the single biggest employer in Quesnel. Quesnel is home to a massive paper mill that was built in 1981. The mill is currently run by West Fraser Timber.

Administration

Quesnel's city government consists of a seven-member council, that is one mayor and six Councillors. The current city council, elected in 2022 for a four-year term, is composed of Mayor Ron Paul and Councillors Scott Elliott, Tony Goulet, Debora McKelvie, Laurey-Anne Roodenburg, Martin Runge, and Mitch Vik.

Education

Quesnel is part of School District 28, which contains several elementary schools, as well as a Junior and a Senior Secondary School (Quesnel Junior High School and Correlieu Senior Secondary School respectively). Also, within the school district is McNaughton Centre which is an Alternate High school. For post secondary education, Quesnel has the College of New Caledonia and University of Northern British Columbia shared campus, which offers several programs, including four year nursing and social work degrees, foundation or apprenticeship-level trades certification, health sciences, human services, academic upgrading, or industry and continuing education courses. The Quesnel CNC Campus also offers students the chance to start arts or sciences degrees and then, transfer to university.

Transportation

Quesnel is served by the

Quesnel Airport Quesnel Airport is on the east side of the Fraser River about north of central Quesnel, British Columbia, Canada. Earlier activity In October 1928, John M. Patterson landed a Yukon Airways and Exploration Co Alexander Eaglerock biplane at Johns ...

, with several commercial flights daily to and from Vancouver, BC. The city has a local transit system provided by

BC Transit BC Transit is a provincial crown corporation responsible for coordinating the delivery of public transportation within British Columbia, Canada, outside Greater Vancouver. BC Transit is headquartered in Victoria, British Columbia. In , the syst ...

Healthcare

Quesnel is served by GR Baker Memorial Hospital.

Tourism

Quesnel's tourism industry is largely based on the city's access to nature, with hunting and guiding outfitters, fishing, hiking, canoeing. The

Rocky Mountaineer Rocky Mountaineer is a Canadian rail-tour company based in Vancouver that operates luxury scenic trains on four rail routes in British Columbia, Alberta, Colorado, and Utah. History Via Rail Canada The Rocky Mountaineer concept was created b ...

, a rail-tour train also travels through and stops overnight in Quesnel at the Pacific Great Eastern Railway Station. Quesnel's history as a gold-rush town is also reflected, as there are over 30 heritage sites around the city. Quesnel is home to the world's largest gold pan, measured at 5.5 m in diameter and weighing 1400 kg, although this is disputed by

Nome, Alaska Nome (; ik, Sitŋasuaq, ) is a city in the Nome Census Area in the Unorganized Borough of Alaska, United States. The city is located on the southern Seward Peninsula coast on Norton Sound of the Bering Sea. It had a population of 3,699 record ...

. The Gold pan currently resides in its new controversial location beside the heritage train station. Quesnel is also the closest city to Barkerville, one of the largest historical towns in western North America.

Troll Ski Resort Troll Ski Resort, often referred to simply as Troll, is a ski area located in the Quesnel Highland in the northeastern Cariboo region of British Columbia, Canada, located between Quesnel and the historic goldfield towns of Wells-Barkerville B ...

, or simply Troll, is located 44 kilometers (27 miles) east of the city. Quesnel is also home to Hallis Lake Cross Country Skiing Facility, a 75 kilometer network of trails maintained by the Cariboo Ski Touring Club for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. In addition, Ten Mile Lake Provincial Park, Pinnacles Provincial Park, and Dragon Mountain Provincial Park are also located just outside the city. Quesnel Museum is home to numerous artifacts, including Mandy, a "

haunted doll A haunted doll is a handmade or manufactured doll or stuffed animal that is claimed to be cursed or possessed in some way. History According to Linda Rodriguez McRobbie, the concept of malevolent dolls gained attention in the 20th century whe ...

" made in the early 20th century that is claimed to have paranormal abilities and eyes that follow visitors around. Mandy appeared on the

Montel Williams Show ''The Montel Williams Show'' (also known as ''Montel'') is an American syndicated tabloid talk show, hosted by Montel Williams, which ran from 1991 to 2008. On January 30, 2008, the end of production of new episodes of ''The Montel Williams Sh ...

Culture

There are twenty-three decorated fire hydrants in the streets of Quesnel. This work was sponsored by the local businesses in the vicinity of the hydrants. Fire Hydrant of Carson Avenue and Kinchant Street in Quesnel, BC (DSCF5303).jpg, "Pilot", Carson Avenue and Kinchant Street Fire Hydrant of McLean Street and Shepherd Avenue in Quesnel, BC (DSCF5227).jpg, "Can Can Girl", McLean Street and Shepherd Avenue Fire hydrant of McLean Street and St Laurent Avenue in Quesnel, BC (DSCF5265).jpg, McLean Street and St Laurent Avenue Fire hydrant of Shepherd Avenue and Kinchant Street in Quesnel, BC (DSCF5068).jpg, "BX Cook", Shepherd Avenue and Kinchant Street Engineer (DSCF5310).jpg, "Engineer", Legion Drive, Cariboo Highway, and Carson Avenue Painted fire hydrant of Barlow Avenue and Vaughan Street in Quesnel, BC (DSCF5031).jpg, "Cyclist", Barlow Avenue and Vaughan Street

Sports

Quesnel is home to the Central Interior Hockey League's Quesnel Kangaroos Senior AA hockey team. The team plays at the West Fraser Centre in Quesnel. The city was formerly home to the

Quesnel Millionaires The Quesnel Millionaires were a junior "A" ice hockey team based in Quesnel, British Columbia, Canada. They were members of the Interior Conference of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL). They played their home games at Quesnel Twin Arena. ...

, a BCHL team, before they relocated to

Chilliwack Chilliwack ( )( hur, Ts'elxwéyeqw) is a city in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Chilliwack is surrounded by mountains and home to recreational areas such as Cultus Lake and Chilliwack Lake Provincial Parks. There are numerous outdo ...

as the

Chilliwack Chiefs The Chilliwack Chiefs are a junior "A" ice hockey team based in Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada. They are members of the Mainland Division of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL). They play their home games at Chilliwack Coliseum w ...

in 2011. Quesnel also has

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

airsoft Airsoft is a team game in which participants eliminate opposing players by tagging them out of play with spherical plastic projectiles shot with mock air weapons(usually powered by an electronic motor) called airsoft guns. Although similar ...

and paintball, minor

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensiv ...

ringette Ringette is a non-contact winter team sport played on ice hockey rinks using ice hockey skates, straight sticks with drag-tips, and a blue, rubber, pneumatic ring designed for use on ice surfaces. The sport is among a small number of organize ...

roller derby Roller derby is a roller skating contact sport played by two teams of fifteen members. Roller derby is played by approximately 1,250 amateur leagues worldwide, mostly in the United States. Game play consists of a series of short scrimmages (jam ...

, and

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...

leagues. A

Mountain biking Mountain biking is a sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, usually using specially designed mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and pe ...

skills park is located behind the Rec Center and West Quesnel has a skateboard park known as the Quesnel Skatepark.

Notable people

* Brett Festerling – former National Hockey League Player (

Anaheim Ducks The Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California. The Ducks compete in the Western Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division, and play their home games at Honda Center ...

& Winnipeg Jets) *

Aaron Gagnon Aaron Gagnon (born April 24, 1986) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Dallas Stars and Winnipeg Jets. Early life Gagnon was born on April 24, 1986, in Quesnel, British C ...

– former National Hockey League Player (

Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and were founded during the 1967 NHL expansion as the Minne ...

Winnipeg Jets The Winnipeg Jets are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and is owned by True North Sports & Entertainment, p ...

) *

Bob Gassoff Robert Allen Gassoff (April 17, 1953 – May 29, 1977) was a professional ice hockey player, born in Quesnel, British Columbia. From an early age he was passionate about hockey, playing first on a rink on the family farm on the Quesnel Hydraulic ...

– former

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey sports league, league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranke ...

player (

St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the ...

) * Brad Gassoff – former National Hockey League player (

Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference, and play their home games at Rogers Arena. Bruce ...

) * Rory MacDonald – Mixed martial artist currently with

Bellator MMA Bellator MMA (formerly Bellator Fighting Championships) is an American mixed martial arts promotion founded in 2008 and based in Santa Monica, California, owned and operated as a subsidiary of television and media conglomerate Paramount Global. ...

in the

Welterweight Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term "welterweight" was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like Muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify th ...

division * Jim Marsh – former

World Hockey Association The World Hockey Association (french: Association mondiale de hockey) was a professional ice hockey major league that operated in North America from 1972 to 1979. It was the first major league to compete with the National Hockey League (NHL) ...

player ( Birmingham Bulls) *

Errol Rausse Errol Attilio Rausse (born May 18, 1959) is a Canadian former ice hockey player. Rausse was born in Quesnel, British Columbia. Drafted in 1979 by the Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a profes ...

– former National Hockey League player (

Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference, a ...

)

Neighbourhoods and nearby communities

* West Quesnel ** Uplands ** Riverview ** West Riverside * South Quesnel ** Southhills ** Red Bluff ** Dragon Lake ** Rich Bar * North Quesnel * Carson Sub * Johnston Sub Nearby communities, not part of the City of Quesnel, include: * Moose Heights * Ten Mile Lake (also locally referred to as Parkland) * Barlow Creek * West Fraser / Narcosli * Cottonwood * Nazko * Bouchie Lake * Kersley

Images

File:Wooden Bridge Quesnel.jpg, Fraser River walking bridge File:Rotary clock Quesnel.jpg, Looking down St Laurent Ave; Rotary Clock in the foreground File:Bridge over the Quesnel.jpg, Bridge over the Quesnel River File:Quesnel Station.jpg, Quesnel Station File:Quesnel River Bridges.jpg, Quesnel River from Red Bluff.

Sister cities

* Shiraoi,

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

Notes

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Cities in British Columbia Populated places on the Fraser River Geography of the Cariboo Populated places in the Cariboo Regional District Hudson's Bay Company trading posts