The Boundary–Waneta Border Crossing connects the town of Northport, Washington with

Trail, British Columbia Trail is a city in the western Kootenays region of the British Columbia Interior, Interior of British Columbia, Canada. It was named after the Dewdney Trail, which passed through the area. The town was first called Trail Creek or Trail Creek Lan ...

on the Canada–US border. Access is via Waneta Road (formerly Washington State Route 251) on the American side and British Columbia Highway 22A on the Canadian side.

Boat and train inspection

A customs office has operated at or near this crossing since 1865, initially by the

Colony of British Columbia The Colony of British Columbia refers to one of two colonies of British North America, located on the Pacific coast of modern-day Canada: * Colony of British Columbia (1858–1866) * Colony of British Columbia (1866–1871) See also * History of ...

to inspect vessels arriving via the

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...

, and after 1871 by the

federal government A federation (also called a federal state) is an entity characterized by a political union, union of partially federated state, self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a #Federal governments, federal government (federalism) ...

of British Canada, additionally to inspect trains with the completion of the Nelson and Fort Sheppard Railway (N&FS) in 1893.

Fort Sheppard

The N&FS had misspelled Fort Shepherd (at this BC location, but on the opposite bank of the Columbia). In 1892, a hotel and restaurant were built, and the surveyed townsite advertised as Kootenay City. After correcting survey errors that placed some lots south of the border, the development was relaunched as Fort Sheppard in 1893. The separate towns of Waneta and Fort Sheppard, north and south of the railway bridge across the mouth of the Pend-d'Oreille River, merged into the former after a few years, and Boundary City appeared on the US side. The Fort Sheppard Hotel, having been abandoned three decades, was demolished in the early 1950s.

Waneta

Waneta Landing was also in use. The earliest newspaper mention (May 1892) of Waneta was with respect to the Kootenai Placer Mining Co. and the associated Kootenai Hydraulic Mining Co., which were based in the settlement. The principals were from

Rochester, New York Rochester is a city in and the county seat, seat of government of Monroe County, New York, United States. It is the List of municipalities in New York, fourth-most populous city and 10th most-populated municipality in New York, with a populati ...

, where Waneta Lake was about south. That Waneta supposedly derived from the daughter of a Seneca chief. A different Wanata was a Yanktonai chief. If a

First Nations First nations are indigenous settlers or bands. First Nations, first nations, or first peoples may also refer to: Indigenous groups *List of Indigenous peoples *First Nations in Canada, Indigenous peoples of Canada who are neither Inuit nor Mé ...

link was more local, the meanings attributed to the name have included shape-shifter, rushing waters, burned area, and rolling waves. Even a presumed old English meaning of pale-skinned has been proposed. A November 1892 newspaper reference called the place Juanita, a diminutive of Juana, a female Spanish name. Reputedly, Juanita was an influential lady of the night residing in the community. A May 1893 mention used both Waneta and Juanita. The 1897 Year Book of British Columbia stated that Waneta was a corruption of Juaneta.

Vehicle inspection

A border crossing for motor vehicles was created in 1945, when the railway built a new bridge parallel to the existing one, which was repurposed for single lane vehicle traffic. The first border inspection stations for motor vehicles were opened on the Canadian side in 1975, and the US in 1978. In 2013, the US built a new border station a few hundred yards south of the original facility.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boundary-Waneta Border Crossing Canada–United States border crossings 1865 establishments in British Columbia 1865 establishments in Washington Territory Buildings and structures in Stevens County, Washington