Catala Island Marine Provincial Park is a

provincial park Ischigualasto Provincial Park A provincial park (or territorial park) is a park administered by one of the provinces of a country, as opposed to a national park. They are similar to state parks in other countries. They are typically open to the ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, Canaded on the west coast of

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

at the mouth of

Esperanza Inlet Esperanza Inlet is an inlet on the West Coast of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. Its entrance is located off the northwest side of Nootka Island and is defined by a line drawn from Tachu Point to Blind Reef. Until that definition w ...

, between

Kyuquot Sound Kyuquot Sound is a complex of coastal inlets, bays and islands on northwestern Vancouver Island in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of British Columbia. The sound is named after the Kyuquot/Cheklesahht First Nation, Kyuqu ...

(N) and

Nootka Sound Nootka Sound () is a sound of the Pacific Ocean on the rugged west coast of Vancouver Island, in the Pacific Northwest, historically known as King George's Sound. It separates Vancouver Island and Nootka Island, part of the Canadian province of ...

(S). The park is 955 ha. in size and was established in July 1995.

Name origin

Catala Island, which is one of the islands comprising the park, was originally named Isla de Catala on a chart made in 1792 by

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

explorer Dionisio Galiano. Galiano named it for

Magin Catalá Magin is both a surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include: Surname: *Alik Magin, Australian rules footballer *Miłosz Magin (1929–1999), Polish composer and pianist * Rhys Magin (born 1989), Australian rules footballer * Theo ...

, a

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

who was serving as chaplain at the Spanish garrison at

at the time. Catala, who returned to California in 1794, was born in 1761 in

Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...

(Spain), and had arrived in Mexico in 1786. Serving 44 years as a missionary on the Spanish-American coast, he died in

Santa Clara, California Santa Clara ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for "Clare of Assisi, Saint Clare") is a city in Santa Clara County, California. The city's population was 127,647 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities and towns i ...

in 1830.

References

External links

BC Parks webpage
Provincial parks of British Columbia Nootka Sound region Islands of British Columbia Spanish history in the Pacific Northwest 1995 establishments in British Columbia Marine parks of Canada {{BritishColumbia-island-stub