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Bowen Island Nex̱wlélex̱m (Squamish) | |
|---|---|
| Bowen Island Municipality[1] | |
 Bowen Island from the ferry | |
 Location of Bowen Island in Metro Vancouver | |
| Coordinates (Snug Cove):49°23′N123°23′W / 49.383°N 123.383°W /49.383; -123.383 | |
| Country | Canada |
| Province | British Columbia |
| Regional district | Metro Vancouver |
| Incorporated | December 4, 1999[2] |
| Named after | James Bowen |
| Seat | Bowen Island Municipal Hall |
| Government | |
| • Type | Mayor-council government |
| • Body | Bowen Island Municipal Council |
| • Mayor | Andrew Leonard |
| • Councillors | List
|
| • MP | Patrick Weiler (Liberal) |
| • MLA | Jeremy Valeriote (Green) |
| Area | |
• Total | 63.60 km2 (24.56 sq mi) |
| • Land | 50.12 km2 (19.35 sq mi) |
| • Water | 13.10 km2 (5.06 sq mi) |
| Dimensions | |
| • Length | 12 km (7.5 mi) |
| • Width | 6 km (3.7 mi) |
| Highest elevation (Mount Gardner) | 727 m (2,385 ft) |
| Lowest elevation | 0 m (0 ft) |
| Population (2021)[5] | |
• Total | 4,256 |
• Estimate (2023)[6] | 4,181 |
| • Density | 84.9/km2 (220/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Bowen Islander |
| Time zone | UTC−8 (PST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−7 (PDT) |
| Postal codes | V0N 1G0 V0N 1G1 V0N 1G2 |
| Area codes | 604,778, 236, 672 |
| Website | www |
Bowen Island (Squamish:Nex̱wlélex̱wm;Squamish pronunciation:[nəχʷˈlələχʷm]),British Columbia, is anisland municipality that is part ofMetro Vancouver, and within the jurisdiction of theIslands Trust.[7] Located inHowe Sound, it is approximately 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) wide by 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) long, and at its closest point is about 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) west of the mainland. There is regularferry service fromHorseshoe Bay provided byBC Ferries, and semi-regularwater taxi services. The population of 4,256[5] is supplemented in the summer by about 1,500 visitors. It has a land area of 50.12 km2 (19.35 sq mi).
The name for Bowen Island isNex̱wlélex̱wm in theSquamish language of theSquamish people.[8]: 235 The Squamish peoples used and occupied the area around Howe Sound including Bowen Island.[8]: x Areas such asSnug Cove and a few other parts of the island were used as campsites for hunting and gathering trips.
Historically they would use the warmer spring and summer months to travel to resource gathering sites and move from their permanent winter villages. Bowen Island has a traditional name in the Squamish language, Xwlíl’xhwm, translating to "Fast Drumming Ground",[9] although some authors attribute the name to the sound made by the ocean as it passes through the tiny pass between the island's northern point and Finisterre Island. The tide rushing in and out is reminiscent of the sound of drums beating quickly. The name "Kwém̓shem" is used for Hood Point.[8]: 235 Bowen is still used by people from Squamish andMusqueam for deer hunting.
Into the 20th century Bowen Island was actively used by Squamish people for deer and duck hunting, fishing and, later, wage jobs. In conversations with Vancouver archivist Major Matthews in the 1950s,August Jack Khatsahlano recalled knowing several Squamish who worked for whalers on the island at the turn of the 20th century. In a conversation with City of Vancouver archivist JA Matthews, Khatsahlano recalled deer hunting on Bowen, saying that at one time he took the biggest deer in British Columbia from the island, weighing in at 195 pounds (88 kg).[citation needed]
When Spanish explorers arrived on the west coast of Canada, they named many of the features of what is now theStrait of Georgia. Bowen Island was called Isla de Apodaca (after the Mexican town of Apodaca, in northeast Nuevo León state, which was itself named after a benevolent bishop, Salvador de Apodaca y Loreto) by the Spanish CaptainJosé María Narváez in July, 1791.[10] In 1860 Cpt.George Henry Richards renamed the island after Rear AdmiralJames Bowen, master ofHMSQueen Charlotte.[11][12] In 1871, homesteaders began to build houses and started abrickworks, which supplied bricks to the expanding city ofVancouver. Over the years, local industry has included an explosives factory, logging, mining, and milling, but there is no heavy industry on the island at present.
In the first half of the 20th century, life on Bowen was dominated by a resort operated by the Terminal Steamship Company (1900-1920) and theUnion Steamship Company (1920 - 1962). These companies provided steamer service to Vancouver, and the Horseshoe Bay -Bowen Island Ferry began in 1921. When the Union Steamship resort closed in the 1960s the island returned to a quiet period of slow growth. In the 1940s and 1950s, the artists' colony called Lieben[13] was a retreat for many famous Canadian authors, artists, and intellectuals includingEarle Birney,Alice Munro,Dorothy Livesay,Margaret Laurence,A.J.M. Smith,Jack Shadbolt,Eric Nicol andMalcolm Lowry, who finished his last book,October Ferry to Gabriola, there. In the 1980s, real estate pressures in Vancouver accelerated growth on Bowen and currently the local economy is largely dependent on commuters who work on the mainland in Greater Vancouver. Prior to becoming a municipality, Bowen Island was part of theSunshine Coast Regional District, made up of small communities and municipalities.[citation needed]
Bowen Island is served by a number of small businesses including marinas, cafes, gift shops, grocery stores, a post office, pharmacy, restaurants, electric bike rentals, kayak rentals, garden and flower shops, and a building supply yard. Bowen Island is served by First Credit Union, and by an Exchange Network ATM operated byNorth Shore Credit Union. Bowen Island's commercial sector is primarily located within Snug Cove and Artisan Square. It is also served by a weekly newspaper, theBowen Island Undercurrent.
Bowen Island is served by three scheduled water-transportation operators:
Public roads are maintained by the Bowen Island Municipality. There are roadside walking trails in only a few places and the terrain is hilly and winding. Private vehicles are the primary form of transportation andhitchhiking is commonplace.
Bowen Island has limited bus service on theseTransLink bus routes, which are timed to meet some ferry sailings:[16]
The island is in theWest Vancouver School District and has one public elementary school named Bowen Island Community School. High school students living in Bowen Island (grades 8 to 12) travel toWest Vancouver to attendWest Vancouver Secondary School,Sentinel Secondary School, orRockridge. There is also the Island Pacific School, anInternational Baccalaureate middle school for grades 6 through 9. Some students also travel to West Vancouver to attend French Immersion at École Pauline Johnson. There is a public-supported home learning program, The Learning Centre, and a growing number of families alsounschool. Bowen Island houses a public library in the heritage Old General Store that is also part of British Columbia's InterLink co-operative of public libraries.
There are a number of churches on the Island. St Gerard'sCatholic Church is located on Miller Road.[17] TheUnited Church is situated in a timber building erected in 1932 a little further along on the same road. Also on Miller Road, nearer to Snug Cove, and meeting in Bowen Court, is Bowen Island Community Church,[18] an affiliate of theCongregational Christian Churches in Canada. Lastly, Cates Hill Chapel is a Christian Brethren church founded in 1991. Its present building on Carter Road was opened in 1999.[19] There are also regular meetings held byUnitarians andQuakers. Bowen Island is home to the Canadian branch ofL'Abri, a communal Christian retreat centre where visitors come for self-directed study. Finally, Camp Bow-Isle is a summer camp forChristian Scientists.
There are regularBuddhist meditation sittings in both the Zen and Vipassana traditions.
Bowen'sJewish community celebratesShabbat and high holidays, and acquired aTorah in 2006.
In the2021 Census of Population conducted byStatistics Canada, Bowen Island had a population of 4,256 living in 1,724 of its 2,036 total private dwellings, a change of15.7% from its 2016 population of 3,680.[20] With a land area of 50.12 km2 (19.35 sq mi), it had a population density of84.9/km2 (219.9/sq mi) in 2021.[5]
| Panethnic group | 2021[21] | 2016[22] | 2006[23] | 2001[24] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | |
| European[a] | 3,825 | 90.53% | 3,360 | 91.55% | 3,045 | 90.63% | 2,805 | 94.76% |
| East Asian[b] | 130 | 3.08% | 90 | 2.45% | 70 | 2.08% | 75 | 2.53% |
| Indigenous | 120 | 2.84% | 70 | 1.91% | 130 | 3.87% | 10 | 0.34% |
| Latin American | 50 | 1.18% | 20 | 0.54% | 10 | 0.3% | 25 | 0.84% |
| African | 30 | 0.71% | 20 | 0.54% | 15 | 0.45% | 10 | 0.34% |
| South Asian | 25 | 0.59% | 55 | 1.5% | 10 | 0.3% | 0 | 0% |
| Southeast Asian[c] | 15 | 0.36% | 25 | 0.68% | 35 | 1.04% | 30 | 1.01% |
| Middle Eastern[d] | 0 | 0% | 10 | 0.27% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% |
| Other/Multiracial[e] | 20 | 0.47% | 35 | 0.95% | 50 | 1.49% | 10 | 0.34% |
| Total responses | 4,225 | 99.27% | 3,670 | 99.73% | 3,360 | 99.94% | 2,960 | 100.1% |
| Total population | 4,256 | 100% | 3,680 | 100% | 3,362 | 100% | 2,957 | 100% |
| Note: Totals greater than 100% due to multiple origin responses | ||||||||
According to the2021 census, religious groups in Bowen Island included:[21]
Bowen Island travel guide from WikivoyagePlaces adjacent to Bowen Island | |
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