Golden | |
|---|---|
| Town of Golden[1] | |
 View of Golden in 2005 | |
 Seal | |
  Golden Location of Golden inBritish Columbia | |
| Coordinates:51°18′7″N116°58′0″W / 51.30194°N 116.96667°W /51.30194; -116.96667 | |
| Country | Canada |
| Province | British Columbia |
| Region | Columbia Valley |
| Regional District | Columbia-Shuswap |
| Incorporated | 1957 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Ron Oszust |
| • Governing Body | Golden Town Council |
| • MP | Rob Morrison[2] (Conservative-Kootenay/Columbia) |
| • MLA | Doug Clovechok (BC United-Columbia/Revelstoke) |
| Area | |
• Total | 11.33 km2 (4.37 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 800 m (2,600 ft) |
| Population (2021)[3] | |
• Total | 3,986 |
| • Density | 351.9/km2 (911/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC−7 (Mountain Time Zone) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−6 (Mountain Daylight Time) |
| Postal code span | |
| Area code | 250 /778 /236 |
| Highways |  Highway 1 (TCH)Trans-Canada Highway Highway 95 |
| Website | www |
Golden is a town in southeasternBritish Columbia, Canada, 262 kilometres (163 mi) west ofCalgary, Alberta, and 713 kilometres (443 mi) east ofVancouver.
In 1807,David Thompson – renowned fur trader, surveyor, and map maker – was tasked by theNorth West Company to open a trading route to the lucrative trading territories of the Pacific Northwest. He first crossed over the Rocky Mountains and travelled along the Blaeberry River to the future site of Golden.[4]
In 1881, theCanadian Pacific Railway (CPR) hired surveyorA. B. Rogers to find a rail route through theSelkirk andRocky Mountains, and in 1882, he found the pass now named for him. Rogers established a base camp for his survey crew led by a man named McMillan. Initially known as McMillan's Camp, the settlement was the beginning of the town of Golden. By 1884, in response to a nearbylumber camp naming itself Silver City, the residents of McMillan's Camp, headed by Baptiste Morigeau,[5] decided not to be outdone and renamed the settlement Golden City.[6] The wordcity was later dropped.
In the late 1890s, the CPR began importing Swiss mountain guides to assist travellers attracted to the area to explore the surrounding mountains,Glacier National Park,Yoho National Park and theRogers Pass region, as part of their efforts to promote tourism to the mountain parks area. The railway built a group of chalet-style house in a section that became known as Edelweiss, some of them still standing, to encourage the guide to bring their families to Canada and remain year-round. The men made many of the first ascents of area mountains and helped pioneer the ski industry in the region.[7]
Golden is also the site of notableSouth Asian Canadian history, after Sikh settlers first arrived in Golden in 1902 to work at the Columbia River Lumber Company.[8] These early settlers built the firstgurdwara (Sikh temple) in North America in 1905,[9][10] which burned down in 1926.[11]
Much of the town's history is tied into the CPR and thelogging industry. The town's economy still relies heavily on those two influences, but the development ofKicking Horse Mountain Resort, along with other outdoor adventure companies, has allowed the town to diversify into tourism.Mount 7, which is just southeast of town, is also an outdoor activity destination. The town forms part of theGolden Triangle cycle route.
Kicking Horse Pedestrian Bridge is the longest freestanding timber-framed bridge in Canada.[12] Planned as a community project by theTimber Framers Guild,[13] volunteers from Golden were joined by carpenters and timber framers from the United States and from Europe. The bridge structure is 46 metres (150 ft) long, with a 95-tonne (210,000 lb)Burr arch structure. The bridge was completed in September 2001.
In June 2021, the Golden Skybridge opened. The bridge is the highest suspension bridge in Canada.[14]
The Golden meteorites fell there on October 4, 2021.[15]
Golden is nestled in theRocky Mountain Trench, built around the confluence of theColumbia andKicking Horse rivers, surrounded by three different mountain ranges (most notably thePurcell Mountains and Rocky Mountains) and five national parks: Yoho National Park,Banff National Park,Jasper National Park, Glacier National Park, andKootenay National Park.
Golden is onHighway 1 (theTrans-Canada Highway), and it is the northern terminus ofHighway 95, connecting it to the United States via the rest of theEast Kootenay region and the city ofCranbrook, British Columbia (B.C. Highway 95 is a continuation ofU.S. Route 95, which runs north-to-south through the U.S. and into Mexico). The Trans-Canada Highway east of Golden has numerous upgrade projects ongoing to greatly improve the roadway west of the Yoho National Park boundary. The Ten Mile Hill section of the project was recently[when?] completed and is a major upgrade to the old highway.
Golden has a climate with influences of thehumid continental (Dfb) andsemi-arid (BSk) varieties. Summers are warm but rarely hot, with winters being somewhat moderated in comparison to areas east of the Rockies. Annual snowfall is heavy, averaging 184 centimetres (72 in).
| Climate data forGolden Airport | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record highhumidex | 6.7 | 8.4 | 19.6 | 25.5 | 34.2 | 41.0 | 38.5 | 38.4 | 32.0 | 22.4 | 11.2 | 5.4 | 41.0 |
| Record high °C (°F) | 8.3 (46.9) | 12.2 (54.0) | 20.2 (68.4) | 28.9 (84.0) | 35.6 (96.1) | 40.7 (105.3) | 40.0 (104.0) | 37.8 (100.0) | 33.9 (93.0) | 25.6 (78.1) | 17.2 (63.0) | 10.0 (50.0) | 40.7 (105.3) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | −4.3 (24.3) | −0.1 (31.8) | 6.6 (43.9) | 13.3 (55.9) | 18.4 (65.1) | 21.7 (71.1) | 24.5 (76.1) | 24.2 (75.6) | 18.4 (65.1) | 10.1 (50.2) | 1.0 (33.8) | −4.8 (23.4) | 10.7 (51.3) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | −7.9 (17.8) | −5 (23) | 0.8 (33.4) | 6.5 (43.7) | 11.3 (52.3) | 14.9 (58.8) | 17.3 (63.1) | 16.7 (62.1) | 11.5 (52.7) | 5.0 (41.0) | −2 (28) | −7.8 (18.0) | 5.1 (41.2) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −11.5 (11.3) | −9.8 (14.4) | −5 (23) | −0.5 (31.1) | 4.1 (39.4) | 8.0 (46.4) | 10.0 (50.0) | 9.1 (48.4) | 4.6 (40.3) | −0.2 (31.6) | −5 (23) | −10.9 (12.4) | −0.6 (30.9) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −46.1 (−51.0) | −39.4 (−38.9) | −31.7 (−25.1) | −19.4 (−2.9) | −9.4 (15.1) | −6.7 (19.9) | −2.2 (28.0) | −2.8 (27.0) | −9.4 (15.1) | −18.3 (−0.9) | −32.8 (−27.0) | −43.9 (−47.0) | −46.1 (−51.0) |
| Record lowwind chill | −42.3 | −31.2 | −28.1 | −14.3 | −5.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | −4.5 | −15 | −29.9 | −38 | −42.3 |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 45.9 (1.81) | 24.1 (0.95) | 24.4 (0.96) | 24.4 (0.96) | 34.5 (1.36) | 49.7 (1.96) | 50.6 (1.99) | 45.3 (1.78) | 38.0 (1.50) | 34.9 (1.37) | 51.1 (2.01) | 43.9 (1.73) | 466.8 (18.38) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 6.4 (0.25) | 5.5 (0.22) | 14.1 (0.56) | 21.9 (0.86) | 33.3 (1.31) | 49.7 (1.96) | 50.6 (1.99) | 45.3 (1.78) | 38.0 (1.50) | 32.3 (1.27) | 21.6 (0.85) | 6.4 (0.25) | 325.2 (12.80) |
| Average snowfall cm (inches) | 45.3 (17.8) | 20.7 (8.1) | 12.1 (4.8) | 2.5 (1.0) | 1.1 (0.4) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 2.8 (1.1) | 31.8 (12.5) | 42.5 (16.7) | 158.7 (62.5) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.2 mm) | 14.6 | 9.1 | 9.8 | 10.6 | 12.5 | 15.4 | 13.7 | 13.2 | 10.6 | 12.1 | 13.9 | 13.5 | 148.8 |
| Average rainy days(≥ 0.2 mm) | 2.4 | 2.7 | 6.3 | 9.9 | 12.4 | 15.4 | 13.7 | 13.2 | 10.6 | 11.3 | 6.8 | 1.9 | 106.5 |
| Average snowy days(≥ 0.2 cm) | 13.5 | 7.1 | 4.8 | 1.5 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.3 | 8.2 | 12.8 | 49.5 |
| Averagerelative humidity (%) | 81.2 | 70.7 | 53.6 | 38.8 | 38.6 | 42.4 | 42.0 | 44.2 | 50.0 | 60.0 | 80.4 | 82.2 | 57.0 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 25.2 | 55.3 | 111.3 | 155.2 | 209.6 | 194.1 | 227.0 | 228.9 | 162.5 | 85.0 | 26.1 | 12.9 | 1,492.9 |
| Percentagepossible sunshine | 9.7 | 19.6 | 30.3 | 37.4 | 43.5 | 39.2 | 45.5 | 50.7 | 42.7 | 25.6 | 9.7 | 5.2 | 29.9 |
| Source: ECCC[16][17][18] | |||||||||||||
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 3,476 | — |
| 1986 | 3,584 | +3.1% |
| 1991 | 3,721 | +3.8% |
| 1996 | 3,968 | +6.6% |
| 2001 | 4,020 | +1.3% |
| 2006 | 3,811 | −5.2% |
| 2011 | 3,701 | −2.9% |
| 2016 | 3,708 | +0.2% |
| 2021 | 3,986 | +7.5% |
In the2021 Census of Population conducted byStatistics Canada, Golden had a population of 3,986 living in 1,734 of its 1,892 total private dwellings, a change of7.5% from its 2016 population of 3,708. With a land area of 11.33 km2 (4.37 sq mi), it had a population density of351.8/km2 (911.2/sq mi) in 2021.[19]
| Panethnic group | 2021[20] | 2016[21] | 2006[22] | 2001[23] | 1996[24] | 1991[25][26] | 1986[27][28][29]: 98 | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | ||||||
| European[a] | 3,200 | 82.05% | 2,910 | 80.95% | 3,310 | 87.68% | 3,405 | 85.66% | 3,440 | 87.42% | 3,030 | 82.11% | 2,965 | 84.23% | |||||
| Indigenous | 330 | 8.46% | 360 | 10.01% | 160 | 4.24% | 255 | 6.42% | 215 | 5.46% | 265 | 7.18% | 165 | 4.69% | |||||
| South Asian | 180 | 4.62% | 125 | 3.48% | 200 | 5.3% | 250 | 6.29% | 250 | 6.35% | 340 | 9.21% | 345 | 9.8% | |||||
| Southeast Asian[b] | 100 | 2.56% | 40 | 1.11% | 10 | 0.26% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 25 | 0.68% | 5 | 0.14% | |||||
| East Asian[c] | 40 | 1.03% | 140 | 3.89% | 75 | 1.99% | 60 | 1.51% | 25 | 0.64% | 15 | 0.41% | 25 | 0.71% | |||||
| Latin American | 10 | 0.26% | 10 | 0.28% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 10 | 0.28% | |||||
| African | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 10 | 0.25% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | |||||
| Middle Eastern[d] | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 15 | 0.41% | 5 | 0.14% | |||||
| Other/Multiracial[e] | 0 | 0% | 20 | 0.56% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | — | — | — | — | |||||
| Total responses | 3,900 | 97.84% | 3,595 | 96.95% | 3,775 | 99.06% | 3,975 | 98.88% | 3,935 | 99.17% | 3,690 | 99.17% | 3,520 | 98.21% | |||||
| Total population | 3,986 | 100% | 3,708 | 100% | 3,811 | 100% | 4,020 | 100% | 3,968 | 100% | 3,721 | 100% | 3,584 | 100% | |||||
| Note: Totals greater than 100% due to multiple origin responses | |||||||||||||||||||
According to the2021 census, religious groups in Golden included:[20]
| Religious group | 2021[20] | 2011[30] | 2001[23] | 1991[31] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | |
| Christian | 1,225 | 31.41% | N/A | N/A | 2,240 | 56.35% | 2,280 | 61.79% |
| Sikh | 115 | 2.95% | N/A | N/A | 165 | 4.15% | 300 | 8.13% |
| Hindu | 40 | 1.03% | N/A | N/A | 0 | 0% | 15 | 0.41% |
| Buddhist | 15 | 0.38% | N/A | N/A | 20 | 0.5% | 30 | 0.81% |
| Muslim | 0 | 0% | N/A | N/A | 0 | 0% | 40 | 1.08% |
| Jewish | 0 | 0% | N/A | N/A | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% |
| Other religion | 55 | 1.41% | N/A | N/A | 35 | 0.88% | 10 | 0.27% |
| Irreligious | 2,430 | 62.31% | N/A | N/A | 1,495 | 37.61% | 1,020 | 27.64% |
| Total responses | 3,900 | 97.84% | N/A | N/A | 3,975 | 98.88% | 3,690 | 99.17% |
Golden has a service and resource-based economy.[citation needed]
Public education is provided bySchool District 6 Rocky Mountain which operates 3 primary schools and onesecondary school. Community College education is offered by the Golden Campus of theCollege of the Rockies.[citation needed]
| Club | League | Sport | Venue | Established | Championships |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Rockets | KIJHL | Ice Hockey | Golden Arena | 1991 | 0 |
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The first Sikhs came to Golden about 1902, arriving to work in the sawmill of the Columbia River Lumber Company. When the Sikhs arrived in Golden the community was in its infancy and the sawmill had recently opened. The Columbia River Lumber Company recognized the value of these tall strong men and had no problem with the men. They hired them to work in the lumberyard, planer, and sawmill. The first documented proof that we have of South Asians of the Sikh faith being residents of Golden is a copy of a telegram sent to G.T. Bradshaw, Chief of Police, New Westminster from Colin Cameron, Chief of Police, Golden, BC on July 20, 1902. It was sent collect and reads: Geha Singh of Golden sent a telegram to Santa Singh care of Small and Bucklin for one thousand dollars.
The original temple in Golden sat on a corner of a lot, in the south western area of town at the end of the street looking toward where Rona is now. The largest influx of men came from South Asia around 1905, which would be the time period that the temple in Golden would have began services. In 1926, a fire burned the timber limits of the Columbia River Lumber Company, where the South Asian men worked.
"We acknowledge the Gurdwara in Golden as the first in B.C., and quite likely the first in North America," said Pyara Lotay, on behalf of the local Sikh community. "We thank the B.C. government for recognizing Golden's Sikh pioneers and their place of worship with this Stop of Interest."
The original temple sat on the corner of a lot, which is now owned by Gurmit Manhas, at the end of the street past the School Board Office looking towards the Rona. Plans are being put together to erect a kiosk there that would share information about the original building, the first South Asian people to Canada, the importance of the Gurdwara to the Sikh people and the history of why they left and what brought them back. The largest influx of men came from South Asia in about 1905-06, which would be the time period that the Temple would have begun services. In 1926 a fire burned the timber limits of the Columbia River Lumber Company, where all the South Asian men worked and the men left for the coast having no work to do. When the forest started to grow back the men came back and soon it was necessary to build the present Gurdwara on 13th Street South.
Golden travel guide from WikivoyageSubdivisions ofBritish Columbia | |
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