New Westminster, British Columbia
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| Member of Parliament | Todd Russell(Liberal) | ||||
| Member of the Legislative Assembly | Chuck Puchmayr (NDP) | ||||
| Mayor | Wayne Wright | ||||
| Councillors | Casey Cook Calvin Donnelly Jerry Dobrovolny Bob Osterman Lorrie Williams Chuck Puchmayr | ||||
| Population (2001) | 54,656 | ||||
| Immigrant Population | 15,225 (28%) | ||||
| Languages | English(Official) 78% French(Official) 1% Non Official 21% | ||||
| Religion | United Church 20% Catholic 30% Other 30% No Religion 20% | ||||
| Private Dwellings | 26,035 | ||||
| Unemployment rate | 7.6% | ||||
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New Westminster, British Columbia is a small city located in the province of British Columbia in Canada. The city has a total population of 54,207 (2001 Census).
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Geography
New Westminster is located at Template:Coor dm. New Westminster is part of the Greater Vancouver metropolitan area on the Burrard Peninsula, on the north bank of the Fraser River. The city is 19 km (12 miles) southeast of the Vancouver city proper, adjacent to Burnaby and Coquitlam and across the river from Surrey. A small portion of New Westminster called Queensborough is located on the easter tip of Lulu Island, adjacent to Richmond. Amongst New Westminster's natives are actor Raymond Burr and race car driver Greg Moore.
History
New Westminster is the oldest city in western Canada and was the capital of British Columbia between 1858 and 1866. In 1860, the city became the first incorporated city west of the Great Lakes. It was a major outfitting point for prospectors coming to the Klondike gold rush.
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New Westminster has a wonderful history and heritage. In 1859, it was selected as the first capital of the new colony of British Columbia and officially named the "City of New Westminster' by Queen Victoria, after her favourite part of London. From this naming by the Queen, the City gained its nickname, "The Royal City", and became the first city in Western Canada. A year later it became the first City to have an elected municipal government. In 1866, the colonies of British Columbia and Vancouver Island united as "British Columbia" with New Westminster as capital. A couple of years later the capital status was removed to Victoria. But New Westminster. Which had overcome the downturn in the Fraser River gold rush, weathered the loss and retained its vibrant spirit.
While always having a mix of industrial sectors, the economy of New Westminster has evolved over the years, from a reliance on the primary resources of lumber and fishing in the 1800s, to heavy industry and manufacturing in the first half of the 1900s, to retail from the mid 1950s to the '70s, to professional and business services in the '90s, and finally to high tech and fiber optic industry in the early 2000s.
Victoria, the capital of Vancouver Island, replaced New Westminster as the capital of the new amalgamated province of British Columbia, which joined Canadian Confederation in 1871. With the completion of the trans-continental railway in 1886, trade began to shift to nearby Vancouver. New Westminster remained an important industry and transportation centre, and has retained the nickname "Royal City".
Educational institutions
The Justice Institute of British Columbia, offers training to municipal police forces, fire departments and a dedicated training program for paramedics with the British Columbia Ambulance Service. There is also one highschool that the entire city of New Westminster operates, New Westminster Secondary School.
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