List of towns in British Columbia

Comox is the largest town in British Columbia by population.

British Columbia has 161 municipalities,[1] out of which 14 are classified as towns.[2] According to the 2021 Canadian census, British Columbia is the third most populous province in Canada, with 5,000,879 inhabitants, and the fourth largest province by land area, covering 920,686.55 km2 (355,479.06 sq mi).[3]

Towns, cities, district municipalities and villages in British Columbia are referred to as municipalities and all are included in local governments, which may be incorporated under the Local Government Act of 2015. In order for a municipality in British Columbia to be classified as a town, it must have a minimum population of 2,500, and a maximum population of 5,000.[4] Although the population of Port McNeill falls below this threshold, it is still classified as a town, as are nine settlements with populations greater than 5,000.[2] All municipalities have councils.[5]

The largest town by population in British Columbia is Comox, with 14,806 residents, and the smallest is Port McNeill, with 2,356 residents. The largest town by land area is Princeton, which spans 59.28 km2 (22.89 sq mi), while the smallest is Gibsons, at 4.31 km2 (1.66 sq mi).[2] The first municipality to incorporate as a town was Ladysmith on June 3, 1904, while the province's newest town is View Royal, which incorporated on December 5, 1988 [6]

## Towns

[edit]

Towns in British Columbia  Name  | Regional district[7] | 2021 Census of Population[2] | Incorporation date as a town[6]

|
|
|

Population (2021)  | Population (2016)  | Change (%)  | Area (km2)  | Population density
Comox | Comox Valley | 14,806  | 14,028  | +5.55% | 16.87 km2 | 877.7/km2 | January 14, 1946
Creston | Central Kootenay | 5,583  | 5,361  | +4.14% | 8.41 km2 | 664.2/km2 | May 14, 1924
Gibsons | Sunshine Coast | 4,758  | 4,605  | +3.32% | 4.31 km2 | 1,103.2/km2 | March 4, 1929
Golden | Columbia Shuswap | 3,986  | 3,708  | +7.50% | 11.33 km2 | 351.9/km2 | June 26, 1957
Ladysmith | Cowichan Valley | 8,990  | 8,537  | +5.31% | 12.04 km2 | 746.5/km2 | June 3, 1904
Lake Cowichan | Cowichan Valley | 3,325  | 3,226  | +3.07% | 8.24 km2 | 403.5/km2 | August 19, 1944
Oliver | Okanagan-Similkameen | 5,094  | 4,928  | +3.37% | 5.49 km2 | 927.9/km2 | December 31, 1945
Osoyoos | Okanagan-Similkameen | 5,556  | 5,050  | +10.02% | 8.56 km2 | 660.7/km2 | January 14, 1946
Port McNeill | Mount Waddington | 2,356  | 2,337  | +0.81% | 13.77 km2 | 171.1/km2 | February 18, 1966
Princeton | Okanagan-Similkameen | 2,894  | 2,828  | +2.33% | 59.28 km2 | 48.8/km2 | September 11, 1951
Qualicum Beach | Nanaimo | 9,303  | 8,943  | +4.03% | 17.98 km2 | 517.5/km2 | May 5, 1942
Sidney | Capital | 12,318  | 11,672  | +5.53% | 5.11 km2 | 2,412.8/km2 | September 30, 1952
Smithers | Bulkley-Nechako | 5,378  | 5,401  | −0.43% | 15.26 km2 | 352.4/km2 | October 6, 1921
View Royal | Capital | 11,575  | 10,408  | +11.21% | 14.33 km2 | 807.6/km2 | December 5, 1988
Total towns  | 95,922  | 91,032  | +5.37% | 200.98 km2 | 717.56/km2 | —
British Columbia  | 5,000,879  | 4,648,055  | +7.59% | 920,686.55 km2 | 5.4/km2 | —

### Former towns

[edit]

Fort Nelson, originally incorporated as a village on April 8, 1971, became a town on October 31, 1987,[8] and then amalgamated with the Northern Rockies Regional District on February 6, 2009, to form the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality.[9][7] Kinnaird, originally incorporated as a village on August 6, 1948, became a town on August 5, 1967, and then amalgamated with the Town of Castlegar on January 1, 1974, to form the City of Castlegar.[10] Mission City, originally incorporated as a village on December 12, 1939, became a town on January 1, 1958, and then combined with the District of Mission on November 1, 1969.[11]

## See also

[edit]

* List of communities in British Columbia
* List of municipalities in British Columbia
* List of cities in British Columbia
* List of district municipalities in British Columbia
* List of villages in British Columbia

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Affairs, Ministry of Municipal. "Regional districts in B.C. - Province of British Columbia". Government of British Columbia. Retrieved September 11, 2024.
2. ^ a b c d "Population and dwelling counts, for Canada, provinces and territories, and census subdivisions (municipalities), 2021 and 2016 censuses (British Columbia)". Statistics Canada. February 9, 2022. Archived from the original on February 10, 2022. Retrieved September 11, 2024.
3. ^ "Population and dwelling counts: Canada, provinces and territories". Statistics Canada. February 9, 2022. Archived from the original on February 9, 2022. Retrieved July 4, 2024.
4. ^ Affairs, Ministry of Municipal. "Municipalities in B.C. - Province of British Columbia". Government of British Columbia. Retrieved September 11, 2024.
5. ^ "Local Government Act: Part 2 — Incorporation of Municipalities". Government of British Columbia. December 16, 2015. Archived from the original on August 21, 2024. Retrieved September 11, 2024.
6. ^ a b "British Columbia Regional Districts, Municipalities, Corporate Name, Date of Incorporation and Postal Address" (XLS). British Columbia Ministry of Communities, Sport and Cultural Development. Archived from the original on July 13, 2014. Retrieved December 8, 2012.
7. ^ a b "Statistics Relating to Regional and Municipal Governments in BC 2011" (PDF). Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural Development. p. 21 of 30. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 3, 2016. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
8. ^ "Name Details: Fort Nelson". GeoBC. Archived from the original on April 4, 2015. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
9. ^ "Fort Nelson". Northern Rockies Regional Municipality. Archived from the original on August 14, 2012. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
10. ^ "Name Details: Kinnaird". GeoBC. Archived from the original on August 27, 2012. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
11. ^ "Name Details: Mission City". GeoBC. Archived from the original on April 4, 2015. Retrieved December 9, 2012.

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