Kamloops | |||
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City | |||
City of Kamloops | |||
City view of Kamloops
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Motto: Salus et Opes (Health and Wealth) | |||
Location of Kamloops in British Columbia | |||
Coordinates: 50°40′34″N 120°20′27″W / 50.67611°N 120.34083°WCoordinates: 50°40′34″N 120°20′27″W / 50.67611°N 120.34083°W | |||
Country | Canada | ||
Province | British Columbia | ||
Regions | Thompson Country | ||
District | Thompson-Nicola District | ||
Founded | 1811 (fur trading post) | ||
Incorporated | 1893 | ||
Government | |||
• Type | Elected city council | ||
• Mayor | Peter Milobar | ||
• Governing body | Kamloops City Council | ||
• MP | Cathy McLeod | ||
• MLAs |
Terry Lake Todd Stone |
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Area | |||
• Land | 299.23 km2 (115.53 sq mi) | ||
• Metro | 5,668.64 km2 (2,188.67 sq mi) | ||
Elevation | 345 m (1,132 ft) | ||
Population (2016) | |||
• City | 90,280 | ||
• Density | 286.3/km2 (742/sq mi) | ||
• Metro | 103,811 | ||
• Metro density | 17.4/km2 (45/sq mi) | ||
Time zone | PST (UTC−8) | ||
• Summer (DST) | PDT (UTC−7) | ||
Postal code span | V2B to V2E | ||
Area code(s) | 250 / 778 / 236 | ||
Highways |
BC 1 BC 5 BC 97 |
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GNBC Code | JAFNW | ||
NTS Map | 092I09 | ||
Website | www |
Kamloops is a city in south central British Columbia in Canada at the confluence of the two branches of the Thompson River near Kamloops Lake. It is the largest community in the Thompson-Nicola Regional District and the location of the regional district's offices. The surrounding region is more commonly referred to as the Thompson Country. It is ranked 37th on the list of the 100 largest metropolitan areas in Canada and represents the 44th largest census agglomeration nationwide, with 90,280 residents in 2016.
Prior to the arrival of European settlers, the Cree-Saulteaux band led by Chief Yawassannay had migrated to this region in the early 15th century where they met the local Secwepemc (Shuswap) nation (part of the Interior Salish language group). The Yawassanay band's Kamloops settlement was the largest of their three tribal areas. The first European explorers arrived in 1811, in the person of David Stuart, sent out from Fort Astoria, then still a Pacific Fur Company post, and who spent a winter there with the Secwepemc people, with Alexander Ross establishing a post there in May 1812 - "Fort Cumcloups".
The rival North West Company established another post - Fort Shuswap - nearby in the same year. The two operations were merged in 1813 when the North West Company officials in the region bought out the operations of the Pacific Fur Company. After the North West Company's forced merger with the Hudson's Bay Company in 1821, the post became known commonly as Thompson's River Post, or Fort Thompson, which over time became known as Fort Kamloops. The post's journals, kept by its Chief Traders, document a series of inter-Indian wars and personalities for the period and also give much insight to the goings-on of the fur companies and their personnel throughout the entire Pacific slope.