New Denver

For other uses, see New Denver (disambiguation).
New Denver
Village
The Corporation of the Village of New Denver[1]
New Denver

Location of New Denver in British Columbia

Coordinates: 49°59′29″N 117°22′19″W / 49.99139°N 117.37194°W / 49.99139; -117.37194
Country  Canada
Province  British Columbia
Region Slocan Valley, West Kootenay
Regional district Central Kootenay
Founded 1892
Incorporated 1929
Government
  Governing body New Denver Village Council
  Mayor Ann Bunka
Area
  Total 0.87 km2 (0.34 sq mi)
Elevation 560 m (1,840 ft)
Population (2011)
  Total 504
  Density 579.6/km2 (1,501/sq mi)
Time zone PST (UTC-8)
Area code(s) 250 / 778 / 236
Highways BC 6
BC 31A
Waterways Slocan Lake

New Denver is a village in southeastern British Columbia, Canada, along the shore of Slocan Lake. New Denver was founded as a mining town in 1892, and briefly known as Eldorado City before being renamed after Denver, Colorado. It was incorporated as a village in 1929 and currently has approximately 504 residents.

History

During World War II, New Denver became a Japanese Canadian internment camp. Not long after the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, men between the ages of 18 to 45 were sent to labour camps in the Interior of British Columbia or farther into Eastern Canada. Approximately 1,500 women, children, and elderly men were sent to the "Orchard", a small section of New Denver set up to house them. New Denver's Nikkei Internment Memorial Centre is dedicated to the history of the 23,000 Japanese Canadians who were interned by the Canadian government and is a National Historic Site of Canada.[2]

In the 1950s, children of Freedomites, a Doukhobor extremist group, were removed from their parents and sent to residential school in New Denver. The Freedomites refused to send their children to school because of their religious beliefs.[3]

Government

Ken Casley served as mayor from 1982 until 1989, and then stepped down for health reasons. He was succeeded by Gary Wright.[4] Wright continued in the position until his retirement in 2011, and was succeeded by Ann Bunka.[5]

Communications

The town is notable for its resistance to mobile phones. In a 2008 referendum, many citizens voted against the introduction of cellular telephone service.[6] Despite this, on 20 July 2010, Telus Canada began installation of a cell phone facility in the heart of the village with many citizens peacefully protesting the installation.

Climate

References

  1. "British Columbia Regional Districts, Municipalities, Corporate Name, Date of Incorporation and Postal Address" (XLS). British Columbia Ministry of Communities, Sport and Cultural Development. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
  2. Nikkei Internment Memorial Centre. Canadian Register of Historic Places. Retrieved 28 January 2012.
  3. "Russia Handed Propaganda Gift By Persecuted Sect In Canada". Miami News. 21 January 1958. Retrieved 19 November 2010.
  4. Nesteroff, Greg (2012-10-25). "Former New Denver mayor publishes memoir". Nelson Star. Retrieved 2012-11-06.
  5. Nesteroff, Greg (2011-10-17). "Nelson: 3 for mayor, 8 for counci". Nelson Star. Retrieved 2012-11-06.
  6. Metcalfe, Bill. "Why a Little BC Town Wants to Banish Cell Phones", "The Tyee", 2008-03-13.
  7. "Calculation Information for 1981 to 2010 Canadian Normals Data". Environment Canada. Retrieved 9 July 2013.

External links

Coordinates: 49°59′30″N 117°22′17″W / 49.99167°N 117.37139°W / 49.99167; -117.37139

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