Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Vancouver, British Columbia, population 580,000, is located in the south western area of the province, with Burrard Inlet to the north, and the Frazer River to the south. It is the largest city in Metro Vancouver, and home to the busiest container port on the west coast of North America. The area was explored by the Spanish in 1791, and by Captain George Vancouver in 1792, but was not settled until the early 1860's, when coal was discovered in Burrard Inlet. Lumbering was an important industry during the early years. Vancouver's Stanley Park, one of the largest urban parks in the world, is the site of the Vancouver Aquarium, one of the largest in North America.

Kindly written and contributed by Mrs M J Ujimoto © 2009