Creston is a town in the
Kootenay
Kootenay, Kootenai, and Kutenai may refer to:
Ethnic groups
*The Kutenai, also known as the Ktunaxa, Kootenai, or Kootenay, an indigenous people of the United States and Canada
**Kutenai language, the traditional language of the Kutenai
**Ktunaxa ...
region of southeastern
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
, Canada. By road, Creston is roughly equidistant between
Cranbrook ( to the east) and
Castlegar ( to the west) along the
Crowsnest Highway
The Crowsnest Highway is an east-west highway in British Columbia and Alberta, Canada. It stretches across the southern portions of both provinces, from Hope, British Columbia to Medicine Hat, Alberta, providing the shortest highway connection b ...
. The town is approximately north of the
Porthill-Rykerts Border Crossing
The Porthill-Rykerts Border Crossing connects the town of Bonners Ferry, Idaho with Creston, British Columbia on the Canada–US border. Idaho State Highway 1 on the American side joins British Columbia Highway 21 on the Canadian side, which co ...
on the
Canada–US border.
Time zone and Kootenay descriptive
Settlements on the east shore of
Kootenay Lake and along
BC Highway 3 from Creston to
Yahk
Yahk is an unincorporated hamlet in southeastern British Columbia, Canada, just north of the Canada-U.S. border. Yahk Provincial Park borders the village to the south. Yahk is located on the Moyie River.
CBC Television talk show '' The Hour ...
are among the few areas of Canada that do not observe
daylight saving time
Daylight saving time (DST), also referred to as daylight savings time or simply daylight time (United States, Canada, and Australia), and summer time (United Kingdom, European Union, and others), is the practice of advancing clocks (typicall ...
, remaining on
Mountain Standard Time
The Mountain Time Zone of North America keeps time by subtracting seven hours from Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) when standard time ( UTC−07:00) is in effect, and by subtracting six hours during daylight saving time ( UTC−06:00). The cloc ...
year-round. Forming a natural boundary, the lake and the
Kootenay Pass
Kootenay Pass, known locally as "the Salmo–Creston" is a mountain pass in the Selkirk Mountains of British Columbia, Canada.
The pass summit divides the drainage basin of the Pend d'Oreille River on the west (via tributaries Stagleap Cr ...
on the
Salmo
''Salmo'' is a genus of ray-finned fish from the family Salmonidae. The single ''Salmo'' species naturally found in the Atlantic North America is the Atlantic salmon, whereas the salmon and trout of the Pacific basin belong to another genus, '' ...
–Creston highway divide the
Pacific Time Zone from the mountain one. When daylight saving ends, the time change migrates from Yahk to the Kootenay Bay ferry landing. Consequently, Creston in the warmer months is on Castlegar time and in the colder months on Cranbrook time.
East Kootenay
The 1860 survey defined the
Purcell Mountains
The Purcell Mountains are a mountain range in southeastern British Columbia, Canada. They are a subrange of the Columbia Mountains, which includes the Selkirk, Monashee, and Cariboo Mountains. They are located on the west side of the Rocky Mounta ...
as the east–west divide, which geographically places Creston in East Kootenay, but
Crawford Bay in West Kootenay. Since the highway to Salmo did not open until 1963, Creston developed cultural links eastward. Minor sports, both hockey and baseball, belonged to East Kootenay leagues.
West Kootenay
An 1899 advertisement described the Creston Townsite Co. as West Kootenay Valley. Since the highest passes of the Purcells are north-northeast, Creston might be considered in the west. Regional politics are centred at
Nelson
Nelson may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey
* ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers
* ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...
, which is in West Kootenay.
Central Kootenay
The Creston Review, first published in 1908, took a neutral stance. However, for several years, a front-page banner stated: "All roads in East Kootenay and West Kootenay lead to Creston." Prior to the creation of the
Regional District of Central Kootenay
The Regional District of Central Kootenay (RDCK) is a regional district in the province of British Columbia, Canada. As of the 2016 census, the population was 59,517. The area is 22,130.72 square kilometres. The administrative centre is locate ...
in 1965, Central Kootenay did not exist as a geographic concept. Most locals still do not accept the idea. Those on the fence regard Creston as a sort of transition between east and west, or from a time zone perspective, as being west in summer and east in winter.
First Nations and European early visitors
The
Lower Kootenay Band of the
Ktunaxa Nation has occupied the region from time immemorial. Tribal members would paddle their canoes across the flooded flats, harvesting wild rice, one of the staples of their diet.
The people called the Creston area Yaqan Nukiy, meaning "where the rock stands." Europeans referred to this area as the
Goat River district.
Established in 1865, this section of the
Dewdney Trail The Dewdney Trail is a trail in British Columbia, Canada that served as a major thoroughfare in mid-19th century British Columbia. The trail was a critical factor in the development and strengthening of the newly established British colony of Bri ...
travelled southeast via present day
Wynndel and Creston, before following the Goat River valley northeastward. On an 1882 hunting trip,
William A. Baillie-Grohman and
Teddy Roosevelt camped in the vicinity of today's Creston. Baillie-Grohman noted the agricultural potential of the flats if protected from flooding.
The
Kutenai language
The Kutenai ( ), also known as the Ktunaxa ( ; ), Ksanka ( ), Kootenay (in Canada) and Kootenai (in the United States), are an indigenous people of Canada and the United States. Kutenai bands live in southeastern British Columbia, northern ...
is noted for its uniqueness, as were the tribe's distinctive
sturgeon-nosed canoes. Members reside in several local reserves. As of 2020, the Lower Kootenay Band is in Stage 4 of the
British Columbia Treaty Process.
Name origin
In 1891, three settlers obtained lots. Of today's town, John Wilson Dow owned the northern portion, Fred. G. Little, the centre, and John Arrowsmith, the southwestern corner. The Columbia and Kootenay Steam Navigation Company twice weekly run between Nelson and
Bonners Ferry
Bonners Ferry (Kutenai language: ʔaq̓anqmi) is the largest city and the county seat of Boundary County, Idaho, United States. The population was 2,543 at the 2010 census.
History
When gold was discovered in the East Kootenays of British ...
served the growing community on the edge of the flats.
The place was formerly known as Fred Little's ranch and then as the eighth siding during the
Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) construction. The name of Fisher was chosen for the initial timetable published in August 1898, assumedly after
Sydney Arthur Fisher
Sydney Arthur Fisher, (June 12, 1850 – April 9, 1921) was a Canadian politician.
Born in Montreal, Canada East, he was educated at the High School of Montreal, McGill University, and finally Trinity College, Cambridge.
A farmer, he first ...
, a politician friendly to the railway. Some confusion existed as to whether a rename to Sirdar would be adopted.
Sirdar
The rank of Sirdar ( ar, سردار) – a variant of Sardar – was assigned to the British Commander-in-Chief of the British-controlled Egyptian Army in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The Sirdar resided at the Sirdaria, a three-blo ...
was the title assigned to the commander-in-chief of the
British-controlled Egyptian Army in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Lord Kitchener, who held this position, was equally honoured by the CP station of Kitchener northeast. Sirdar, an existing CP station northwest, would also have needed to be renamed in such circumstances. Residents preferred the name Creston, which appears to have been in popular use. Fred Little selected the name after
Creston, Iowa
Creston is a city in and the county seat of Union County, Iowa. The population was 7,536 at the time of the 2020 Census.
History
Creston was originally settled in 1868 as a survey camp for the Burlington and Missouri Railroad. It was name ...
, where he had worked for the
Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, which also stood at the outlet of a major water body. The residents petitioned CP to change the name from Fisher to Creston,
a request CP granted before late 1899.
Railways
CP accepted offers from Little and Dow for a half-interest in their properties.
During construction, the CP rail head passed northwestward toward Kuskonook in September 1898. Although construction trains offered passenger service until mid-October, the line was not handed over to CP until mid-November, but services on the western section did not resume until mid-December. The two-storey station was erected that year.
In December 1899, the Bedlington & Nelson Railway (B&N), a
Great Northern Railway subsidiary, assumed possession of the completed line from the main contractor. The route followed today's Lower Wynndel Rd (low road). In July 1900, the B&N began limited services and that November, a daily service to Kuskonook. That August, B&N's operations north of the junction (
Wynndel) were suspended. Soon, there was little activity north of Creston.
Certainly by February 1904, the three times weekly
mixed train
A mixed train or mixed consist is a train that contains both passenger and freight cars or wagons. Although common in the early days of railways, by the 20th century they were largely confined to branch lines with little traffic. Typically, service ...
ran no farther north than Creston. In December 1914, the final twice weekly mixed train ran north to Creston, and the Wynndel–Porthill track was lifted in 1916.
In 1949, CP replaced the former station with a single level flat-roofed one.
Passenger service on the route ended in 1964.
In 1982, the station closed. In 1990, track removal left only one siding, and the brewery spur.
Early community
Little and the CP created separate subdivisions, which sold quickly. In late 1898, Robt. J. Long built the first hotel. By 1900, a settlement was growing around Long's Creston and John Munroe's Queen's hotels on the portion of Little's subdivision below the tracks. To meet demand, Little further subdivided above the tracks, to where William Crawford and Charles Faas moved their general stores, now the downtown.
In 1907, a
Canadian Bank of Commerce
The Canadian Bank of Commerce was a Canadian bank which was founded in 1867, and had hundreds of branches throughout Canada. It merged in 1961 with the Imperial Bank of Canada to form the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce.
History
In 1866 a ...
branch opened. The next year, The Creston Review began publication. Creston was incorporated as a village in 1924.
The next year, exchanges of gunfire occurred during a bank robbery. One outlaw was captured the following afternoon. His unidentified partner disappeared with $4,000.
In 1930, Dr. Olivier opened an eleven-bed hospital, and the Creston Hotel (1898) burned to the ground. In 1949, the Kootenay Hotel opened.
In 1960, Interior Breweries began production at a new brewery.
Creston was incorporated as a town in 1966.
In 1974, the
Labatt Brewing Company
Labatt Brewing Company Limited (french: La Brasserie Labatt Limitée) is a Belgian-owned brewery headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1847, Labatt is the largest brewer in Canada.
In 1995, it was purchased by Belgian brewer Int ...
acquired 84 per cent of Columbia Brewing Company (the 1972 rename of Interior Breweries).
Agriculture
![Creston BC - grain elevators](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bd/Creston_BC_-_grain_elevators.jpg)
About 1884, likely associated with the Baillie-Grohman reclamation plan, the first settlers arrived, cleared the slopes around today's Creston, and planted orchards, but obtained no
preemptions. In the early 1890s, William Rodger and Jane Huscroft, with their large family and cattle, squatted on the flats. During 1893, crews dyked the river, but the exceptional flooding during the following spring destroyed much of the work. In partnership with the Kootenay Valley Power and Development Co., settlers completed reconstruction that year, reclaiming . Later deterioration of the dykes resumed annual flooding, leaving the land suitable only for hay harvests.
Apple and cherry orchards were well established by 1920s. As returning
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
veterans developed farms on the flat lands to the south, grain harvests increased.
Grain elevators were built in Creston by the Midland Pacific Grain Corporation in 1935 and the Alberta Wheat Pool in 1936 and 1949. Rebuilt dyking of a few years earlier succumbed to floods in 1938 and 1948. The first annual Blossom Festival was held in 1942.
In 2018, the Columbia Basin Trust acquired the two remaining abandoned elevators (1935 and 1936) with a view to restoration.
Lumber
Small sawmills were established in 1898 and around 1903. In 1907, C.O. Rodgers erected a mill at the mouth of the Goat River gorge. In partnership with D.W. Briggs, he reorganized as the Canyon City Lumber Co. in 1911. After a 1923 fire destroyed the mill, the rebuild, known as Creston Sawmills, opened in 1924. The specialized Rodgers Box Factory catered to the fruit and berry trade. The sawmill closed in 1981 and the buildings torn down. The veneer and planer mills, which closed a decade later, were also demolished.
Road/air transportation
By 1909, the highway to Cranbrook was rated as good. By 1910, a passable trail existed east to
Lethbridge, which by 1912 was a main road. After realignments, a proper gravel highway opened in 1920. In 1932, the route became the No. 3, Interprovincial Highway, remaining for years the main road connection between the two western provinces.
Southward, a wagon road existed by the 1890s, which was periodically upgraded over the following decades.
In 1931, the ferry/highway auto route north to Nelson was inaugurated.
When Canyon St. was widened in 1947 for the new
Crowsnest Highway
The Crowsnest Highway is an east-west highway in British Columbia and Alberta, Canada. It stretches across the southern portions of both provinces, from Hope, British Columbia to Medicine Hat, Alberta, providing the shortest highway connection b ...
, the frontage buildings moved back.
The October 1963 opening of the Salmo–Creston highway rerouted most traffic from the ferry route.
Creston is served by the
Creston Valley Airport formerly known as the Art Sutcliffe Field. In 2017, the pilot of a small plane safely made an emergency landing on Highway 3 west of Creston.
Prior to
Greyhound Canada
Greyhound Canada Transportation ULC began as a local British Columbia bus line in the early 1920s, expanded across most of Canada, and became a subsidiary of the US Greyhound in 1940.
In 2018, Greyhound pulled out of Western Canada, preserving ...
ceasing all intraprovincial services in 2018, an application the prior year included a service reduction via Creston. The summer bus service between
Kaslo
Kaslo is a village on the west shore of Kootenay Lake in the West Kootenay region of southeastern British Columbia. A member municipality of the Central Kootenay Regional District, the name derives from the adjacent Kaslo River. At 2016, the p ...
and
Calgary, instituted by a regional operator in 2019, included a Creston stop.
In 2021, the Creston Valley Transit System replaced its fleet of diesel-powered buses with four light-duty, gasoline-driven buses.
Communications and utilities
In 1907, the Creston Power Light & Telephone Co (CPL&T) installed phone wires northwest to Duck Creek, east to
Erickson Erickson may refer to:
Places
;Canada
*Erickson, Manitoba, a town
*Erickson, British Columbia an unincorporated area
;United States
* Erickson Corner, Connecticut, an unincorporated community
* Erickson Landing, Michigan, an unincorporated communit ...
, and south to Porthill, Idaho. The next year, the Goat Mountain Waterworks replaced transporting water by wagon from Wynndel.
The excess from electricity generation by the sawmill was sold to the Creston Power, Light and Telephone Company. In 1934, West Kootenay Power & Light (WKP&L) replaced the mill supply, using transmission lines from the
Goat River Dam.
In 2015,
Telus
Telus Communications Inc. (TCI) is the wholly owned principal subsidiary of Telus Corporation, a Telecommunications in Canada, Canadian national telecommunications company that provides a wide range of telecommunications products and services ...
completed a project to string fibre optic cables for residential and business use.
A $1.1M upgrade in 2017 to the undersized Schikurski Pump Station secured the town water supply.
Later community
Creston offers an infrastructure typical of a town of this size, including brewery tours, a shopping mall, golf course and a large selection of motels, hotels, and three campsites. The
Ramada hotel (2012) was the first new hotel in Creston in decades. In 2011, the Creston & District Community Complex (1971) received new flooring and upgraded amenities.
The Creston-based
Kokanee Beer movie entry won a Gold Lion at the 2013
Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity
The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity (formerly the International Advertising Festival) is a global event for those working in creative communications, advertising, and related fields. It is considered the largest gathering of the ...
. That year,
Budweiser
Budweiser () is an American-style pale lager, part of AB InBev. Introduced in 1876 by Carl Conrad & Co. of St. Louis, Missouri, Budweiser has become a large selling beer company in the United States.
''Budweiser'' may also refer to an unrela ...
production began at the Columbia Brewery.
The
Art Deco
Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...
style Tivoli Theatre (1938) and many of these 1930-ish wood-framed structures in the downtown area seek to mimic this architectural style.
The long-vacant Kootenay Hotel has been transformed into a wine bar, taphouse and restaurant. The Creston Hotel has also been extensively modernized.
After a 2015 fire extensively damaged Trinity United Church, reconstruction work did not start until two years later.
Media
The Creston Valley is served by AM radio station CFKC-AM at 1340 kHz (rebroadcasting
CJAT-FM Trail, BC), and by FM radio stations
CKCV-FM
CKCV-FM is a Canadian radio station broadcasting at 94.1 FM in Creston, British Columbia. The station plays a hot adult contemporary format branded as 94.1 Juice FM. The station is owned by Vista Radio
Vista Radio Ltd. (also formerly known as V ...
at 94.1 MHz,
CIDO-FM
CIDO-FM, branded as Creston Community Radio, is a community radio station broadcasting with an effective radiated power of 20 watts in the Southern Interior town of Creston, British Columbia, Canada. The non-commercial station, airing on 97.7 FM ...
at 97.7 MHz (dormant as of 2021), and CBTS-FM at 100.3 MHz (rebroadcasting
CBTK-FM
CBTK-FM is a Canadian radio station, which broadcasts the programming of the CBC Radio One network in Kelowna, British Columbia. The station broadcasts at 88.9 FM in Kelowna.
History
The station was launched in 1987. Prior to its launch, CBC Ra ...
Kelowna, BC as part of the
CBC Radio One
CBC Radio One is the English-language news and information radio network of the publicly owned Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It is commercial-free and offers local and national programming. It is available on AM and FM to 98 percent of C ...
network). The broadcast antennae of CKCV-FM and CBTK-FM are co-located at to the West-northwest of Creston. The local newspaper is the Creston Valley Advance.
Demographics
In the
2021 Census of Population
The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, which is sli ...
conducted by
Statistics Canada, Creston had a population of 5,583 living in 2,670 of its 2,810 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 5,361. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.
Ethnicity
Religion
According to the
2021 census, religious groups in Creston included:
*
Irreligion
Irreligion or nonreligion is the absence or rejection of religion, or indifference to it. Irreligion takes many forms, ranging from the casual and unaware to full-fledged philosophies such as atheism and agnosticism, secular humanism and ...
(2,675 persons or 49.8%)
*
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
(2,525 persons or 47.0%)
*
Hinduism
Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
(35 persons or 0.7%)
*
Buddhism
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religions, Indian religion or Indian philosophy#Buddhist philosophy, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha. ...
(25 persons or 0.5%)
*
Judaism
Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in t ...
(15 persons or 0.3%)
*
Sikhism
Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...
(10 persons or 0.2%)
*Other (75 persons or 1.4%)
Climate
Creston has either an inland
oceanic climate or a
humid continental climate
A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...
, depending on the isotherm used (). Creston's climate is often modified by air masses of the
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contin ...
origin, especially in winter. Daily maximum temperatures are usually above freezing even in January except when air masses of
Arctic
The Arctic ( or ) is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenland), Finland, Iceland, N ...
origin move over the area. The worst cold outbreaks may send temperatures below on rare occasions. Spring comes early by Canadian standards; trees usually start to leaf out before the end of April. A clear summer day is likely to have a daily maximum near or above ; the record maximum is . The first fall frost usually holds off until October where air drainage is good.
The mean annual
precipitation
In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravitational pull from clouds. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, sleet, snow, ice pellets, graupel and hail. ...
is in mid-town, but the area has a rather steep precipitation gradient which is reflected in regional ecosystems.
Flora and fauna
The moisture-loving
western hemlock
''Tsuga heterophylla'', the western hemlock or western hemlock-spruce, is a species of hemlock native to the west coast of North America, with its northwestern limit on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, and its southeastern limit in northern Sonoma ...
grows near the town's northern boundary; another wet-belt indicator, the
western red cedar
''Thuja plicata'' is an evergreen coniferous tree in the cypress family Cupressaceae, native to western North America. Its common name is western redcedar (western red cedar in the UK), and it is also called Pacific redcedar, giant arborvitae ...
, is common in the area. The sun-loving
ponderosa pine
''Pinus ponderosa'', commonly known as the ponderosa pine, bull pine, blackjack pine, western yellow-pine, or filipinus pine is a very large pine tree species of variable habitat native to mountainous regions of western North America. It is the ...
forms a larger proportion of the vegetation near Creston's southern boundary.
Douglas fir is the most common native tree throughout; other large
conifers include
grand fir
''Abies grandis'' (grand fir, giant fir, lowland white fir, great silver fir, western white fir, Vancouver fir, or Oregon fir) is a fir native to the Pacific Northwest and Northern California of North America, occurring at altitudes of sea leve ...
,
western larch
The western larch (''Larix occidentalis'') is a species of larch native to the mountains of western North America (Pacific Northwest, Inland Northwest); in Canada in southeastern British Columbia and southwestern Alberta, and in the United State ...
,
western white pine
Western white pine (''Pinus monticola''), also called silver pine and California mountain pine, is a species of pine in the family Pinaceae. It occurs in mountain ranges of northwestern North America. It is the state tree of Idaho.
Description ...
and
lodgepole pine
''Pinus contorta'', with the common names lodgepole pine and shore pine, and also known as twisted pine, and contorta pine, is a common tree in western North America. It is common near the ocean shore and in dry montane forests to the subalpin ...
. Large pines other than the ponderosa are seldom seen in town, but are common in some of the woods nearby. The only native
deciduous
In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, ...
tree which matches the conifers in size is the
black cottonwood
''Populus trichocarpa'', the black cottonwood, western balsam-poplar or California poplar, is a deciduous broadleaf tree species native to western North America. It is used for timber, and is notable as a model organism in plant biology.
...
.
White birch
''Betula papyrifera'' (paper birch, also known as (American) white birch and canoe birch) is a short-lived species of birch native to northern North America. Paper birch is named for the tree's thin white bark, which often peels in paper like ...
and
trembling aspen grow to medium size; smaller trees include the
Rocky Mountain maple
''Acer glabrum'' is a species of maple native to western North America, from southeastern Alaska, British Columbia and western Alberta, east to western Nebraska, and south through Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana and Colorado to California, Ar ...
and
bitter cherry
''Prunus emarginata'', the bitter cherry or Oregon cherry, is a species of ''Prunus'' native to western North America, from British Columbia south to Baja California, and east as far as western Wyoming and New Mexico. It is often found in recent ...
. Prominent among the non-native trees are
blue spruce
The blue spruce (''Picea pungens''), also commonly known as green spruce, Colorado spruce, or Colorado blue spruce, is a species of spruce tree. It is native to North America, and is found in USDA growing zones 1 through 7. It is found naturall ...
,
horsechestnut
The genus ''Aesculus'' ( or ), with species called buckeye and horse chestnut, comprises 13–19 species of flowering plants in the family Sapindaceae. They are trees and shrubs native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere, with six species n ...
,
Norway maple
''Acer platanoides'', commonly known as the Norway maple, is a species of maple native to eastern and central Europe and western Asia, from Spain east to Russia, north to southern Scandinavia and southeast to northern Iran. It was introduced to ...
,
silver maple
''Acer saccharinum'', commonly known as silver maple, creek maple, silverleaf maple, soft maple, large maple, water maple, swamp maple, or white maple, is a species of maple native to the eastern and central United States and southeastern Canad ...
, and several species of
walnut
A walnut is the edible seed of a drupe of any tree of the genus ''Juglans'' (family Juglandaceae), particularly the Persian or English walnut, '' Juglans regia''.
Although culinarily considered a "nut" and used as such, it is not a true ...
, including the
butternut. There also are occasional examples of
catalpa,
chestnut,
London plane
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major se ...
, and
tulip tree
''Liriodendron'' () is a genus of two species of characteristically large trees, deciduous over most of their populations, in the magnolia family (Magnoliaceae).
These trees are widely known by the common name tulip tree or tuliptree for their ...
.
Large mammals at Creston include
cougar, bear,
beaver,
coyote, deer,
elk
The elk (''Cervus canadensis''), also known as the wapiti, is one of the largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, and one of the largest terrestrial mammals in its native range of North America and Central and East Asia. The common ...
,
moose
The moose (in North America) or elk (in Eurasia) (''Alces alces'') is a member of the New World deer subfamily and is the only species in the genus ''Alces''. It is the largest and heaviest extant species in the deer family. Most adult ma ...
,
muskrat and
river otter. More than 265 bird species occur in the Creston Valley, which is in a migration corridor for
waterfowl
Anseriformes is an order of birds also known as waterfowl that comprises about 180 living species of birds in three families: Anhimidae (three species of screamers), Anseranatidae (the magpie goose), and Anatidae, the largest family, which i ...
such as goose and swan; the valley is also a wintering area for
birds of prey
Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and other smaller birds). In addition to speed and strength, these predat ...
. The Creston area hosts British Columbia's only remaining population of
northern leopard frog
''Lithobates pipiens''Integrated Taxonomic Information System nternet2012''Lithobates pipiens'' pdated 2012 Sept; cited 2012 Dec 26Available from: www.itis.gov/ or ''Rana pipiens'', commonly known as the northern leopard frog, is a species of le ...
.
Physiography and soils
Creston is built on rolling
bench-land immediately to the east of the
Kootenay River
The Kootenay or Kootenai river is a major river in the Northwest Plateau, in southeastern British Columbia, Canada, and northern Montana and Idaho in the United States. It is one of the uppermost major tributary, tributaries of the Columbia Ri ...
floodplain. Beyond the bench-land to the east are the
Purcell Mountains
The Purcell Mountains are a mountain range in southeastern British Columbia, Canada. They are a subrange of the Columbia Mountains, which includes the Selkirk, Monashee, and Cariboo Mountains. They are located on the west side of the Rocky Mounta ...
; their steep west-facing scarps are mistakenly called the Skimmerhorns, while the
Selkirk Mountains rise west of the floodplain.
Silt
loam is the most common soil texture at Creston. The
floodplain
A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river which stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls, and which experiences flooding during periods of high discharge.Goudi ...
soils are dark and poorly drained for the most part; they are excellent for pasture and grains where drainage is improved. Some of the bench-land soils are brown and of good tilth; others are gray, deficient in organic matter, and have rather heavy calcareous subsoils.
Notable current and former residents
*
William Munroe Archibald
William Munroe Archibald (February 23, 1876 – November 10, 1949) was a pioneering Canadian aviator.
Early years
He was educated at McGill University, Montreal, where he graduated in 1897 with an engineering degree. Following extensive experi ...
, aviator
*
Johnny Bucyk
John Paul Bucyk (born May 12, 1935) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey left winger and member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. Having played most of his career with the Boston Bruins, he has been associated in one capacity or another with the ...
, former NHL hockey player (Boston Bruins and New York Islanders)
*
Irwin Crosthwait, painter
*
Aaron Douglas, actor
*
Edward Joseph Garland
Edward Joseph Garland (March 16, 1887 – December 19, 1974) was a farmer, diplomat and a Canadian federal politician. He was born in Dublin, Ireland and attended Belvedere College and Trinity College Dublin.
Political career
Garland, an act ...
, politician and diplomat
*
Jamie Huscroft, former NHL hockey player
*
Pascale Hutton
Pascale Hutton (born June 14, 1979) is a Canadian actress. She was born in Creston, British Columbia. Hutton attended the conservatory acting program at the University of Alberta in Edmonton
Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadia ...
, actress
*
Darren Jensen, former NHL goalie (Philadelphia Flyers)
*Squadron Leader Clarence "C.B." Lang, Team Leader,
RCAF
The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...
Golden Centennaires
The Golden Centennaires were a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) aerobatic flying team that performed in 1967, the Canadian Centennial year. The team was created to celebrate the Canadian Centennial.
The eight-plane formation team, commanded by Win ...
, 1960s
*
Dmytro Lazorko, politician
*
Rob Morrison, politician
*
John Gordon Perrin, volleyball player
*
Duncan Regehr
Duncan Peter Regehr (born October 5, 1952) is a Canadian writer, multimedia artist, and film and television actor. He was also a figure skater and a classically trained Shakespearean stage actor in his native Canada, before heading to Hollywood ...
, actor
*
Randy Rota
Randolph Frank Rota (born August 16, 1950) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played 212 games in the National Hockey League and 90 games in the World Hockey Association. He played for the Montreal Canadiens, Los Angeles King ...
, former NHL hockey player
*
Francis Henry Shepherd, politician and engineer
*
Jayli Wolf
Jayli Wolf (born 23 November) is a Canadian singer-songwriter, actress, and filmmaker. She began her music career in collaboration with Hayden Wolf under the name Once A Tree. As a solo artist, she broke out with her single and music video "Child ...
, musician and actress
Youth Programs
*
Royal Canadian Army Cadets
*
Royal Canadian Air Cadets
The Royal Canadian Air Cadets (french: Cadets de l'Aviation royale du Canada) is a Canadian national youth program for young individuals aged 12 to 18. Under the authority of the National Defence Act, the program is administered by the Canadian F ...
Sports
*Creston Combat Fitness
*Creston Judo Club
*Creston Curling Club
*Creston Ospreys Rowing Club
*Creston Valley Thundercats junior 'B' hockey team
*Creston Waves Swim club
*Creston Valley Skating Club
See also
*
Creston Valley Wildlife Management Area
The Creston Valley Wildlife Management Area is a Canadian river delta wetland and Wildlife Management Area near Creston in south-central British Columbia, on the floodplain of the Kootenay River at the south end of Kootenay Lake. Predominantly m ...
Footnotes
References
*
External links
Official Town of Creston Website
{{authority control
Towns in British Columbia
Populated places in the Regional District of Central Kootenay