The Goat River is tributary 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 tributaries of the Columbia River, the l ...

in the

Canadian province Within the geographical areas of Canada, the ten provinces and three territories are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North ...

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, ...

. The river meets the Kootenay near the town of Creston. The Goat River Dam, constructed in the 1930s, was an early source of electricity for the town. Before dikes were built, the river was a major source of spring flooding in the Creston valley.

Course

in length, the Goat River rises in the central

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 ...

just west of Mallaindane Pass and flows largely south until meeting Kitchener Creek. From this confluence, it bends southwest towards the towns of

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 Creston. Its lower reaches are the route of the southern mainline of the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

and 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 total area of the Goat River drainage is approximately .

History

In the 1860s, the lower Goat River valley became part of the route for 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 ...

, connecting the gold fields of Wild Horse Creek with the coast. Surveyed and constructed by

Edgar Dewdney Edgar Dewdney, (November 5, 1835 – August 8, 1916) was a Canadian surveyor, road builder, Indian commissioner and politician born in Devonshire, England. He emigrated to British Columbia in 1859 in order to act as surveyor for the Dewdney T ...

and Walter Moberly, the trail was seen as a countermeasure to American encroachment into the southern Kootenays. The demand for electricity in the growing town of Creston led to the construction of the Goat River Dam in the early 1930s. The concrete arch dam is located five kilometers east of Creston. It operated until the large power projects of the 1950s in the Kootenays reduced the need for the generating station, which suffered from ice buildup in winter and an inconstant water supply. It was decommissioned and sold in 1979.

References

External links

Topographic map of the upper Goat RiverTopographic map of the lower Goat River
{{authority control Rivers of British Columbia Tributaries of the Kootenay River East Kootenay

Course

History

See also

References

External links