Kitselas, also Kitsalas, is an unincorporated settlement, otherwise known as Kitselas Indian Reserve No. 1 of the
Kitselas
{{about, the people, the location, Kitselas, British Columbia, their band government, Kitselas First Nation
Kitselas, Kitsalas or Gits'ilaasü are one of the 14 tribes of the Tsimshian nation of British Columbia, in northwestern Canada. The origi ...
subgroup of the
Tsimshian
The Tsimshian (; tsi, Ts’msyan or Tsm'syen) are an Indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest Coast. Their communities are mostly in coastal British Columbia in Terrace and Prince Rupert, and Metlakatla, Alaska on Annette Island, the only r ...
people located on the
Skeena River
The Skeena River is the second-longest river entirely within British Columbia, Canada (after the Fraser River). Since ancient times, the Skeena has been an important transportation artery, particularly for the Tsimshian and the Gitxsan—whose n ...
in northwestern
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. Kitselas means "people of the village at the canyon" in the
Tsimshian language. The band government of the Kitselas people is the
Kitselas First Nation, headquartered at Gitaus, another location within the canyon.
The name is also that of the
Canadian National Railway point in this area. It originally was to be named, or was proposed to be named "Vanarsdol" for
C.C. Van Arsdoll, an engineer for the
Grand Trunk Pacific Railway
The Grand Trunk Pacific Railway was a historic Canadian transcontinental railway running from Fort William, Ontario (now Thunder Bay) to Prince Rupert, British Columbia, a Pacific coast port. East of Winnipeg the line continued as the National Tra ...
who was responsible for construction of its route through the Rocky Mountains. His nickname was "Four-tenths Van", earned as a result of his famous ultimatum to surveyors that the grade of the railway route was not to exceed four-tenths of one percent.
See also
*
Kitselas Canyon
Kitselas Canyon, also Kitsalas Canyon is a stretch of the Skeena River in northwestern British Columbia, Canada, between the community of Usk and the Tsimshian community of Kitselas. It was a major obstacle to steamboat travel on the Skeena Ri ...
*
Kitselas
{{about, the people, the location, Kitselas, British Columbia, their band government, Kitselas First Nation
Kitselas, Kitsalas or Gits'ilaasü are one of the 14 tribes of the Tsimshian nation of British Columbia, in northwestern Canada. The origi ...
References
*
*
*
Tsimshian
Skeena Country
Unincorporated settlements in British Columbia
{{BritishColumbiaCoast-geo-stub