Moresby Island is one of the

Gulf Islands The Gulf Islands are a group of islands in the Salish Sea between Vancouver Island and the mainland coast of British Columbia. Etymology The name "Gulf Islands" comes from "Gulf of Georgia," the original term used by George Vancouver in his ma ...

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, ...

, located on the west side of Swanson Channel and east of the southern end of

Saltspring Island Salt Spring Island or Saltspring Island is one of the Gulf Islands in the Strait of Georgia between mainland British Columbia, Canada, and Vancouver Island. The island was initially inhabited by various Salishan peoples before being settled by ...

. It is not to be confused with

Moresby Island Moresby Island ( hai, Gwaii Haanas) is a large island () that forms part of the Haida Gwaii archipelago (formerly known as Queen Charlotte Islands) in British Columbia, Canada, located at . It is separated by the narrow Skidegate Channel from ...

, the second largest of the

Haida Gwaii Islands Haida Gwaii (; hai, X̱aaydag̱a Gwaay.yaay / , literally "Islands of the Haida people") is an archipelago located between off the northern Pacific coast of Canada. The islands are separated from the mainland to the east by the shallow Heca ...

off the north coast of BC. It is currently a privately owned island, and is used by its current owners to raise beef cattle. The island is not open to the general public. Its current population is 2 people, a manager and his wife. Moresby Island has an elevation of 148 meters (485 feet 6 inches) above sea level at its highest point, and has a total land area of 3.22 sq. miles. The

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

is in length, and is across.m The island was first settled in 1863. It was named for Rear Admiral

Fairfax Moresby Admiral of the Fleet Sir Fairfax Moresby GCB (29 November 1786 – 21 January 1877) was a Royal Navy officer. As a junior officer he took part in the unsuccessful expedition to capture Ferrol in Spain during the French Revolutionary Wars. He ...

, who was the naval commander-in-chief of the

Pacific Station The Pacific Station was created in 1837 as one of the geographical military formations into which the Royal Navy divided its worldwide responsibilities. The South America Station was split into the Pacific Station and the South East Coast of A ...

of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

between 1850 and 1853, as was Fairfax Point at the island's southern tip and the other Moresby Island in Haida Gwaii. During the 1880s, land was cleared by Capt. H. J. Robertson, then owner, in order to plant fruit trees. In 1940, the island again changed hands. The island has been logged three times by separate Chinese logging companies. The evidence of this logging is nearly gone, yet there are a few signs of logging still remaining. Traces of the trails built for the machines can still be found. It has a very rich history, including a ghost story, the remains of a long-gone mansion, and evidence of

First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area. Indigenous groups *First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including: **First Natio ...

people using the island as a resting place when traveling. Image:Arbutustrees9hi.jpg Image:Cowsatfence0dr.jpg Image:Oldwagon0hg.jpg Image:Backfield3ed.jpg

References

{{GulfIslands Islands of the Gulf Islands Private islands of Canada