Smithers, British Columbia
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Smithers is a town 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, ...
, approximately halfway between Prince George and
Prince Rupert Prince Rupert of the Rhine, Duke of Cumberland, (17 December 1619 (O.S.) / 27 December (N.S.) – 29 November 1682 (O.S.)) was an English army officer, admiral, scientist and colonial governor. He first came to prominence as a Royalist cavalr ...
. With a population of 5,351 in 2016, Smithers provides service coverage for most of the
Bulkley Valley The Bulkley Valley is in the northwest Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada. Geography The Bulkley, a stream running through Houston, British Columbia, joins the larger Morice River about to the west. At the confluence, they become not ...
.


History


Region

First Nations settlements existed thousands of years prior to European presence.


Railway

The planned
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 ...
(GTP) required two major divisional points in BC, where additional staff and facilities would be located. After Prince George, various central points on the Prince Rupert leg were considered in the vicinity of Aldermere. A prime choice was Hubert, east of Telkwa, initially called Bulkley by the developers, who had amassed the surrounding land. These speculators promoted a future new city, and later a trade centre of the Bulkley Valley, both fallacious claims, since Smithers had already been selected as the divisional point. The Interior News of Aldermere had earlier adopted a policy of refusing advertising from such unscrupulous promoters. The Aldermere Board of Trade was hostile to the idea of Telkwa itself being the divisional headquarters, allegedly because the rail yards would destroy the alder groves. In reality, they likely foresaw that even a station would soon relocate their community down to the stop. The speculators had not considered the swampy ground west of Telkwa at the foot of Hudson Bay Mountain. Averse to sharing land sale profits with speculators, the GTP made this their headquarters, creating Smithers, named after Sir Alfred Smithers, chair of the GTP board. During 1913, the Railway Commission approved the station site as the second divisional point in March. Surveying started in April, 100 of the 160 acres of town site were cleared by August, and 160 acres of railyards by September. The railhead advanced by in July, and the first passenger train arrived in October. With the standard quarter portion reserved for government facilities, the GTP began marketing plots that month. Despite ditches for draining, the subsoil was layers of quicksand and clay, requiring pile driving for building foundations. Pleas to the GTP to address the swampy road conditions fell on deaf ears. The temporary train station, built in 1915, was replaced in 1919 by a Plan 100‐166 station building. For decades, the railway remained the dominant employer, but from the 1950s, employee numbers gradually dwindled, and buildings became redundant. In 1994, the Smithers Community Services Association purchased the listed station building.


Town layout

Professional landscape architects designed the street layout to accommodate a potential 10,000 people, and the municipality largely followed this plan over subsequent decades. In recent decades, expansion has adopted modern planning concepts, instead of the original grid pattern. However, the original design ignored the topography and soil conditions. Consequently, some lots on slopes, creeks or flood plains could not be developed. Main Street was the commercial core, with the train station and Alfred Park at one end and Central (formerly City Hall) Park at the other (now the intersection with
Highway 16 Route 16, or Highway 16, can refer to: International * Asian Highway 16 * European route E16 * European route E016 Australia  - Thompsons Road (Victoria)     - South Australia Canada ;Parts of the Trans-Canada Highway: *Yellowhead Hi ...
). Residential development radiated outward. In 1925, the government built a combined courthouse/provincial offices within the latter park. Main Street implemented an alpine theme in 1972.


Commerce & population

The Seymour Lake Lumber Company, having a 15,000-foot capacity per shift mill, was producing 10,000 feet of lumber daily to keep up with the building boom. Swampy land with canvas tents and shacks became what the Omenica Miner described in October 1913 as "the best district in British Columbia." The Telkwa Tribune, renamed the Smithers Tribune, relocated and the Smithers Review opened. By 1914, there were the two newspapers, two banks, three churches, a three-storey hotel, stores, a telephone system and an electricity supply. Stores and services comprised six rooming houses, five restaurants, four general stores, doctor, dentist, drugstore, hardware store, sawmill, planing mill, two lumber yards, plumber, sheet iron worker, sign works, three contracting firms, two laundries, two poolrooms, livery stable, meat market, shoe shop, and two real estate firms. After the 1914 Telkwa fire, which destroyed 13 downtown buildings, many businesses relocated to Smithers, a community of 125 permanent buildings and 700 people. The sizable GTP payroll provided a solid base to attract further settlers and businesses. Initial optimism projected a 5,000 population by 1915, which was finally achieved in 1991. The population, that fell during
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 ...
, was 350 in 1918, and 520 in 1920. Volunteers contained two 1921 fires. The power plant one caused $10,000 damage to a cold storage plant. Months later, two adjacent hotels burned to the ground. By 1925, the population was about 1,000. A 1930 fire caused $25,000 damage to the Hudson Bay Lumber sawmill on the western outskirts A.S. Sargent permanently closed his store after a 1931 fire. During the
Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
, many businesses closed, and the population hovered around 700. From the 1940s, many small independent bush mills supplied the two local planer mills. The population increased from 1,204 in 1951 to 2,487 in 1961, 4,570 by 1981, and peaked at 5,624 in 1996.


Public institutions & amenities

The post office completed, J. Mason Adams was the inaugural postmaster 1913–14. He operated the first drug store in Telkwa. The Smithers Citizens Association, formed in December 1913, provided leadership, but could not levy taxes. Miss Mary K. Downey was the initial teacher at the school established in April 1914. In 1915, a permanent building replaced temporary accommodation in the Methodist Church. Citizen donations provided a $15,000 community hall. In 1920, the premier opened the two-storey hospital, which provided 15 beds on remodelling. Smithers became the first incorporated village for BC in 1921. During the Depression, the basic rural road network was built, the golf course opened in 1931, the airfield in 1933, a fire truck was purchased, the Bulkley Valley District Hospital (staffed by the Sisters of St. Anne until 1969) opened in 1934, and the Dominion Experimental Farm in 1938. Highway 16 was completed to Prince Rupert in 1944. A 1947 referendum approved a town water supply. In 1967, when Smithers became a town, J.F. MacDonald was the first mayor. The combined library/museum built that year housed the books previously shelved in the Municipal Hall garage since 1955. A decade later, the museum moved to the Central Park building, allowing the library to expand. In 1976, the province moved the regional office from Prince Rupert. The Bulkley Valley Regional Pool and Recreation Centre opened in 1990.


Education, health & emergency services

School District 54 Bulkley Valley School District 54 Bulkley Valley is a school district in northwestern British Columbia. Centered in Smithers, it includes the communities of Telkwa, Houston, and Witset. History Except for the two schools in Houston Houston (; ) is the ...
is one of the largest employers, and three private schools operate. A
Coast Mountain College Coast Mountain College (CMTN) is an accredited, publicly-funded post-secondary educational institution that serves the communities of British Columbia's northwest region. CMTN offers field schools, college access, trades, university credit, healt ...
campus provides tertiary education. The Smithers Public Library is open 5–9 hours daily on 6 days per week. The Bulkley Valley Museum has similar restricted opening times. The Bulkley Valley Regional Pool and Recreation Centre is open daily. The Bulkley Valley District Hospital is a 25-bed acute care facility. A 40-person volunteer fire department, and three-ambulance base exist. The
Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; french: Gendarmerie royale du Canada; french: GRC, label=none), commonly known in English as the Mounties (and colloquially in French as ) is the federal police, federal and national police service of ...
detachment serves Smithers, Telkwa, Fort Babine Reserve, and the Moricetown First Nations Reserve. Smithers and area now has a BC Emergency Support Services team.


Transportation

Air Canada Air Canada is the flag carrier and the largest airline of Canada by the size and passengers carried. Air Canada maintains its headquarters in the borough of Saint-Laurent, Montreal, Quebec. The airline, founded in 1937, provides scheduled and ...
, Central Mountain Air, charter airlines, and helicopter companies, provide multiple daily flights.
VIA Rail Via Rail Canada Inc. (), operating as Via Rail or Via, is a Canadian Crown corporation that is mandated to operate intercity passenger rail service in Canada. It receives an annual subsidy from Transport Canada to offset the cost of operating ...
's Jasper-Prince Rupert makes a scheduled stop three times a week in each direction. When Greyhound cancelled this route in 2019, BC Bus North, became the replacement operator for a twice weekly service.


Culture

Smithers and the
Bulkley Valley The Bulkley Valley is in the northwest Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada. Geography The Bulkley, a stream running through Houston, British Columbia, joins the larger Morice River about to the west. At the confluence, they become not ...
have often been described by non-residents as the somewhat culturally unique to the rest of Northern British Columbia. Many factors contribute to the composition of society in Smithers, including the arts, industry smoke stacks outside of town from mills and mining. Smithers has adopted an alpine theme, which is drawn from the geography of the area. A town bylaw requires businesses in the downtown area centred on Main Street to construct their buildings in an alpine style. A
fibreglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass clo ...
statue of a man blowing an
alpine horn The alphorn or alpenhorn or alpine horn is a labrophone, consisting of a straight several-meter-long wooden natural horn of conical bore, with a wooden cup-shaped mouthpiece. Traditionally the Alphorn was made of one single piece, or two parts ...
, commonly referred to as ''The Alpenman'' or ''Alpine Al'', is located at the entrance to the main street and has become the town symbol. Similarly, the Smithers
chamber of commerce A chamber of commerce, or board of trade, is a form of business network. For example, a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to ad ...
displays an ''Alpine Al'' costume at community events and in television advertisements for the town's businesses. Residents of Smithers are called ''Smithereens'' which remains a more popularly accepted
demonym A demonym (; ) or gentilic () is a word that identifies a group of people (inhabitants, residents, natives) in relation to a particular place. Demonyms are usually derived from the name of the place (hamlet, village, town, city, region, province, ...
than the sometimes used 'Smitherite'. Smithereens have a particularly strong environmental ethic. In 2006, over 600 Smithereens took to the streets to voice their opposition to a proposed coalbed methane gas field near
Telkwa Telkwa is a village located along British Columbia Highway 16, nearly southeast of the town of Smithers and west of the city of Prince George, in northwest British Columbia, Canada. History Settlement in the area began around 1904 in a towns ...
, which they claimed would threaten local water quality, landscape integrity and wild salmon populations. Likewise a proposal by Thompson Creek Metals to develop a molybdenum mine to extract the Davidson deposit on Hudson Bay Mountain near the town was vigorously opposed over a period of years before TCM abandoned the project. Smithers and the Bulkley Valley are home to many musicians, including Juno-Award-winning Alexis Puentes. The biggest assembly of musical talent happens during the annual Mid-Summer Music Festival in late June. Over the years, the Mid-Summer Music Festival has seen some famous acts like
Spirit of the West Spirit of the West were a Canadian folk rock band from North Vancouver, active from 1983 to 2016. They were popular on the Canadian folk music scene in the 1980s before evolving a blend of hard rock, Britpop, and Celtic folk influences which ...
and the
Barenaked Ladies Barenaked Ladies is a Canadian rock band formed in 1988 in Scarborough, Ontario. The band developed a following in Canada, with their self-titled 1991 cassette becoming the first independent release to be certified gold in Canada. They reach ...
and has drawn audiences and participants from all across North America. The Della Herman Theatre, named after a longtime resident and former school board official, is the primary venue for shows and performances, though several pubs and even open fields serve as secondary performance venues. Numerous organizations including the Bulkley Valley Community Arts Council operate to keep music and other artistic activities vibrant.


Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by
Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; french: Statistique Canada), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and cultur ...
, Smithers had a population of 5,378 living in 2,313 of its 2,411 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 5,401. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. The latest census, taken in 2016, recorded 5,351 residents in 1,435 families of an average size of 2.9 persons.


Ethnicity


Religion

According to the 2021 census, religious groups in Smithers 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 a ...
(2,780 persons or 52.9%) *
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 ...
(2,290 persons or 43.5%) *
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 ...
(95 persons or 1.8%) *
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 the ...
(35 persons or 0.7%) *
Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...
(10 persons or 0.2%) *
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 ...
(10 persons or 0.2%) *Other (40 persons or 0.8%)


Notable residents


Hockey players

Despite its small population, Smithers has produced several notable professional
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...
players: * Brothers Joe Watson and Jimmy Watson: won the
Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...
as
defencemen Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the latter a reference to ...
with the
Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home games in Wells ...
in the 1973–74 and 1974-75 seasons. Jimmy Watson was a five-time
NHL All-Star game The National Hockey League All-Star Game (french: Match des Étoiles de la Ligue Nationale de Hockey, links=no) is an exhibition ice hockey game that is traditionally held during the regular season of the National Hockey League (NHL), with many o ...
selection and played for Team Canada at the
Canada Cup The Canada Cup (french: Coupe Canada) was an invitational international ice hockey tournament held on five occasions between 1976 and 1991. The brainchild of Toronto lawyer Alan Eagleson, the tournament was created to meet demand for a true world ...
in 1976. Joe Watson was a two-time NHL All-Star. Both are members of the Flyers Hall of Fame. In their active years, the Watson brothers held an annual hockey school that included the "mid-summer" hockey game. * Brothers Ron Flockhart (NHL career 1980-1991) and Rob Flockhart, played for the Smithers Nats in the Pacific Northwest Hockey League (P.N.W.H.L), that played for the Fowler Cup in the 1970s. *
Alan Kerr Alan G. "Al" Kerr (born March 28, 1964) is a Canadian retired ice hockey forward. He is currently the head coach and general manager of the Alberni Valley Bulldogs BCHL team. Kerr started his National Hockey League career with the New York Is ...
: played for the
New York Islanders The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference ( ...
,
Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the East ...
and
Winnipeg Jets The Winnipeg Jets are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and is owned by True North Sports & Entertainment, pl ...
in the 1980s and 1990s *
Dan Hamhuis Daniel Hamhuis (born December 13, 1982) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman who played in the National Hockey League (NHL). He was drafted in 2001 by the Nashville Predators. Hamhuis played major junior hockey with the Prince ...
: retired NHL
defenceman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from Goal (ice hockey), scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the la ...
who played for the
Nashville Predators The Nashville Predators (commonly referred to as the Preds) are a professional ice hockey team based in Nashville, Tennessee. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and ha ...
,
Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference, and play their home games at Rogers Arena. Bruce B ...
, and
Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference, and were founde ...
. He won an Olympic gold medal with the 2014 Canadian Olympic team. * Michael Wall: goalie for the
Colorado Avalanche The Colorado Avalanche (colloquially known as the Avs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The Avalanche play thei ...
(Traded 2007) *
Ron Homenuke Ronald Wayne Homenuke (born January 5, 1952) is a Canadian former NHL player. He played in only one NHL game for the Vancouver Canucks, who had drafted him with the 51st pick in the 1972 Draft. He retired in 1976. Homenuke now works as a mission ...
: forward for the
Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference, and play their home games at Rogers Arena. Bruce B ...
. Career ended abruptly after a
hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...
accident. He later became a
missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...
. * Adam Kingsmill: ice sledge hockey player.


Others

*
Dean Brody Dean Brody (born August 12, 1975) is a Canadian country music artist who has won 16 CCMA Awards and 2 JUNO Awards. Originally signed to Broken Bow Records in 2008, Brody made his debut later that year with the single "Brothers". This song, a Top ...
, country musician *
Peter Capak Peter Lawrence Capak is currently the Architect of Perception Systems at the Oculus division of Facebook. His current focus is developing machine perception technologies, sensors, displays, and compute architectures for the next generation of a ...
, Astrophysicist *
Robert Chaplin Robert Chaplin (born January 17, 1968) is a Canadian artist and publisher, currently based in Vancouver. His practice includes carving gem stones, making sculptures, drawing and painting pictures, writing stories, and publishing books. He holds ...
, artist and publisher * Lisa Conway, musician and sound artist *
Alex Cuba Alexis Puentes (born 1974), better known by his stage name Alex Cuba, is a Cuban-Canadian singer-songwriter who sings in Spanish and English. He has won two Juno Awards for World Music Album of the Year: in 2006 for '' Humo de Tabaco'', and in ...
, musician * Nathan Cullen, federal politician * Tobin Frank, musician with the Canadian band
Spirit of the West Spirit of the West were a Canadian folk rock band from North Vancouver, active from 1983 to 2016. They were popular on the Canadian folk music scene in the 1980s before evolving a blend of hard rock, Britpop, and Celtic folk influences which ...
*
Andrew George, Jr. Andrew George Jr. is a Canadian chef and writer. Biography George was born in Smithers, British Columbia and grew up in Telkwa, British Columbia. George is the third eldest of six children; George's family lived in a very small four room house ...
, chef and publisher * Ruth Hamblin, professional basketball player in Australia (formerly WNBA) *
Gina Holden Gina Holden (born March 17, 1975) is a Canadian actress, perhaps best known for her roles as Coreen Fennel in '' Blood Ties'', Dale Arden in '' Flash Gordon'', and Shea Allen in ''Harper's Island''. Early life Holden was born in the small to ...
, actress * Daniel Imhof, professional soccer player at
VfL Bochum Verein für Leibesübungen Bochum 1848 Fußballgemeinschaft, commonly referred to as simply VfL Bochum (), is a Football in Germany, German association football club based in the city of Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia. The club has spent 35 seas ...
(
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
) * Susan Juby, novelist, author * Alicia Kaye, Canadian triathlete *
Dan Mangan Daniel Mangan (born April 28, 1983) is a Canadian musician. He has won two Juno awards and has toured extensively throughout North America, Europe and Australia, having released 5 studio LPs and numerous EPs and singles. He has scored for featur ...
, musician * Robin Mathews, poet, political activist, playwright, teacher, essayist * Graham Roumieu, author and illustrator * Antje von Seydlitz-Kurzbach, Canadian Olympic rower


Recreation

Smithers is known for its world class skiing and fishing (in particular for
steelhead Steelhead, or occasionally steelhead trout, is the common name of the anadromous form of the coastal rainbow trout or redband trout (O. m. gairdneri). Steelhead are native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacific basin in Northeast Asia and ...
). Other popular activities include soccer, volleyball, hockey, baseball, downhill mountain biking, cross-country skiing, hiking, quadding and snowmobiling. Smithers offers a variety of extreme sports, for example quadding in the back country, snowmobiling in the surrounding mountains, paragliding, or mountain biking down Hudson Bay Mountain. Smithers is known for its variety of recreation.


Geography

West of Smithers are Witset,
New Hazelton New Hazelton is a district municipality on Highway 16 in northwest British Columbia, Canada. It is situated northeast of Terrace and northwest of Smithers and in 2016 had a population of 580 people, a decrease of 12.9% comparing to 2011. New ...
,
Kitwanga Kitwanga or Gitwangak or Gitwangax ("people of the place of rabbits" in the Gitxsan language) is located where the Kitwanga River runs into the Skeena River in British Columbia. A long-standing village before contact, the village is within Gi ...
,
Terrace Terrace may refer to: Landforms and construction * Fluvial terrace, a natural, flat surface that borders and lies above the floodplain of a stream or river * Terrace, a street suffix * Terrace, the portion of a lot between the public sidewalk an ...
,
Kitimat Kitimat is a district municipality in the North Coast region of British Columbia, Canada. It is a member municipality of the Regional District of Kitimat–Stikine regional government. The Kitimat Valley is part of the most populous urban distr ...
, Port Edward and
Prince Rupert Prince Rupert of the Rhine, Duke of Cumberland, (17 December 1619 (O.S.) / 27 December (N.S.) – 29 November 1682 (O.S.)) was an English army officer, admiral, scientist and colonial governor. He first came to prominence as a Royalist cavalr ...
. East of Smithers are
Telkwa Telkwa is a village located along British Columbia Highway 16, nearly southeast of the town of Smithers and west of the city of Prince George, in northwest British Columbia, Canada. History Settlement in the area began around 1904 in a towns ...
,
Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
, Topley, Burns Lake,
Fraser Lake Fraser Lake is a village in northern British Columbia, Canada. It's located on the southwest side of Fraser Lake between Burns Lake and Vanderhoof alongside the Yellowhead Highway. The small community's population is primarily employed by eithe ...
, Fort Fraser, Vanderhoof and Prince George.


Climate

Smithers technically has a
subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of an ocean, ge ...
( Dfc,) although it is on the borderline of 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 ...
. Winters are cold and cloudy but highly variable with a January average of . Snow is the main type of precipitation during winter. Warm spells can push temperatures above freezing during the winter months, while cold weather systems can reduce the temperature to less than . The average annual snowfall is with maximum accumulations of snow tending to happen in February when the average snow depth is . Summers are warm with average highs of about and an extreme high of . Nighttime temperatures are often cool with normal nighttime lows under . Depending on the year there may be very little or a lot of precipitation. Spring and fall are short transition seasons. Smithers receives an average of of precipitation a year with February through April being the driest months. Smithers receives 1,621 hours of bright sunshine a year, ranging from a minimum of 12% of possible sunshine in December to a maximum of 47% of possible sunshine in August.


Movies and television

* Disney's ''
Eight Below ''Eight Below'' is a 2006 American survival drama film, a remake based on the 1983 Japanese film ''Antarctica'' by Toshirô Ishidô, Koreyoshi Kurahara, Tatsuo Nogami and Susumu Saji. It was produced by Patrick Crowley and David Hoberman, direc ...
'', starring
Paul Walker Paul William Walker IV (September 12, 1973 – November 30, 2013) was an American actor. He was known for his role as Brian O'Conner in the ''Fast & Furious'' franchise. Walker began his career as a child actor in the 1980s, gaining recogniti ...
and
Jason Biggs Jason Matthew Biggs (born May 12, 1978) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for playing Jim Levenstein in the '' American Pie'' comedy film series and Larry Bloom in the Netflix original series '' Orange Is the New Black''. He al ...
, was partially filmed here. * The film '' The Grey'', starring
Liam Neeson William John Neeson (born 7 June 1952) is an actor from Northern Ireland. He has received several accolades, including nominations for an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and two Tony Awards. In 2020, he was placed 7th on ''The I ...
and Dermot Mulroney, was partially filmed here. It was mostly shot in
Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
. * The
Comedy Network CTV Comedy Channel (often shortened to CTV Comedy and formerly known as The Comedy Network) is a Canadian English-language specialty channel owned by Bell Media which focuses primarily on comedy programming. The channel first launched on Octo ...
show, '' Alice, I Think'', is set in Smithers; however, it is not filmed there, aside from location shots. * Smithers was referenced in the show '' How I Met Your Mother'' (Season 7, Episode 6 - Mystery Vs. History).


Media


Television

Smithers is served by four television stations, three of which rebroadcast using transmitters owned by the Houston-Smithers Rebroadcasting Society:


Radio

Smithers is served by six radio stations:


Footnotes


References

* * * * *


External links

* * {{Authority control 1913 establishments in British Columbia Mining communities in British Columbia Populated places established in 1913 Towns in British Columbia