Brownsville was a former community in what is now the City of

Surrey, British Columbia Surrey is a city in British Columbia, Canada. It is located south of the Fraser River on the Canada–United States border. It is a member municipality of the Metro Vancouver regional district and metropolitan area. Mainly a suburban city, Surr ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. Also known as South Westminster, it was located where the city ran a small ferry across the

Fraser River The Fraser River () is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Blackrock Mountain (Canada), Blackrock Mountain in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia just south of the City of V ...

, today approximately where the east footing of the

Skybridge (TransLink) The SkyBridge is a cable-stayed railway bridge in Metro Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Built between 1987 and 1989, it carries trains of the Expo Line of TransLink's SkyTrain across the Fraser River between New Westminster and Surrey. Th ...

is, this was also the former site of qiqéyt (Qayqayt), one of the main summer villages of the

Kwantlen people Kwantlen First Nation () is a First Nations band government in British Columbia, Canada, located primarily on McMillan Island near Fort Langley. The Kwantlen people traditionally speak hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓, the Downriver dialect of Halkomelem ...

and later, also the Musqueam people

History

The town was named after Ebenezer Brown, who owned property in the area and had come from England in 1858-1859 during the

Fraser Gold Rush The Fraser Canyon Gold Rush, (also Fraser Gold Rush and Fraser River Gold Rush) began in 1858 after gold was discovered on the Thompson River in British Columbia at its confluence with the Nicoamen River a few miles upstream from the Thompson's c ...

. He was a stonemason and made the border monument at Point Roberts. He served on New Westminster's city council and later was elected as MLA for

New Westminster New Westminster (colloquially known as New West) is a city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada, and a member municipality of the Metro Vancouver Regional District. It was founded by Major-General Richard Moody as the cap ...

, then for New Westminster City, and became President of the Executive Council of British Columbia (i.e. the cabinet). Issues about conflict of interest in connection with railway building led to his retirement from politics in 1881.

Kikait (qiqéyt)

The indigenous summer village called Kikait, modern spelling qiqéyt, was at the site of Brownsville prior to Ebenezer Brown taking up land there. The

Kwikwetlem The Kwikwetlem First Nation, also known as the Coquitlam Indian Band, is the band government of the Kwikwetlem, a Sto:lo people living in the Coquitlam area of British Columbia, Canada. They traditionally speak the Downriver dialect of hən̓q ...

people had been driven from the site of New Westminster by the

, who had enslaved them and forced them to the site of Kikait, which had been marshy until filled by them with rocks and stones to make a village site for the Kwantlens. Simon Fraser is said to have spent a night here on his way to the mouth of the Fraser in 1808. The chief of this community was Whattlekainum, the son of a Tsawwassen woman who was raised and trained at Tsawwassen but is also regarded as a chief by the

Katzie The Katzie First Nation or Katzie Nation (Hunquminum: ) is a First Nation whose traditional territory lies in the Lower Fraser Valley of British Columbia, Canada. According to their oral tradition, the Katzie people are the descendants of the ...

and Kwantlen. While closely associated with the Musqueam and Kwantlen people, this former fishing camp was used by the Tsawwassen and other

Halkomelem Halkomelem (; in the Upriver dialect, in the Island dialect, and in the Downriver dialect) is a language of various First Nations peoples of the British Columbia Coast. It is spoken in what is now British Columbia, ranging from southeastern ...

or Hun'qum'i'num (''hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓'') groups during late summers. Salmon and sturgeon were caught and processed here before being brought back for storage at the longhouses of the winter villages. This was also the site of a church in which many marriages and baptisms were conducted for the Hun'qum'i'num people of the Lower Fraser.

Railway point

The name Brownsville was used for a railway point just south of this location by the

Burlington Northern Railway The Burlington Northern Railroad was a United States–based railroad company formed from a merger of four major U.S. railroads. Burlington Northern operated between 1970 and 1995. Its historical lineage begins in the earliest days of railroad ...

.BC Names entry "Brownsville (railway point)"
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References

{{coord, 49, 12, 20, N, 122, 53, 00, W, display=title Surrey, British Columbia Ghost towns in British Columbia Populated places on the Fraser River

History

Kikait (qiqéyt)

Railway point

See also

References