The fort that moved

Fort Langley started somewhere else. The Hudson's Bay Company built its first trading post at Derby Reach in 1827, then moved it upriver to where the village is now, according to Parks Canada. A cairn still marks the first site, and our fall trails guide covers the walk between the two.

Our Fort Langley National Historic Site story tells the fur trade side, starting with a Kwantlen chief and his beaver skins.

A soggy birthday

Then came gold. In 1858, about 30,000 miners rushed up the Fraser, and Fort Langley turned into a boom-town supply stop, Parks Canada writes. Worried about an American takeover, Britain moved fast.

On Nov 19, 1858, Governor James Douglas proclaimed the Colony of British Columbia at Fort Langley. It poured all day, so the open-air ceremony moved into the Big House, with about 100 people crammed inside, according to a Parks Canada history paper quoting the Victoria Gazette.

What's original and what isn't

Only one building survives from the fur trade days, the Storehouse. Parks Canada opened it to the public in 1931. The Big House you can walk into today was rebuilt in 1958 for BC's centennial. So were the bastions.

Make a day of it

The village is small enough to do on foot. See the 1915 CN station that volunteers saved, browse the farmers' market in season, or camp on the river at Fort Camping.

Sources: Parks Canada, Parks Canada Occasional Papers in Archaeology and History No. 20, read Oct 29, 2026.