Abbotsford PayDay Loans

Abbotsford BC

Abbotsford, British Columbia is located within the Fraser Valley, adjacent to Greater Vancouver. An approximate population of 159,000 residents in the Metropolitan Area makes it the 5th largest municipality in British Columbia and the 37th largest in Canada.

Abbotsford is considered one of the most ethnically diverse cities in Canada, rivaling both Toronto and Vancouver. To the south, Abbotsford is adjoined with Washington State at the Canada-US border and is surrounded by Langley to the west, Mission to the north, and Chilliwack to the east. Abbotsford has scenic views of majestic Mount Baker, which is located about 100km outside of the city limits.

Abbotsford’s colonial development beginnings are traced to when the Fraser River Gold Rush found its way to the Hudson's Bay forts that were built as part of the fur trade. An attempt was made to keep the it a secret, but when the gold was sent to the mint in San Francisco, the secret was out, and 1000’s ventured into the territory hoping to find instant riches in the Fraser River area.

To try and preserve their findings, the Royal Engineers were dispatched by the Crown to survey the area in 1858, which also resulted in the construction of Old Yale Road. This enabled the Crown to maintain sovereignty in the area, and the Engineers were justly rewarded with parcels of land for their work.

One of the recipients of the land grant was John Cunningham McClure, who in 1868 was one of the original settled in the area then known as Matsqui. 3 years later he would acquire 160 acres of bush land from the Crown which he transferred to his son 2 months later. Then about 2 months after that, McClure‘s son Charlie sold the land to Robert Ward, who filed for land subdivision to begin development on the Village of Abbotsford, which was named after McClure family friend Henry Abbott, the Western superintendent of the Canadian Pacific Railway (C.P.R). Shortly thereafter, the CPR was granted passage through the 160 acre area on the condition they built a station to which would help the village evolve, and was officially incorporated in 1892 (It would be incorporated as a city in 1995).

Upon approval, Mr. Ward began selling parcels of land throughout the area, which along with the C.P.R. spur line being put through in 1891 opened up the area to rapid economic growth. The demand for building materials in both local and foreign markets was growing and timber was a plentiful resource in the Abbotsford area. A number of small mills were constructed throughout the area between 1891 and 1919, including one strategically located near the C.P.R. station at Abbotsford and another on Mill Lake. These were purchased by the Trethewey family, founders of the Abbotsford Lumber Company in 1902. The Trethewey family were catalysts for the continued economic growth in the area in the coming years with the number of business they developed.

With the discovery of good quality fire clay on Sumas Mountain by Charlie Maclure, The Vancouver Fireclay Company was founded and the village at Clayburn established in 1905. The village is unique as most of the company housing was built of the brick manufactured by the company. These homes were designed by Charlie‘s sister Sarah McClure, who is well known as one of British Columbia's most influential early architects.

As the area became even more populated, agriculture replaced logging as the major economic influence in the area. In 1910, the south side of the Fraser was connected to Vancouver by the B.C. Electric "Inter-Urban" railway, bringing people and produce within easy reach of the larger coastal cities. This service was referred to as the “milk run" It was a vital development to local dairy farmers as it allowed for quick delivery of fresh milk and cream to the lower mainland.

The Fraser Valley Milk Producers Association and Dairyland grew from this association. In the 1950’s, a group of Hungarian immigrants recognized that the lakebed soil was suited to growing tobacco. With the help of the Canadian Department of Agriculture, another variety was obtained and tobacco farming flourished on the new "Sumas Prairie".