WILLIAMS LAKE

^{Is a city located on the junction of Highways #20 and Highway #97 in the central Cariboo region of British Columbia and considered to be the only recognized city from Hope to Quesnel.}

^{The original inhabitants were the Secwepemc or the Shuswap First Nations people who used the area for their hunting and fishing lifestyles in fact Williams Lake and the 9-kilometer long lake itself are named after Chief William, a Secwepemc First Nation chief, who was instrumental in preventing the Shuswap First Nations from joining the Chilcotin First Nations in their rebellion and revolt against the settlers in the area during the Chilcotin War in 1864.}

^{White settlement sprang to life in 1860 when a constable and a gold commissioner arrived from Victoria to organize a local government and maintain law and order. During this time two pack trails led to the goldfields, one from the Douglas Road and another trail through the Fraser Canyon where they eventually met at Williams Lake. Because of this, Williams Lake became a great choice for settlers and merchants to conduct their day-to-day business. It was also also a popular stopping point for miners heading to the Barkerville Gold Fields.}

^{Soon after, in a span of only a couple of years when the town began to grow, a post office, courthouse and a jail opened for business.}

^{The town was bypassed in the early 1860s, when the Cariboo Trail was re-routed to 150 Mile House instead of passing through the newly-established town. In the late-1910s, Williams Lake, with a very small population, quickly recovered when the Pacific Great Eastern Railway was constructed right the center of town, giving the town a small spike in population. During this time, William Pinchbeck, a constable opened a road house in which Williams Lake started to prosper again.}

^{Ever since 1926, the city has been home to the Williams Lake Stampede, a 4-day professional rodeo event that takes place on Canada Day long weekend (July 1st weekend) and in which features every stampede/rodeo event could have imaginable including tie-down roping, bare-back riding, barrel racing and bull riding and family events such as a concert from a big act in the music business as well as a carnival and a parade.}

^{The British Columbia Cowboy Hall of Fame and Museum recalls the history of the stampede and many of the province’s cowboys who have made this event a world-renowned and year-round tradition.}

^{Incorporated as a village on March 15, 1929, a town in 1965 and a city in 1981, Williams Lake became the fastest-growing community in the Cariboo during the 1990s.}

^{Mining (mainly molybdenum, and copper), tourism, and logging are the mainstays of the economy.}

^{Carey Price, a hockey player and Rick Hansen, a Canadian paraplegic athlete and activist for people with spinal cord injuries, are just some of the notable people who were either born or have called home here.} 

Williams Lake’s population: 10,774