Village of Ashcroft Thompson-Nicola Regional District, British Columbia

Village (1) - A populated place with legally defined boundaries, incorporated as a village municipality under the provincial Municipal Act. E side of Thompson River, below (W of) Kamloops Lake, Kamloops Division Yale Land District

Mapped Location

Village of Ashcroft: The mapped location is an approximation and should not be used for navigation or wayfinding.

 

Information

General information on Village of Ashcroft

  • Feature Type: Incorporated

 

Official, historical, colloquial and alternative toponyms for Village of Ashcroft

A brief list of names that this geographic feature has been named

Name Description
Village of Ashcroft Official

 

Origin Notes and History of Village of Ashcroft

References to Village of Ashcroft that document the origin of its place name

Ashcroft (Post Office) adopted 6 October 1936 on Geological survey sheet 408A, as labelled on Kamloops sheet 111, 1916. Incorporated as a Village Municipality 27 June 1952. Ashcroft (Village) confirmed 31 May 1982 on 92I/11. Boundary extention per Order in Council 288, 25 March 2004, to include the area known as "Ashcroft Ranch".

B.C. Geographical Names in Province of British Columbia
BC place name cards, or correspondence to/from BC's Chief Geographer or BC Geographical Names Office  |  Province of British Columbia

Ashcroft PO opened 13 July 1865, Clement Francis Cornwall, postmaster.

B.C. Geographical Names in Province of British Columbia
BC place name cards, or correspondence to/from BC's Chief Geographer or BC Geographical Names Office  |  Province of British Columbia

The Cornwall brothers who established their ranch, "Ashcroft" in 1862, came originally from the village of Ashcroft in Gloucestershire, where their father had been vicar. When the CPR adopted the name Ashcroft for their station just east of the ranch (and what would become the townsite), the Cornwall's added "Manor" to the name of their home, making it Ashcroft Manor. See also the municipality's website.

B.C. Geographical Names in Province of British Columbia
BC place name cards, or correspondence to/from BC's Chief Geographer or BC Geographical Names Office  |  Province of British Columbia

Named after a ranch in the vicinity, the home of the Honourable Clement Francis Cornwall (1836-1910), Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia from 1881 to 1887, and his brother Henry Pennant Cornwall. Together they had settled here in 1862 as farmers and stock raisers. The ranch in turn was named for their ancestral home, Ashcroft, Gloucestershire. CFC was schooled at Cambridge and had been successful as a barrister before coming to British Columbia; member of the Legislative Council of Colongy of British Columbia 1864-66; senator 1871-81; lieutenant-governor 1881-87; judge, County of Cariboo 1889-1906. HPC was appointed Indian Agent at Kamloops, 1881.

B.C. Geographical Names in Province of British Columbia
Provincial Archives of BC "Place Names File" compiled 1945-1950 by A.G. Harvey from various sources, with subsequent additions  |  Province of British Columbia

 

Related Catalog Titles

A Bibliography for Village of Ashcroft, Thompson-Nicola Regional District, British Columbia

Bittersweet oasis a history of Ashcroft and district, 1885-2002 by Brian Belton

Title Cover Image

Bittersweet Oasis: A History of Ashcroft and District, 1885-2002, originally authored by Brian Belton, provides a comprehensive historical account of the development of the village of Ashcroft in British Columbia's Thompson region. The book chronicles Ashcroft's foundational years as the bustling "Gateway to the Cariboo," detailing how its position at the intersection of the Canadian Pacific Railway and the Cariboo Wagon Road fueled its early economic boom. It further explores the community's cultural and economic evolution, highlighting the vital contributions of early pioneers, Chinese laborers, and a thriving agricultural sector famous for its tomatoes and potatoes. Ultimately, the narrative captures the enduring resilience of the district's residents as they successfully navigated devastating fires, shifts in regional transportation routes, and changing industries over more than a century.

160 pages : illustrations, facsimiles, portraits ; 29 cm

CIRC [ 1 ]
History · [Rev. ed.] · Corp. of the Village of Ashcroft, Ashcroft, B.C., 2002
Related Catalog Items: Village of Ashcroft · Thompson-Nicola Regional District

 


 

Thompson-Nicola Regional District

Political Boundaries

Last updated: 2023-10-02