Mission

Geography

Unlike the other Fraser Valley municipalities, Mission is mostly forested upland with only small floodplains lining the shore of the Fraser River. Some benches of farmland rise in succession northwards above the core developed area of the city. Mission was once the heart of the berry industry in the Fraser Valley, with "Home of the Big Red Strawberry" as Mission's slogan in the 1930s and into the 1940s.

The more southerly portion of the municipality is bounded on the west by the lower reaches of the Stave River, which consists mostly of the lakewaters of two hydroelectric reservoirs, Stave Lake and Hayward Lake. Although the vast majority of the population of Mission lives well to the east of the Stave, over 50% of the northern land area of the municipality is west and north of that river; its extreme northwest corner is on the far side of upper Alouette Lake. A small portion of the lower Stave still runs free in its last two miles before its confluence with the Fraser at Ruskin; its last three-quarters of a mile forms the border with the larger municipality of Maple Ridge to the west.

Over 40% of Mission is tree farm, making it one of two communities with municipal tree farms (the other being Revelstoke, with a much smaller and newer farm). Mission's tree farm celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2008. Mission's Municipal Forest is known as Mission Tree Farm Licence #36 and managed by the City of Mission's Forestry Department. It comprises much of the northern part of the district, including the area west of the Stave River, up to the district's northern boundary near the foot of Mount Robie Reid; a small sliver of Mission District is at the head of Alouette Lake (normally thought of as being in Maple Ridge).

The eastern boundary of the municipality roughly coincides with the division between the Mission upland and the alluvial floodplain of Hatzic Prairie, which resembles much of the rest of the Fraser Valley Lowland. The unincorporated communities from Hatzic eastwards through Dewdney and Nicomen Island to Deroche are part of the social and commercial matrix centred on Mission but have never joined the municipality, as is also the case with areas north of Hatzic and Dewdney such as McConnell Creek and Durieu; the local economy and societies are built on dairy, berry and corn farming as well as a large First Nations community at the Indian Reserves of the Leq' a: mel First Nation, formerly known as the Lakahahmen First Nation, on Nicomen Island and Deroche.

Government

Mission was incorporated in 1892 and is 225.78 km2 (87.17 sq mi) in size. In 1922 the District of Mission was partitioned by the creation of the Village of Mission, which later became the Village of Mission City, then the Town of Mission City, until amalgamated with the District by plebiscite in 1969.

The City of Mission uses the current Council-Manager system of local government. The present Council, was elected on October 15, 2022. The current mayor is Paul Horn. Previous mayor Pam Alexis resigned as the mayor of Mission in November 2020 after winning a seat for the provincial riding of Abbotsford-Mission in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. Pam Alexis was defeated by current MLA Reann Gasper in Fall 2024.

History

The Town of Mission City took its name from the local St. Mary's Mission and Residential School established earlier in 1861 and began as a land promotion. The town's core commercial properties and residential streets were auctioned off through James Horne's auction, the "Great Land Sale" May 19, 1891, with buyers brought in via the CPR mainline from Vancouver as well as from Eastern Canada. Soon afterwards, Harry Brown French, an American from New York, came to the city and founded the Mission Regional Chamber of Commerce on June 19, 1893. It was the first Board of Trade in B.C." Some of the early houses and commercial buildings were, in fact, specifically designed to be reminiscent of small towns in southern Ontario in order to encourage buyers. Hailed at the time as a new metropolis, the fledgling town's location at the junction of the Canadian Pacific Railway mainline with a northward extension of the Burlington Northern Railroad brought name suggestions that included East Vancouver and North Seattle. The name Mission City was chosen due to the site's proximity to the historic St. Mary's Mission of the Oblate order just east of town, which was founded in 1868 (now the Peckquaylis Indian Reserve).

At the time of founding, the swing-span Mission Railway Bridge opened in 1891 was the only crossing of the Fraser River in the Fraser Valley below the Alexandra Bridge, and all rail traffic between Vancouver and the United States was necessarily routed through Mission until the New Westminster Bridge at New Westminster was built in 1904. The rail bridge at Mission doubled duty as a one-way alternating vehicular bridge until 1973, when a long-promised new Mission Bridge was finally completed. The bridge's location is geographically important at the head of the tidal bore on the Fraser River, and its water level gauge is an important measure of the Fraser's annual and sometimes dangerously large spring freshet.

Mission City's original retail core was in the small area of lowland between the CPR mainline and the river. Following the great flood of 1894 a few years after the town's founding, the core was relocated just north of the rail line at the foot of the hillside rising above the rail junction. This small commercial strip, originally named Washington Avenue, later Main Street and since the 1980s called First Avenue, is only four or five blocks long and was one of the principal commercial centres of the Fraser Valley for many decades and had a lively retail trade and social life. Following the 1894 flood, abandoned buildings and lots in the old downtown were taken over by Chinese merchants and workers, creating a Chinatown which lasted until the 1920s.

Economy

Historically, forestry, hydroelectricity and agriculture were Mission's chief resource sectors and provided the basis for varied related retail and service activities. In recent history, transportation improvements have enabled the manufacturing sector to expand beyond sawmilling and food processing.

Forest and wood related industries dominate the manufacturing sector, with an emphasis on redcedar shake and shingle mills. Mission also holds the only municipal tree farm license in British Columbia.

Agriculture is mostly restricted to a narrow belt along the Fraser River, and the unincorporated Dewdney-Deroche district east of Mission contains the majority of the farms in the area. There are about 96 commercial and hobby farms in the area. Dairy is the chief agricultural enterprise; other income sources include poultry, hogs, beef and vegetables. Approximately 5% of the land mass in the City of Mission is part of the Agricultural Land Reserve.

Mission's largest employer is the local school district, School District #75, and its second largest employer is the District (i.e. the municipality) itself.

Transportation

Transportation infrastructure includes Abbotsford-Mission Highway 11, and the Lougheed Highway 7. Mission is also accessible through commuter rail, the West Coast Express, which runs five trains in each direction a day, five days a week, between Vancouver and Mission City Station. Bus service in Mission is served by the Central Fraser Valley Transit System connecting with the City of Abbotsford, as well as TransLink with service to Coquitlam Central Station via route 701. Three days per week Via Rail's The Canadian provides eastbound flag stop service from Mission Harbour railway station. Westbound service on The Canadian is provided through Abbotsford due to CN and CPR utilizing directional running through the Thompson and Fraser Canyons.

Mission differs from some of the other Fraser Valley communities because of its access to the Fraser River. The Fraser near Mission is for the most part undeveloped and unspoiled which makes Mission the launch point for many water based activities that happen year round. Boat tours run from Mission's docks on Harbour Avenue, which are also home to sport and commercial fishing vessels; the Fraser has famous salmon runs and population of green sturgeon.

Climate

Mission has an oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification Cfb) due to its proximity to the Pacific Ocean. However, Mission has plentiful rainfall all year round, with a drying trend in the summer.

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Mission had a population of 41,519 living in 14,098 of its 14,701 total private dwellings, a change of 7.7% from its 2016 population of 38,554. With a land area of 226.98 km2 (87.64 sq mi), it had a population density of 182.9/km2 (473.8/sq mi) in 2021.

At the census metropolitan area (CMA) level in the 2021 census, the Abbotsford - Mission CMA had a population of 195,726 living in 67,613 of its 70,648 total private dwellings, a change of 8.4% from its 2016 population of 180,518. With a land area of 606.72 km2 (234.26 sq mi), it had a population density of 322.6/km2 (835.5/sq mi) in 2021.

The community has a young population, with a median age of 36.4, according to the 2001 Canadian census,

Ethnicity

The largest group is European Canadian, comprising approximately 74% of the population, but even within that Mission's ethnic makeup is very complex, with, in addition to British settlers, large numbers of Germans and Dutch, but also Finns, Norwegians and other Scandinavians, Italians, Hungarians, Poles, anglicized French-Canadians and others.

There is a sizeable First Nations community, forming 8.6% of the population. The Peckquaylis Indian Reserve, which is the former St. Mary's Residential School and its grounds, is a centre for services and governments of the Sto:lo communities in the area to the east.

The largest visible minority group in Mission are South Asians, primarily Indo-Canadians comprising 10.7% of the population. Mission's Indo-Canadian community was active since the early 1900s. An Indo-Canadian volleyball team, "Mission Sikhs", was active in the area. Naranjan Grewall became the first Indo-Canadian elected to public office when he took a position in Mission City's government. According to the 2021 Canadian census, the South Asian population in Mission stood at 4,330 persons, forming approximately 10.7% of the total population, up from 2,220 persons or 6.6% of the total population as of the 2006 Canadian census.

Mission's Japanese Canadian community began in 1904, when Kumekichi Fujino moved to the city. Many issei, or first generation immigrants, included prospective farmers and "picture brides", or women who communicated with suitors through the mail for the purpose of marriage. Organizations established in Mission included the Japanese Farmer's Association (Nokai), established in 1916; the Mission Judo Club; the Mission Buddhist Church; and a Japanese Language School. The ethnic Japanese people in Mission had 979.304 acres (396.310 ha) of land on 103 properties by 1930. During the pre-World War II era 30% of Mission's public school enrollment consisted of ethnic Japanese. The Nokai had 79 members in 1942. The World War II-era Japanese Canadian internment disrupted Mission's ethnic Japanese community as their properties were confiscated, and productivity decreased as the farms were managed by their new non-Japanese. Many Japanese chose not to move back to Mission in the post-war era, even though they were permitted to come back in 1949. In 2006 there were 145 Japanese living in Mission, making up 4.1% of the city's visible minorities.

Religion

According to the 2021 census, religious groups in Mission included:

Irreligion (23,160 persons or 57.0%)

Christianity (12,905 persons or 31.8%)

Sikhism (3,275 persons or 8.1%)

Hinduism (380 persons or 0.9%)

Islam (285 persons or 0.7%)

Buddhism (275 persons or 0.7%)

Judaism (55 persons or 0.1%)

Indigenous Spirituality (35 persons or 0.1%)

Education

School District 75 Mission operates public schools in the District of Mission and in the unincorporated areas to the east. Students from Deroche/Lake Errock, Dewdney, Nicomen Island, Hatzic Island and Hatzic Prairie/Durieu and McConnell Creek elementary schools attend post-secondary at Mission Secondary School.

The Conseil scolaire francophone de la Colombie-Britannique operates one Francophone school: école des Deux-rives primary school. There are also French immersion programs at Ecole Christine Morrison Elementary, Ecole Mission Central, Ecole Heritage Middle School and Ecole Mission Senior Secondary.

Sports

Mission has a mix of sport offerings locally standard to any municipality in this region. One exception is the large outdoor trail network within the Tree Farm and Interpretive Forest. Mission is home to world-class mountain bike trails as well as plenty of backcountry hiking opportunities that lie within the District Limits.

Mission is home to a Pacific Junior Hockey League team - the Mission City Outlaws.

Mission is also home to the Mission Soccer Club (MSC), which was established in 1974 and celebrated 50 years in 2024. MSC calls the Mission Sports Park its home. MSC is a member of the BC Soccer Association and the Canadian Soccer Association. MSC's programming is based on the Canadian Soccer Association and BC Soccer Association Long Term Player Development.

Mission's soccer history is rich, with multiple successes in the Pakenham Cup and Presidents Cup. Mission has won the Pakenham Cup 4 times (1924, 1925, 1950, & 1951) with the honours in 1951 split with Bradner FC. The reason is the longest Pakenham Final on record, lasting well over four hours. After a complete game and three overtime periods, Bradner and Mission decided to call it a draw and share honours.

Mission's Fraser Valley Soccer League Division 2 men's team won the Presidents Cup in 2022 and are the current cup holders for 2024 after dominant displays throughout those tournaments. The same team was league champions in the Division 2A 2021-22 Season and the Division 2B 2022-23 Season.

Notable people

Braydon Arthur, racing driver

Brad Booth, professional poker player

Debbie Brill, High jump athlete

Eden Donatelli, short-track speedskater

Todd Ducharme, Ontario Superior Court Justice

Gage Goncalves, NHL player

Brent Hayden, Olympic swimmer

Norman Jacobsen, former logging company owner and British Columbia political figure

Paul Janz, singer-songwriter

Carly Rae Jepsen, singer-songwriter

Margaret Lyons, first female vice-president of the CBC

Mart Kenney, big band era musician

Gary MacDonald, Olympic swimmer

Faber Drive, pop punk band

Powfu, Hip-hop artist

Lights Poxleitner, electro-pop singer

Shannon Shakespeare, Olympic swimmer

Kim Smith, basketball player

Graham Wardle, actor

Neighbourhoods

Mission's neighbourhoods include a number of rural localities which were part of the District Municipality before amalgamation and which still have some strong local identity. The following list is incomplete, due to the emergence of modern-era development neighbourhoods, but covers the historical localities (usually defined by a school and a store of the same name):

Cade-Barr

Cedar Valley

Clay Road

Cherry Hill

Deroche

Dewdney

Historic Downtown- 1st Avenue business strip

Historic Central Mission- 2nd Avenue to 7th Avenue

Hatzic

Hillside

Ferndale

Keystone Road

Silverdale

Silverhill

Stave Falls

Stave Gardens

Ruskin (also part of Maple Ridge)

Steelhead

Richards Road

West Heights

Non-Mission District neighbourhoods

Unincorporated communities and rural areas to the east of Mission are linked closely to Mission, partly because of School District No. 75, but also because Mission is the dominant service centre for the north side of the Fraser between Maple Ridge and Agassiz-Kent. These communities include:

Hatzic Valley

Durieu

Hatzic Prairie

Hatzic Island

McConnell Creek

Miracle Valley

Dewdney

Nicomen Island

Deroche

Lake Errock

Sister cities

Oyama, Shizuoka, Japan, since October 1996

Freedom of the City

The following people and military units have received the Freedom of the City of Mission.

Individuals

Abraham "Abe" Neufeld: 2007.

Valerie Billesberger: 26 April 2022.

James "Jim" Hinds: 26 April 2022.

Glen Kask: 26 April 2022.

Doug Pearson: 26 April 2022.