The Wren

10/01/2024

The crisis line is seeing a surge in su***de and mental health-related calls and needs local volunteers.

The Interior Crisis Line is seeing a surge in su***de and mental health-related calls and needs local volunteers.

06/01/2024

05/01/2024

Test postBy [email protected] & Carol Cavaleiro ● Uncategorized ● January 4, 2024 So do we. That’s why we spend more time, more money and place more care into reporting each story. You’ve told us through reader surveys you want to read local journalism that goes beyond press releases and ...

02/01/2024

Reporter Lyssa Martin shares a number of events that helped her learn more about how Craftivism builds connections and catalyzes change.

16/12/2023

Legal experts say the rights of private landowners and First Nations are not necessarily incompatible if good-faith negotiations continue.

The private Tranquille development is proposed on unceded Secwepemc territory. What does this really menan?

16/12/2023

How can a development vision be realized when sacred Secwépemc burial grounds are held within the earth, alongside millennia of cultural history?

How can development at Tranquille be realized when sacred Secwépemc burial grounds are held within the earth, alongside millennia of history?

15/12/2023

Kamloops, an Anglicised version of the Secwepemctsin name T’kemlups (https://thewrennews.ca/on-calling-kamloops-tkemlups/), typically upholds a founding story of trappers and trading posts; a city built by European settlers (https://open.library.ubc.ca/collections/bcbooks/items/1.0368779).

M.S. Wade’s 1912 The Founding of Kamloops: A Story of 100 Years Ago is a short publication filled with black and white photos of historic homes – a “modern” depiction of a city nestled in British Columbia’s Interior that came to be thanks to white men.

“From a mere trading post it became a village,” Wade concludes. “Then came the Canadian Pacific railway in 1885 and Kamloops became a town; next followed incorporation as a city and the dawn of a new era.”

But the real story is preserved at the mouth of places like the Tranquille River; etched into the gravel promontories and sloped landforms where archaeological evidence and ancient accounts tell a much bigger tale about the history of the land we live on.

~12,000 years ago

Secwépemc peoples have ties to their homelands since time immemorial. Humans are said to have first occupied the Arrow Lakes and areas of the upper Columbia River Valley around the end of the last Ice Age.

~9,750 years ago

Glacial Lake Thompson drains with the breaking of an ice dam near Spences Bridge. Establishment of the Thompson Rivers

A section of the South Thompson River valley showing the marks left behind by the ancient glacial lake and subsequent flood. Inset map shows the area pictured. Image by Lyssa Martin

~7,500 years ago

Oldest dated archaeological remains at Tranquille.

~5,000 years ago

Several thriving Secwépemc communities formed Tk'emlúps, Kamloops’ first village site made up of pithomes (http://republicofarchaeology.ca/digit/2019/10/19/theres-no-place-like-a-pithome?rq=tranquille) — oval, circular or rectangular structures made of timber and built into the ground— to house families during the winter. Secwépemc peoples were living in complex socially stratified and technologically innovative societies. With more than 150 pithomes, it is likely to have been one of the largest villages in the plateau region between the coastal and Rocky Mountains.

1700s

Thirty two distinct communities with an estimated population of 12,000 were spread out across the expansive Secwépemc’ulecw territory, stretching to the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains and west to the Fraser River. Archeologists have uncovered a number of historic village sites up and down the banks of the North and South Thompson Rivers ranging in size from 10 to over 100 pit homes. Tk'emlúps settlements included Tranquille Flats, Monte Creek, Rivershore, Tranquille Creek, Tranquille River, McClure Flats and Cherry Creek.

1800s

1811: Settler trader David Stuart of the New York-based Pacific Fur Company and his comrades “made their way to the large Indian Village in the junction of the North and South Thompson Rivers,” where they spent the winter learning skills. With this knowledge they begin trading with Secwépemc communities.

The Fort Kamloops log cabin, possibly one of the oldest colonial buildings in B.C., still stands today – rescued and restored as a historical monument at the Kamloops Museum.

1821: A merger between the Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) and North West Company brought all British fur trading operations, including Fort Kamloops, under the HBC banner.

1841 (Approx): Piqwemús, Chief of the Secwe̓pemc village at Pellqweqwile near the mouth of the Tranquille River, died mysteriously. His nickname Tranquille, given by francophone fur traders for his tranquil nature, gave the area its modern name.

1850s: Diseases brought by Europeans begin to take hold on Secwe̓pemc peoples.

1855 (Approx): Chief Louis Clexlixqen was appointed Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc Chief.

1857: Gold was discovered along some tributaries to the Thompson River. Thousands of American gold-seeking miners begin to settle in the territory. Secwépemc peoples resist by ousting miners to protect resources like salmon and their sovereignty.

1858 (Approx): The main lodgings in Kamloops were fur trader cabins, with some being built over old pit house depressions repurposed as root cellars.

1862: A smallpox epidemic further harmed Secwe̓pemc lineages.

Around this time, the governor of the new colony of British Columbia, James Douglas, offered settlers pre-emption (https://royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/assets/Pre-emptions_homesteads_quick_guide.pdf): the right to acquire unceded Secwépemc land in exchange for commitments to "improve" it through agriculture.

1862: William Fortune from Yorkshire arrived on the shores of Kamloops after paddling his way down the North Thompson River with the Overlanders.

A photograph from 1862 is labelled "Kamloops 1st house W. Fortune." Photo courtesy of BC Archives

1864: Joseph Trutch became the new governor and used the colony’s imposed laws to furth…

The story of Tranquille often starts with its founding by European settlers and the sanatorium. But its history begins 12,000 years ago.

22/11/2023

U.S. based publishers can now access affordable media liability insurance.

21/11/2023

From smudging on site to employing band members, Sugar Cane Archaeology is demonstrating a new way forward in a historically-extractive industry.

17/11/2023

The Sweláps Market incorporates Secwépemc language and culture while providing a convenient food option for the community.

31/10/2023

TMX being granted federal approval to trench through the sacred Pípsell corridor was ‘a turning point in Canada,’ says newly-formed Unceded Law Response Group.

10/10/2023

Knowledge-keeper says pipeline’s blockage in Pípsell amounts to the land pushing back, while company’s lawyer argues for ‘no prioritizing of Indigenous interests.’

06/10/2023

‘Aitamaako’tamisskapi Natosi: Before The Sun,’ which follows Logan Red Crow as she competes in Indian Relay Races, is being screened at VIFF this week

Aitamaako’tamisskapi Natosi: Before The Sun, which follows Logan Red Crow as she competes in Indian Relay Races, is being screened at VIFF this week.

26/09/2023

Dancers of all ages filled the arbour in T’exelc to display the strength of their cultures while honouring all those affected by residential ‘schools.’

WLFN powwow dancers of all ages filled the arbour to display the strength of their cultures for those affected by residential ‘schools.’

26/09/2023

Hundreds of people attended the event at the powwow arbour — which was free but encouraged donations for IRSSS.

19/09/2023

Kamloops’ Supporting Team Excellence with Patients Society (STEPS) say the community-run model is proving successful. But barriers remain to getting more of these clinics off the ground.

18/09/2023

Ashley Michel started 4 Generations Creations after she realized she had a knack for sewing regalia — now she’s a contestant on Pow Wow Pitch.

Ashley Michel started 4 Generations Creations after she realized she had a knack for sewing regalia — now she’s a contestant on Pow Wow Pitch

08/09/2023

Kúkwpi7 Sellars says his nation will first make the place where St. Joseph’s Mission once operated safe for ceremony.

Kúkwpi7 Sellars says his nation will first make the place where St. Joseph’s Mission once operated safe for ceremony, eventually will look at excavation

15/08/2023

Volunteer Kamloops’ Link Program Coordinator Anita Jacobsen says volunteerism breeds a beautiful Thompson-Okanagan community.

09/08/2023

While Tk'emlúps is naturally wildfire and flood-prone, fossil-fuel-driven climate change is accelerating the frequency and ferocity of environmental disasters. This week at The Wren, local photographer and journalist Marissa Tiel takes a deep dive into how emergency responders are working to deal with an increasingly volatile environment.

So who are the people behind the enormous task of keeping people, animals, property and infrastructure safe and how are they adapting to the needs of the region's many communities?

Click the link in our bio to find out.

19/07/2023

‘When we slow down, we’re able to respond instead of reacting,’ says Stellar Feels Embodiment founder Vanessa Woulfe.

‘When we slow down, we’re able to respond instead of reacting,’ says Stellar Feels somatic dance founder Vanessa Woulfe.

19/07/2023

We spoke with the city and community resources to learn how they collectively care for Kamloopsians during high heat

We spoke with the city and community resources to learn how they collectively care for Kamloopsians during high heat.

12/07/2023

This week, we learned that some heroes don't wear capes and fly - they wear helmets and bike! Learn all about the community group helping to reunite stolen bikes with their owners in Kamloops.

https://thewrennews.ca/this-volunteer-run-community-group-retrieves-stolen-bikes-in-kamloops/

With bike thefts increasing by 28 per cent over the last five years, Stolen Bikes Kamloops uses creative solutions to reunite bikes with their owners.

07/07/2023

Do you lead with your values when it comes to creating business relationships and partnerships? Are you passionate about helping independent community news organizations succeed? What about some great co-workers?

https://discoursemedia.bamboohr.com/careers/39

Discourse Community Publishing (DCP) is seeking a qualified candidate to fill a full time, permanent partnerships specialist role, focused engaging the businesses community through sponsorship, advertising, and other revenue generation agreements. This position in based in Interior B.C. on the terri...

05/07/2023

As we wrap up our birthday campaign, we are sweetening the deal: nine new members will win a Wren t-shirt or mug. All you need to do to enter our giveaway is make a monthly or yearly contribution!

Make your contribution at the link below and support community-engaged journalism today!

https://thewrennews.ca/support-us/?utm_medium=social&utm_source=instagram&utm_campaign=birthday

05/07/2023

“We have to have a system where students, faculty, staff can go and feel safe to report these incidents. Even though they might not want anything to come out of it.”

This week at The Wren, we hear from international students ✈️ on their experience in Kamloops. Warning, this story contains some strong language and dives into some uncomfortable, but important to discuss issues.

https://thewrennews.ca/international-students-call-for-better-reporting-on-racial-discrimination-at-tru/

‘Kamloops is known for being diverse and welcoming,’ says one international student who would like to see the entire community live up to this reputation.

04/07/2023

Do you rely on Facebook for local news and information? Bad news: the tech giant Meta will soon block Canadians from accessing news on Facebook. It's a retaliation against the new Online News Act, which will force big companies to pay for news links shared on their platforms.

Luckily, the independent local reporters at The Wren curates a newsletter with in-depth stories every week. Sign up now, for free, if you care about community news and information.

Unlike Big Tech, we believe everyone should have access to local news. Like and share this post if you agree!

The Wren delivers in-depth journalism by and for the people of Kamloops (Tk’emlúps). As an independent community-funded outlet, we collaborate with people like you, who care about the future of our community, to deliver news that empowers, informs and uplifts.

28/06/2023

Toward the end of March, subscribers to The Wren’s weekly newsletter responded to a survey asking them to share a bit about themselves and the type of stories they’d like to see in The Wren. Among a plethora of requests, we learned that multiple readers hoped to see a local business highlighted – Barnacle Records.

https://thewrennews.ca/collecting-and-connecting-how-barnacle-records-came-to-be/

'We want to start conversations': Barnacle Records in Kamloops is a local spot to explore the world through music.