Bishop River facts for kids
The Bishop River is a cool river in the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains. It flows west from the edge of the Lillooet Icecap, which is a big area of ice. The river then joins the Southgate River. This happens east of another icy place called the Homathko Icefield.
A special area called Bishop River Provincial Park protects the upper part of the river. This park stretches from where the river starts at the Lillooet Icecap. It goes about halfway along the river's path before it meets the Southgate River.
How the River Got Its Name
The Bishop River was named after a person called Richard Preston Bishop. He was born on September 18, 1884, in a place called Starcross in England. Richard Bishop was a land surveyor in British Columbia. This means he measured and mapped land.
He was also an officer in the Royal Navy for a short time around 1906. Later, he served as a captain in World War I. After the war, he came back to British Columbia to continue his work as a surveyor.
In the 1930s, Richard Bishop suggested many names for mountains in the Pacific Ranges. Some of these mountains include Mount Sir Francis Drake and Mount Queen Bess. He also named the Golden Hinde on Vancouver Island. These names often came from the time of Queen Elizabeth I.
Richard Bishop passed away in Victoria on February 13, 1954. Many places in the Coast Mountains have names from the Elizabethan era, especially near the Bishop River. For example, Mount Raleigh is right next to where the Bishop and Southgate Rivers meet.
The Bishop River got its name in 1924, while Richard Bishop was still alive. Before that, people called it the East Fork Southgate River.
