Delta, British Columbia

Delta is a city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada, and part of Greater Vancouver. Located on the Fraser Lowland south of Fraser River's south arm, it is bordered by the city of Richmond on Lulu Island to the north, New Westminster to the northeast, Surrey to the east, the Boundary Bay and the American pene-exclave Point Roberts to the south, and the Strait of Georgia to the west.

Encompassing the nearby Annacis Island, Deas Island and Westham Island, Delta is mostly rural and officially composed of three distinct communities: North Delta, Ladner and Tsawwassen.

History

Prior to European settlement, Delta's flatlands and coastal shores were inhabited by the Tsawwassen First Nation of the Coast Salish. The land was first sighted by Europeans in 1791, when Spanish explorer Lieutenant Francisco de Eliza mistook the area for an island and named it "Isla de Cepeda". The first European settler in Delta was James Kennedy who pre-empted 135 acres in what later became Annieville in February 1860. Thomas and William Ladner, began farming the area named after them in 1868. Farming and fishing helped the community grow quickly over the next few decades. In 1879, the area was a municipality, named "the Corporation of Delta", and the village of Ladner was made as its administrative centre.

Due to its geography, Delta was a relatively isolated community.