Williams’ Lake, British Columbia (1881 census)
Williams’ Lake was a census subdivision in British Columbia, recorded in the 1881 Census of Canada with a population of 1,329. The administrative centroid was at approximately 52.230°N, 121.200°W.
Population
In 1881, Williams’ Lake had a population of 1,329: 767 male and 562 female residents. Population density was 0.2 people per square mile.
Population trajectory across census years
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 1881 | 1,329 |
| 1891 | 410 |
Cross-year identity established by spatial polygon overlap (SAME_AS chains across the Canadian Census Subdivision boundary files).
Boundary continuity (non-identical overlaps)
Spatial polygon overlaps with adjacent census years where the boundary shifted enough that the SAME_AS chain didn't merge them. These show where the territory came from and went to even when it isn't tracked as the same persistent place.
Earlier boundary forms
- In an earlier year, this CSD was contained in NO DATA, 1871 (1.9% share).
Neighbouring Census Subdivisions in 1881
In the 1881 census, Williams’ Lake shared boundaries with:
- Clinton, Lillooet
- Coast of main land
- Keithley Creek
- Kootenai
- Quesnelmouth
- Richfield, Barkerville & Lightning Creek
Full census record, 1881
The 1881 census recorded 59 measurements for this Census Subdivision across 5 categories. Tables below are collapsible.
Population & families (11 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| FAM NO | 306 |
| Number of families | 306 |
| Number of females | 562 |
| Number of males | 767 |
| Number of married females | 74 |
| Number of married males | 73 |
| Number of married persons | 147 |
| Number of widowed females | 14 |
| Number of widowed persons | 14 |
| POP TOT | 1,329 |
| Total population | 1,329 |
Age structure (3 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| Number of single females under 18 | 474 |
| Number of single males under 18 | 694 |
| Number of single persons under 18 | 1,168 |
Buildings & housing (5 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| Number of dwellings that are temporary shanties | 151 |
| Number of houses under construction | 1 |
| Number of inhabited houses | 155 |
| Number of occupied houses | 306 |
| Number of uninhabited houses | 4 |
Agriculture (22 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| Acres of hay crops | 3,381 |
| Acres of potatoes | 81 |
| Acres of wheat | 768 |
| BAR BU | 12,410 |
| Bushels of barley produced in the past year | 12,410 |
| Bushels of oats produced in the past year | 7,188 |
| Bushels of other root crops produced in the past year | 200 |
| Bushels of peas and beans produced in the past year | 5,162 |
| Bushels of potatoes produced in the past year | 13,116 |
| Bushels of spring wheat produced in the past year | 16,158 |
| Bushels of turnips produced in the past year | 2,525 |
| Bushels of winter wheat produced in the past year | 270 |
| HAY AC | 3,381 |
| HAY TONS | 3,771 |
| OAT BU | 7,188 |
| PEA AND BEN BU | 5,162 |
| POT AC | 81 |
| POT BU | 13,116 |
| Tons of hay produced in the past year | 3,771 |
| WHT AC | 768 |
| WHT SP BU | 16,158 |
| WHT WTR BU | 270 |
Other recorded variables (18 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| C UNMD F | 474 |
| C UNMD M | 694 |
| C UNMD TOT | 1,168 |
| D OCC | 306 |
| FEMALE | 562 |
| H CON | 1 |
| H INHAB | 155 |
| H UNINH | 4 |
| MALE | 767 |
| MD F | 74 |
| MD M | 73 |
| MD TOT | 147 |
| NUMBER CD | 189 |
| OTHR ROOT BU | 200 |
| SHAN | 151 |
| TUR BU | 2,525 |
| WID F | 14 |
| WID TOT | 14 |
Identifiers
- TCP UID:
BC189003— year-scoped identifier from the Canadian Census Subdivision boundary file - Persistent place ID:
PLACE_BC001011— computed from spatial-overlap chains across census years - Wikidata: not yet grounded. This page covers a place whose persistent identity has not yet been linked to a Wikidata entity. Identification is via TCP UID and spatial polygon only.
Sources
Census tabulations from the 1881 Census of Canada, transcribed and georeferenced by the Canadian Peoples / TCP project, hosted at the HGIS Lab, University of Saskatchewan. Persistent place identity computed from spatial-overlap chains across all available census years (1851–1921). Identity grounding to Wikidata performed via the HGIS Canada Knowledge Graph project's MCP-assisted disambiguation pipeline. See the About / Methodology page for the full data pipeline.
Cite this page
Clifford, J. (2026). "Williams’ Lake, British Columbia (1881 census)" in HGIS Canada Knowledge Graph. Retrieved from https://jimclifford.ca/hgiscanada/places/bc/williams-lake-bc189003-1881/.