A report on Colony of British Columbia (1866–1871), Colony of British Columbia (1858–1866) and Oregon Treaty

The Colony of British Columbia was a British Crown Colony that resulted from the amalgamation of the two former colonies, the Colony of Vancouver Island and the mainland Colony of British Columbia.

The colony was in 1866 incorporated with the Colony of Vancouver Island to create the new Colony of British Columbia (1866-1871).

Three years earlier, the Treaty of Washington had established the boundary between British North America and the United States of America west of the Rocky Mountains along the 49th parallel.

With the signing of the Treaty of Washington in 1846, which established the US border along the 49th parallel, the HBC moved the headquarters of its western operations from Fort Vancouver on the Columbia River (present day Vancouver, Washington) to the newly established Fort Victoria, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island.

The British portion remained unorganized until 1858, when the Colony of British Columbia was set up as a result of the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush and fears of the re-asserted American expansionist intentions.

The two British colonies were amalgamated in 1866 as the United Colonies of Vancouver Island and British Columbia.