B.C. municipal election 2018: Burns Lake results

Dolores Funk was elected mayor of Burns Lake with 58.8 per cent of the vote.

Charlie Rensby, Darrell Hill, Kevin White and Henry Wiebe were all acclaimed councillors.

Mayoral Candidates

Dolores Funk (elected)

Albert Gerow

John Rauch

Susan Schienbein

Council Candidates

Darrell Hill (acclaimed)

Bruce Martens

Charlie Rensby (incumbent and acclaimed)

Kevin A. White (acclaimed)

Henry Wiebe (acclaimed)

Boundary

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You’ll find Burns Lake on Highway 16 in northern B.C., just over 200 kilometres west of Prince George. It’s located on the Nechako Plateau, at the northern end of the lake that gives it its name.

Population (2016)

1,779

History

Burns Lake was home to many First Nations before Europeans started settling in the area in the early 20th century.

It was around that time that workers who helped to construct the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway, a line that ran from Winnipeg to Prince Rupert, started settling in the area when the work was done.

Low land prices attracted more settlers and Burns Lake became an incorporated village in 1923. Around that time, residents were living in wood cabins and tents.

There are varying accounts of how Burns Lake received its name.

As Destination British Columbia tells it, the name dates back to the 19th century, and a massive forest fire that burned off many of the trees in the area.

People called it “Burnt Lake.” Eventually, that turned to “Burns Lake.”

The Canadian Encyclopedia told a different story, however. It noted that the Burns Lake area was first settled as the Overland Telegraph line was being installed so that Europe could be linked to the U.S. via Siberia.

Michael Byrnes, a surveyor who worked for the Collins Telegraph Co., is said to be the namesake for the lake and the community.

Median total income of couple economic families with children (2015)/B.C. median

$106,240/$111,736

Political representation

Federal

Nathan Cullen (NDP)

Provincial

John Rustad (BC Liberal)