This document analyzes the economic stability and diversity of Kamloops, British Columbia. It discusses how Kamloops became a trading hub during the fur trade and later benefited from the gold rush. The development of rail lines and highways increased transportation access and economic activity. Kamloops has a diversified economy across primary, secondary, and tertiary industries. Data from 2006-2011 showed that as secondary sector employment decreased by 28%, average income increased by 18% and tertiary sector employment grew by 20%, demonstrating the strength of Kamloops' service-based economy.

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Assignment 3: Cities: Sample
Sebastian Richter
Lab 02
Due: Wednesday March 25, 2015.
Grade: 100%

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Note: Graphs that are referenced / displayed in this report were constructed using Statics
Canada information, as of which some small inaccuracies may occur in the data and graphs.
Kamloops currently is a very stable and economically diverse municipality, having sectors in
primary, secondary and tertiary Industries (Dickson, 2015). This is mostly to do to its historical
geography, since in British Colombia it was the longest running trading area during when fur
trading was common when European settlers were present (Dickson, 2015). Kamloops became a
trading area for Hudson’s Bay Company in 1811 in proximity to the Okanagan valley and
Thompson River (Destination BC Corporation, 2015). During 1855 they would discover gold
deposits in and around the Thompson River (Dickson, 2015). The chief trader Donald Mclean
told few about it in order to exploit the resource, then as the fur trade died down and the gold
rush began they took advantage of it and diversified their agriculture to stay economically stable
(Dickson, 2015). This shows how even during Kamloops’s early conception the economy was
innovated in new industries so the life cycle of the city kept on growing, and it was not
dependent on one industry.
Kamloops also stayed economically connected after the gold rush due to the development of
two national rail lines, as well as the Yellowhead / TransCanada Highway, and Highway 97
(Destination BC Corporation, 2015). In 1883 the Canadian Pacific railway had made it to the
area, and when it was completed in 1893 the town had become an established town and
economic center (Destination BC Corporation, 2015). These mediums of transportation allow for
greater and easier access to Kamloops itself, as well as a potential increase in trade. The city is
also in relatively close proximity with Calgary, Vancouver and Seattle, as well as the United
States boarder (Google, 2015). This is an ideal situation in terms of decreasing transaction and
shipping costs, which allows for potentially greater economic activity and prosperity. Their

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economy also relies somewhat on their natural resources and primary industry, although they are
diversified enough not to depend on it (Kamloops Immigrant services, n.d.). Due to Kamloops’s
climate, which is third in Canada for most growing days, it can reliably grow crops such as: Sage
Brush and Grasslands (Kamloops Immigrant services, n.d.).
These factors help support the notion that Kamloops has an economy that is developed
enough to handle transitions in the economy. This is seen by the relation between Kamloops’s
Average income per person per year and Kamloops’s and the economic transitions in their
economy (see figures 1 and 2) (CHASS, 2013). More specifically, in 2006 to 2011 there was
about an 18% increase in average income when in the same transition there was about a 28%
decrease in Secondary sector employment (See figures 1 and 2) (CHASS, 2013). Coupled with
the fact that there was a 20% increase in employment in the Tertiary sector and that overall there
is a positive relationship between the growth in the tertiary/service industry and the increase in
the population’s average income, this only confirms the relationship (see figures 1 and 2)
(CHASS, 2013). This demonstrates the strength of Kamloops’s service industry in that, it was
able to still grow its economy even when many North American cities and towns were on the
decline during this time (due to the decline in manufacturing). This trend can also demonstrate
the recent decline in manufacturing and lower skill jobs due to outsourcing and globalization.
End of Sample.

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Figure 1: Average Income of People From Kamloops (CHASS 2013)

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Figure 2: Employment In Kamloops' Different Industries (CHASS 2013)

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References
CHASS.(2013). Canadian CensusAnalyser. RetrievedfromDatacenter.chass.utoronto.ca:
http://datacentre.chass.utoronto.ca.libaccess.lib.mcmaster.ca/census/ct.html
DestinationBCCorporation.(2015). Cultureand History. RetrievedfromHellobc.com:
http://www.hellobc.com/kamloops/culture-history.aspx
Dickson,M. (2015). Kamloops,the'Conception Place'of British Columbia.Retrievedfrom
Tourismkamloops.com:http://www.tourismkamloops.com/history-of-kamloops-british-
columbia
Google.(2015). google.ca/map.RetrievedfromKamloops:
https://www.google.ca/maps/place/Kamloops,+BC/@50.2865737,-
118.3707091,6z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x537e2cd33d0d3b31:0xd23e96aa9a6945e7
KamloopsImmigrantservices.(n.d.). KamloopsProfile.RetrievedfromWelcomethompsonnicola.com:
http://welcomethompsonnicola.com/aboutkamloops.html
Venture Kamloops.(2014). 2014 EconomicImpactStudy. RetrievedfromVentureKamloops.com:
http://venturekamloops.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/2014-Economic-Impact-Study-
After-revisions.pdf
Zygomatic.(2015). OnlineChartTool.com/graph.RetrievedfromChart:http://www.onlinecharttool.com/