Photo: Ruth Hartnup from Vancouver, Canada · CC BY 2.0History around Cumberland: 6 designated places within 50 km
Heritage of the first rank begins 44 km from Cumberland, in Powell River. The municipality’s date on Wikidata is 1889: a founding, an incorporation or an amalgamation, the record doesn’t say which.
The registers find 6 places within 50 km of Cumberland
Nearest comes “Former Canadian Pacific Railway Station (VIA Rail), Courtenay, British Columbia”, 7.2 km off, in Courtenay. The record reaches back to 1911 with Powell River Townsite Historic District, 44 km away. They belong to 6 towns, chiefly Courtenay, Electoral Area B (Lazo North), Comox Valley and Electoral Area E, Alberni-Clayoquot.
The 6 nearest, within 50 km
| Former Canadian Pacific Railway Station (VIA Rail), Courtenay, British ColumbiaHeritage Railway Station · 1914–1915 · 7.2 km away, in Courtenay |
| Courtenay RiverListed in a community heritage register · 7.5 km away, in Electoral Area B (Lazo North), Comox Valley |
| McLean MillNational Historic Site · 1925–1966 · 37 km away, in Electoral Area E, Alberni-Clayoquot |
| Cape Mudge LighthouseHeritage Lighthouse · 1916 · 44 km away, in Electoral Area C, Strathcona |
| Powell River Townsite Historic DistrictNational Historic Site · 1911–1956 · 44 km away, in Powell River |
| Motor Vessel BCP 45National Historic Site · 1927–1928 · 44 km away, in Campbell River |
Around Cumberland, within 50 km, most dated places come from the wars and the Depression
Out to 50 km from Cumberland, outside the town: each place by when its record says building began.
5 dated places within 50 km make up the record. First by date comes Powell River Townsite Historic District in Powell River, from 1911.
19% of Cumberland’s homes are from 2016 to 2021 (4.1% is typical)
More than half of Cumberland’s housing predates 2001. Homes from before 1961 make up 26% of Cumberland’s housing; the typical town has 18%. Few of Cumberland’s homes date from 1961 to 1980: 13%, the norm 27%.
2021 Census, private dwellings by period of construction (Statistics Canada); the typical town is the middle Canadian town of 2,500 or more.
Cumberland and its neighbours
| Town | People | Places | Highest | Oldest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cumberland | 4,974 | 0 | 0 | — |
| Courtenay | 32,869 | 1 | 0 | 1914 |
| Comox | 15,884 | 0 | 0 | — |
| Electoral Area A, Comox Valley | 8,415 | 0 | 0 | — |
| Electoral Area B (Lazo North), Comox Valley | 7,830 | 1 | 0 | — |
| Electoral Area C (Puntledge - Black Creek), Comox Valley | 9,803 | 0 | 0 | — |
Cumberland in brief
The pre-1961 share of Cumberland’s homes is 26%, against 18% in the typical town. The rest is about typical: as with most towns its size, no historic place is listed; and its past has one life on the record, Thomas Audley Bate (1913).
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Protection. A National Historic Site designation recognises significance; it doesn’t by itself protect a building the federal government doesn’t own. Legal protection comes from provincial and municipal designations, whose own registers aren’t open data outside Québec.
- People and events. Persons of national historic significance come with no location; a town gets one only by birthplace (name and both life years agreeing) or by one of its own places that bears the name and whose record tells the story. Events, which can’t be tied, are left out.
- Provincial and municipal lists. The local and provincial lists outside Québec aren’t published openly, so this page counts what Wikidata records and pages only the places an encyclopedia describes.
- The federal register. Federal places come from Parks Canada’s directory, which counts National Historic Sites, federal heritage buildings, stations and lighthouses; their statements are the register’s own.
- The grade. There is no history grade: the page sets out the record and compares it with other towns.
- The tiers. Tiers follow the designation: national recognition and classement first, other federal designations next, provincial and local listings last.
Questions about Cumberland’s history
How many historic places does Cumberland have on the registers?
Cumberland has none of its own yet. Former Canadian Pacific Railway Station (VIA Rail), Courtenay, British Columbia, in Courtenay, is the nearest, 7.2 km away.
When did Cumberland become a municipality?
Wikidata gives 1889 for Cumberland, which may mark incorporation or an amalgamation rather than a founding.
How old are the homes in Cumberland?
26% of its homes were built before 1961, against 18% in the typical Canadian town.
Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada (Parks Canada).
Sources: Parks Canada, Directory of Federal Heritage Designations · Canadian Register of Historic Places (federal extract) · Wikidata (CC0) for map points, other names and articles · Statistics Canada, 2021 Census (homes by period of construction). Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).