New Westminster

New Westminster is a historically important city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. It is also a member of the municipality of Metro Vancouver. It was founded by Major-General Richard Moody as the capital of the new-born Colony of British Columbia in 1859 and continued in that role until the Mainland and Island Colonies were merged in 1866. It was the Mainland's largest city from that year until it was passed in population by Vancouver during the first decade of the 20th Century.

As the oldest city in western Canada, New Westminster has a long and rich history. The chosen site was selected both for its beauty and strategic location on the Fraser River.

It is located on the right bank of the Fraser River as it turns southwest towards its estuary, on the southwest side of the Burrard Peninsula and roughly at the center of the Greater Vancouver region.