Origin
C'idexs — the Haisla name for this place
A midden site from a pre-contact Haisla village remains at the foot of Butedale Falls, marking continuous Indigenous presence stretching back millennia. The cannery site and surrounding area comprise a Haisla stewardship area at the southern boundary of Haisla traditional territory. Historically, eight Kitimat Haisla and two Kemano Haisla families lived year-round at Butedale.
Princess Royal Island also sits within the broader region associated with the Kitasoo/Xai'xais Nation, whose territory spans approximately 13,000 km² of land and sea in the Great Bear Rainforest. In the 1860s, two distinct nations came together in Klemtu: the Kitasoo Nation of the islands and the Xai'xais Nation of the mainland.
In 1911, John Wallace founded the cannery village at Butedale. At its peak in the 1920s and 30s, the summertime population exceeded 400. The Canadian Fishing Company operated the cannery until the 1950s; cold storage continued serving halibut fleets for another two decades. The site was recognized on Canada's Register of Historic Places in 2009.
The Place
122 acres of heritage, hydroelectric power,
and deep-water access
Total property
Deeded land, deep tidewater bay, and long-term leased parcels
Princess Royal Island
Fourth largest island in British Columbia — the heartland of Spirit Bear country
Hydroelectric capacity
Licensed, concrete dam and penstock from Butedale Lake (1,600 acres)
Cannery founded
Heritage-listed on Canada's Register of Historic Places since 2009
Ecology
Pacific temperate rainforest · Coastal Western Hemlock zone
Western Red Cedar exceeding 1,500 years. Sitka Spruce reaching 90 metres. Rare mosses, lichens, and fungi found nowhere else on Earth. The Great Bear Rainforest — 6.4 million hectares, 85% of old-growth permanently protected since 2016 — is the largest intact coastal temperate rainforest on the planet.
Spirit Bear (Kermode)
50–150
on Princess Royal Island
Pacific Salmon
5 species
spawning in island streams
Coastal Wolf
resident
salmon-fishing behavior
Humpback Whale
seasonal
surrounding waters
Marbled Murrelet
nesting
endangered, old-growth dependent
Bald Eagle
nesting
year-round resident
Timeline
From cannery to community
Pre-contact
Haisla village at C'idexs (Butedale Falls)
1911
John Wallace founds the cannery village
1917
Post office opens; Western Salmon Packers acquires plant
1923
Canadian Fishing Company purchases and expands
1920s–50s
Peak population >400; cannery, reduction, cold storage
1970s
Cold storage ends; post office closes
2009
Listed on Canada's Register of Historic Places
2016
Great Bear Rainforest: 85% old-growth protected
Present
Spirit Bear Village — regeneration begins