The ancient fishing weirs of Comox remain visible in the mud flats today

Countries & Cities · Published 15 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: For at least 4,000 years, the shores of Comox, British Columbia, have supported human life through ingenious engineering. Long before modern settlement, the Pentlatch people constructed elaborate tidal traps that are still visible today. This coastal town, once a quiet fishing village, holds a history of survival, industry, and transformation.

The town of Comox, located on the eastern coast of Vancouver Island, sits within the Comox Valley. Archaeological evidence indicates that the area hosted a Coast Salish fishing settlement for at least 4,000 years. The Pentlatch people, who occupied the shores of Comox Bay, utilized sophisticated fishing weirs—nets secured to wooden stakes on tidal flats. These structures trapped fish as the tide receded, a method so effective that some scientists believe it supported a population of several thousand people. Today, an estimated 200,000 wooden stakes remain in the mud, with carbon dating revealing the oldest to be from c.750 CE.

European interest in the region grew throughout the 19th century. In 1862, the first government-approved settlers arrived, including James Robb, who purchased land along the bay. The area was initially known as Port Augusta, named after a member of the British royal family, before the provincial government officially renamed it Comox in 1893. The local economy shifted from early farming and fishing to large-scale logging in the early 20th century, when the Comox Logging and Railway Company became the largest logging concern on Coastal British Columbia, moving timber to sawmills in New Westminster.

The 20th century brought significant military and infrastructure changes. During the First World War, the 102nd Battalion trained at the Goose Spit, a sandy hook-shaped landform that has served various naval and military purposes since the 19th century. The installation of an air force base during the Second World War spurred further growth, and today the town hosts CFB Comox. While the area was once an isolated outpost reachable only by ship, the completion of road and rail links during the First World War and the subsequent arrival of retirees in the 21st century have transformed it into a thriving community.

The landscape itself remains a testament to the past. The Great Comox Midden, a deep layer of discarded shells along the shoreline, marks centuries of habitation. Landmarks like the Comox Glacier and the legacy of figures like naturalist Hamilton Mack Laing, who moved to the area in 1922, continue to define the region's character. Despite the pressures of development, the town maintains its connection to the sea and the history of the First Nations who first called the region kw'umuxws, meaning 'plentiful'.

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