Kamloops - Community Overview

The original name for the spot where the city of Kamloops now stands is from the Shuswap language, Tk’emlups meaning, “where the water meets”. 

Settlement of Kamloops dates back to 1812 when the Pacific Fur Company and the North West Company established trading posts at the confluence of the North and South Thompson Rivers. 

Kamloops grew rapidly as a result of the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway, 1800 to 1885, and the completion of the Canadian Northern, now the Canadian National Railway, in 1915.

Today, as a divisional point for both major railroads and a crossroads for highways radiating in all directions, Kamloops is well located for distribution, administration, communications, business and culture in the south central interior region of the Province. Government, utility, wholesale and other regional headquarters are plentiful in Kamloops and expanding rapidly with ever-increasing development of British Columbia.

The City of Kamloops is situated in the south central portion of British Columbia, at the confluence of the North and South Thompson River. Kamloops is located at the junction of Highways #97, #5(Yellowhead) and the Trans Canada, approximately 355 km northeast of Vancouver.

The population of Kamloops numbers approximately 87,017.

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