Beacon Hill Park

The park takes its name from Beacon Hill, located at its southern end. For the Songhees people, the hill is traditionally known as mıq̓ən—pronounced “MEE-qan” and sometimes spelled Meegan or Meeacan—meaning “warmed by the sun.”

mıq̓ən (Beacon Hill), was once a gathering place where local Indigenous Peoples rested, played games, and harvested camas.

At the base of the hill lay a settlement that was occupied at various times from roughly 1,000 to 300 years ago.

The hill holds deep cultural significance as a burial site for Coast Salish Peoples, the original inhabitants of the Greater Victoria region.

The land that would become Beacon Hill Park was first reserved as protected space in 1858 by Sir James Douglas, then governor of the Colony of Vancouver Island.

The park bordered Douglas’ Fairfield farm. Most mornings, he would ride his horse from his house in James Bay through the park to the farm.

It was officially designated a municipal park in 1882 and given its current name, inspired by Mount Beacon at its southern end, which once supported navigational beacons. The beacons let sailors visually align their course and steer clear of the treacherous Brotchie Ledge concealed just off the coast (source: Ringuette, J. fbhp.ca).

Today, the hill offers sweeping views of the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Olympic Mountains.

Thundering hooves once echoed across the old Beacon Hill racetrack, which is now known as Circle Drive and part of Dallas Road. Back then, the quickest horses could earn a whopping $100. The racetrack was used for roughly 40 years (source: Ringuette, J. fbhp.ca).

During the Queen’s birthday celebrations on May 24, 1860, the action wasn’t just on the track. As a crowd of 2,000 roared with excitement, betting disputes sparked two fistfights, a horse toppled onto its well-dressed owner, and a buggy flipped, tossing its passengers onto the road.

If you visit the Friends of Beacon Hill website (fbhp.ca), you’ll find an online version of a book on the history of the park written by Janis Ringuette.

In 1889, the Beacon Hill Park Zoo began with a modest collection: a pair of swans, a few pheasants, six deer, some sheep, an eagle, a bear, and a single wolf.

Over the next century, the zoo grew to include everything from beavers, bison, and coyotes to monkeys, lynx, mountain goats, moose, porcupines, rabbits, raccoons, seals, guinea pigs, peafowl, cockatoos, and turkeys (source: Ringuette, J.  fbhp.ca).

When the zoo was first created, the world looked very different. Wilderness felt both abundant and intimidating, and the goal was to tame Mother Nature.

Eventually, as fewer animals were kept each year, Beacon Hill Children’s Farm was opened in 1973 and operates seasonally. It houses penned animals like chickens, turkeys, and goats.

The park is also home to several notable human-made landmarks. Most striking is the world’s fourth-tallest totem pole, a 38.8-metre (127-foot) cedar pole carved by Kwakwaka'wakw artist Chief Mungo Martin along with his son David, and Henry Hunt. When it was raised in 1956, it held the record as the tallest totem pole in the world. It has undergone multiple repairs over the years, including a major restoration when it was lowered between 2000 and 2001.

Another cherished feature is the pebble bridge spanning the stream between Goodacre and Fountain Lake. Built in 1945 by Alice Carr, it stands as a tribute to her sister, renowned B.C. artist Emily Carr.

The old 1888 bandstand was converted to an information kiosk in 2010 (source: Ringuette, J.  fbhp.ca). There you will find historical information including pictures of cricket and lawn bowling teams from days past.

Before it was a bandstand, the building served as a bird aviary. It housed many birds from around the world. Unfortunately, 48 birds were slaughtered one night in 1981 and the guilty party was never caught (source: Ringuette, J. fbhp.ca).

At the heart of the park sits the Cameron Bandshell, often called “The Stage”, which hosts concerts from June through September.

Beacon Hill Park is also known as Mile “0”, the western terminus of the 8,000-kilometre Trans-Canada Highway, marking the beginning of one of the world’s longest national routes.

The Beacon Lodge and the beloved Beacon Drive-In are also nearby.