Pitt Meadows, a municipality of Metro Vancouver, is nestled in the southwestern region of British Columbia, Canada. With a population of 19,146 as of 2021, this city spans an area of 86.34 square kilometres. Named after the Pitt River and Pitt Lake, Pitt Meadows is one of the 21 municipalities that make up the Metro Vancouver Regional District.
Indigenous Peoples have called Pitt Meadows home for approximately 1000 years. The area was explored by James McMillan in 1874, and European settlers began to establish a community known as Bonson's Landing in the 1870s. The Municipality of Maple Ridge, which included Pitt Meadows, was incorporated in 1874. The Canadian Pacific Railway was constructed through Pitt Meadows to Port Moody in 1885, and Vancouver soon after, marking a significant milestone in the area's development.
Pitt Meadows was separately incorporated as a municipality in 1914, after reverting to unorganized territory from 1892. At the time of its incorporation, Pitt Meadows was a small, agricultural community of less than 250 individuals, supplying Vancouver and New Westminster with produce and dairy products.
After World War II, a large group of Dutch farmers reclaimed much of the low-lying land in Pitt Meadows. The city joined the Greater Vancouver Water District in 1948 and experienced a major flood the same year due to an unusually large snowpack and a sudden shift to warm temperatures. The Pitt Meadows Regional Airport opened in 1963, further enhancing the city's connectivity.
Pitt Meadows is home to several buildings of significant heritage value, including the old General Store (now the Pitt Meadows Museum) and Hoffman and Sons Garage. The city also boasts a Heritage Preservation Area, which serves as a testament to its rich history.
Constructed in 1990, the Pitt Meadows Cenotaph stands "in memory of all those who have served and died for us." The city received funding for the restoration of the Cenotaph in 2009.
In 2014, Pitt Meadows celebrated its centennial with special festivities and a Community Birthday Party. The Mission Folk Music Festival Society presented the 27th and 28th editions of the Mission Folk Music Festival in 2014/2015 to mark this milestone.
Pitt Meadows is located in the Lower Fraser Valley, east of Vancouver. The city is primarily an agricultural town, with over 68% of its area within a floodplain and 86% lying within the BC Agricultural Land Reserve as protected farmland. Pitt Meadows is home to several wildlife conservation areas, including Pitt-Addington Marsh and Codd Wetland Ecological Conservancy Area.
As per the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Pitt Meadows had a population of 19,146 living in 7,404 of its 7,628 total private dwellings.
Pitt Meadows is naturally isolated from the rest of the Lower Mainland by the Pitt River and the Fraser River. The Canadian Pacific Railway, constructed in 1885, was the city's first land-based transportation route. The Pitt Meadows Airport, opened in 1963, further enhances the city's connectivity.
Pitt Meadows offers a variety of recreational opportunities, including cultural, recreation, and other community facilities in the Civic Centre, the Town Centre, and the Sawyer's Landing Waterfront Village. The city also boasts public sports facilities, open spaces, trails and bike paths, protected natural areas, and recreational programs.
Pitt Meadows has served as a filming location for several movies, including "Happy Gilmore," "Smallville," "Duets," and "3000 Miles to Graceland."
