page_title: Cranbrook, British Columbia
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Cranbrook, British Columbia / History
caption_attribution_description: English: welcome sign in Cranbrook, British Columbia
context_page_description: Cranbrook is a city in southeast British Columbia, Canada, located on the west side of the Kootenay River at its confluence with the St. Mary's River, It is the largest urban centre in the region known as the East Kootenay. As of 2016, Cranbrook's population is 19,259 with a census agglomeration population of 26,083. It is the location of the headquarters of the Regional District of East Kootenay and also the location of the regional headquarters of various provincial ministries and agencies, notably the Rocky Mountain Forest District.
  Cranbrook is home to the Canadian Museum of Rail Travel which presents static exhibits of passenger rail cars built in the 1920s for the CPR and in the 1900s for the Spokane International Railway.
context_section_description: Originally inhabited by Ktunaxa peoples, the land that Cranbrook now occupies was bought by European settlers, notably Colonel James Baker who named his newly acquired land Cranbrook after his home in Cranbrook, Kent, England. In 1890, the Kootenay Indian Residential School, also called St. Eugene's, opened in Cranbrook, and operated until 1975. 
  In 1898, Baker had successfully convinced Canadian Pacific Railway to establish their Crowsnest Pass line through Cranbrook rather than nearby Gold Rush Boom Town Fort Steele. With that accomplishment Cranbrook became the major centre of the region, while Fort Steele declined; however, the latter is today a preserved heritage town.
  On November 1, 1905, Cranbrook was incorporated as a city.
  Some of the major industries include mining and forestry services, trades, and health care.
caption: Cranbrook's welcome sign
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