Port Alberni, BC, City, pop 17 548 (2006c), 17 748 (2001cA), inc 1912. Port Alberni amalgamated with the city of Alberni (incorporated in 1945) in 1967. The city is located on central VANCOUVER ISLAND, 195 km north of Victoria, at the head of Alberni Inlet, a deep fjordlike inlet that almost divides the island in two. The inlet was named after Don Pedro de Alberni, the Spanish officer in command of the Nootka garrison in 1791 during the Spanish occupation. In 1964 a TSUNAMI caused by the Good Friday earthquake in Alaska moved up the inlet and hit the twin cities. About 375 houses were damaged, 55 of which were washed away, but there were no casualties.

Hudson's Bay Company employees, led by Adam Horne, started fur trading with the Coast SALISH and Nuu-Chah-Nulth (NOOTKA), in the 1850s. The English shipping firm Anderson and Company erected a sawmill in 1860 as the inlet offered easy access. Pioneers came to the area to farm and mine and many eventually turned to logging.

Fishing and forestry have long been important to the economy of Port Alberni. The area became a major forestry centre after World War II. In the 1970s Port Alberni had one of the highest per capita incomes in Canada, based largely on forestry and fishing. The city was formerly the largest integrated wood-products site outside of Vancouver. In the 1980s and 1990s a general downturn in the forestry industry resulted in massive layoffs and a decline in the local economy. MACMILLIAN BLOEDEL's plywood mill was shut down in 1991, after more than 50 years of operation. Since the 1990s, sawmills have been modernized and there has been a shift to specialized products. The city's ice-free port mainly handles forestry products destined to foreign markets. The commercial fishing industry has also suffered in recent years, but SPORTFISHING is a major part of the growing tourism industry.

Port Alberni has a marina in the heart of the city, 2 golf courses, the Echo '67 Centre (library, museum, pool and meeting complex), the Rollin Art Centre. Attractions include the J.V. Clyne Bird Sanctuary and McLean Mill National Historic Site, a restored sawmill, a steam train and museums. Looming over Port Alberni is Mount Arrowsmith, the highest peak on southern Vancouver Island, popular for skiing and hiking. Canada's highest WATERFALL, Della Falls, 60 km from Port Alberni, is accessed via Great Central Lake. Another large lake in the area, Sproat Lake, is famous for its PETROGLYPHS.