Our cultural displays extend into a 5-hectare Heritage Park located on the banks of the South Thompson River. More than a kilometre of trails lead visitors through the archaeological remains of a 2,000 year old Secwepemc winter village site, which features 4 reconstructed winter pit-houses, and summer tule mat lodges, with various unique food preparation structures.
"Heritage site” means, whether designated or not, land, including land covered by water that has heritage value to British Columbia, a community or an Aboriginal people.
"Heritage value” means the historic, cultural, aesthetic, scientific, or educational worth or usefulness of a site or object.
The construction of the Heritage Park started in 1992-93 on 12 acres that rest along the banks of the south Thompson, not far down the river and along the same banks was where the Norwesters Trading Company Fort once stood.
Across the river from the Norwesters Trading Company was the Fort of the Hudson Bay Company. The Secwepemc Native village (Heritage Park), Hudson Bay company and the Nor-Westers company were all close to the joining of the rivers which the Secwepmec called "T’kemlups” where the rivers meet. This is how the City of "Kamloops” was named.
Shuswap "white-man/se’me7” version meaning Secwepemc "the people” sounds like "s’eh wheh pmek” and "Secwepemc-kuc/we are the Shuswap”.
"Early settlers/se’me7” had trouble pronouncing the word "Secwepemc” so they chose the easier word "Shuswap”
A boardwalk around the perimeter of a major archeological site designated Borden # EeRr77, which includes over twenty house pits and more than fifty cache pits of a village more than two thousand years old.
Our partnership with Ducks Unlimited Canada-Conserving wetland habitats for water fowl and wildlife ensures our bio diverse pond and its wildlife remains healthy and pristine.
The Secwepemc know the importance of the wetlands and how it helps prevent flooding and erosion. They alleviate droughts and help recharge water tables, they also act like environmental kidneys in that they can filter pollutants and toxic contaminants.
Bird watching groups, locals, tourists and visitor alike enjoy the various species of "birds/spyu7”, water fowl, painted turtles and the many numerous wetland species that call the heritage park home but, the most important species to the pond here is the resident "frogs/slle’qwq’in”. When frogs are present this means your wetlands and ponds are healthy, bio diverse and thriving. The other inhabitants of the Heritage park that visit our pristine pond are the local white tail deer, marmot/sqwi7qwe, "coyotes/skelep”, blue herring and cranes.
