Colonial Despatches

Cordova Bay is located on the southeastern shores of Vancouver Island. It lies on the eastern shore of the Saanich Peninsula, roughly 10 km north of Victoria, and looks across to US waters and San Juan Island.

In 1790, Spanish navy sub-lieutenant Manuel Quimper named what is known now as Esquimalt Harbour as Puerto de Cordova, after the 46th viceroy of Mexico.1 HBC officers anglicized and relocated the name to its present location in, circa, 1842, which had been labelled alternatively as Cormorant Bay by the British Admiralty in the 1840s.2 However, in 1905, Captain Walbran, famous for his knowledge, and book, on west coast place names, led the charge to list Cordova Bay as the official name.3

• 1. Cordova Bay, BC Geographical Names Information System.
• 2. Ibid.
• 3. Ibid.