Description of Historic Place

The Penticton Oxbows are truncated remnants of the Okanagan River along the channelized Okanagan River between Okanagan and Skaha Lakes in Penticton, British Columbia.

Heritage Value

The Penticton Oxbows have historic value because they are the last remaining physical evidence of the natural waterways which originally ran through the area. They are symbolic of the former significance of water as the life-blood which sustained local human settlement since time immemorial. These historic resources are important because they tell the story of the evolution of Penticton's cultural landscape. Their natural forms and locations remind us of the importance of the local natural riparian ecology.

They also possess heritage value as a byproduct of the era of modifying waterways in which man could triumph over nature through engineering works, which began locally with dredging in the 1880s and hit its apex in the 1948 when the Okanagan River was dammed for flood-control reasons. The River Channel was constructed in 1952, as part of a flood control system to manage the often occurring flooding of Osoyoos Lake from the runoff of the Similkameen River, and to also feed into existing irrigation systems.

SOURCE: City of Penticton File No. 6800.01, Heritage Conservation and Preservation

Character-Defining Elements

Key elements that define the heritage character of the Penticton Oxbows include its:

-relationships to the Okanagan river and other local waterways
-associations with Okanagan First Nation fishing sites and villages
-ecological values of oxbows for water quality, nutrient storage, fish and riparian habitat
-association with engineering works