Crofton, British Columbia - Definition and Overview

Crofton, British Columbia, Canada, is a small town that is part of the District of North Cowichan on Vancouver Island in British Columbia. The population is estimated at 2,500 people.

Crofton was founded in 1902 by Henry Croft, who owned the nearby copper mine in Mt. Sicker. He built a smelter on the coast, to send the refined copper away. The smelter closed in 1907, and the town declined. But in 1954, a pulp and paper mill was built. Owned until 2001 by Fletcher Challenge, it is now owned by NorskeCanada. There has been controversy over the mill and its burning, far enough that on September 17th, 2004, Randy Bachman organized a "Clean Air Concert" to provide money for a study of the mill emissions. There is a ferry that connects Crofton to Vesuvius on Salt Spring Island.