Copley Community Orchard is an organic urban orchard located on the unceded territory of the the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and Sel̓íl̓witulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations First Nations, in Vancouver, British Columbia. It is a place to celebrate the benefits of growing fruit trees, berry bushes and other perennial plants, educating people on their cultivation, and creating a beautiful and productive space.
In the 1850s, the area surrounding what is now Trout Lake and Copley Community Orchard, had beaver dams up to 37 meters (120 feet) long. Due to the dams, the land was swampy allowing for cranberries to grow. But by the 1900s, the swamps were drained creating good organic soil.
In 1905, Richard Theophilus Copley (October 3, 1850 -April 9, 1917) moved to Vancouver from England. Richard T. Copley was financially successful in England in the leather boot trade which allowed him to purchase the land surrounding Victoria, 28th Street, Nanaimo and 12th Street. His property would later be referred to as the “Copley Ranch” where he built a large house, (named “West Green”) with five bedrooms upstairs in the east section of the orchard.
The road that ran between the house and the orchard was named Copley Drive. In 1910, a by-law was passed changing it to Copley Road. On the ranch, there were two greenhouses and the orchard where the Copley family proudly grew many trees including cherry, walnut, apple, and plum.
