The WSÁNEĆ (Saanich) People have lived on the Saanich Peninsula for thousands of years where the current township of Sidney now resides.

Before the Europeans began appearing in this area, they had winter villages throughout the Region.

The site on which the Town of Sidney now sits on was called "SET,TINES" which translated means "chest sticking out" a reference to how the land looks like it sticks out of the water.

The area was used for launching boats to travel to the Gulf Islands.

In 1852, the Hudson’s Bay Company bought two large tracts of forested land from the Saanich People.

In 1891, fifty acres of land owned by the Brethour family was subdivided into lots and registered as the Township of Sidney.

By the end of 1892, the area was boasting a general store, a post office, a boat building shop, and a hotel.

The name “Sidney” apparently came about when Julius Brethour, who became the first president of the Victoria and Sidney Railway, was asked the question concerning a name for the site. “Brethour, looking across the water from the rude settlement, saw Sidney Island directly opposite, ‘It will be called Sidney’, said Mr. Brethour.”

Fun Fact:  For years, during the prohibition era, local pirates made good use of the city’s proximity to the U.S. to craft a sneaky transport route for moving alcohol across the border. While the prohibition on alcohol has long since been lifted, the town has commemorated its rum-running past with a pirate statue of Jake James at Beacon Park.