History
Military presence in the region is thought to have began with the Royal Engineers who established a camp at Sumas near Chilliwack Mountain in 1858. From the camp, they conducted surveys and established boundary markers along the border to the south.
Camp Chilliwack was opened on 15 February 1941, as part of a government decision to establish a military training facility in the region. Initially, it served as a garrison for several army units that had been formed for terrestrial defence.
In 1966, Camp Chilliwack was renamed to Canadian Forces Base Chilliwack (CFB Chilliwack) as part of the Canadian Forces unification program. Along with the change in name, CFB Chilliwack assumed additional responsibilities, such as providing support to all of the CF units on the lower mainland and assuming responsibility for the Jericho Beach Garrsion in Vancouver. In 1970, Canadian Forces Officer Candidate School was established at CFB Chilliwack and offered a tri-service Basic Officer Training Course. In 1994, the 3rd Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry (3PPCLI) moved from CFB Esquimalt on Vancouver Island to CFB Chilliwack.
Due to budget cuts, CFB Chilliwack was closed in 1997 and new bases were found for the units located at the former CFB Chilliwack. The Canadian Forces Officer Candidate School was moved to St-Jean, Quebec, the Canadian Forces School of Military Engineering was moved to CFB Gagetown, New Brunswick, and 3PPCLI moved to CFB Edmonton, Alberta. Because of the closure of CFB Chilliwack, a need arose for a supporting formation to provide area-wide support for the Canadian Forces units remaining in mainland BC. In response to this need, 1 Area Support Group (1ASG) was created in 1999. On 4 February 1999, ASU Chilliwack was formed and allocated as a unit within the 1ASG.
Read more about this topic: Area Support Unit Chilliwack
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