| Feature Type: | Island - Land area surrounded by water or marsh. |
| Status: | Official |
| Name Authority: | BC Geographical Names Office |
| Relative Location: | W side of Strait of Georgia just N of Denman Island, S of Comox Harbour, Nanaimo Land District |
| Latitude-Longitude: | 49°37'08"N, 124°51'05"W at the approximate centre of this feature. |
| Datum: | WGS84 |
| NTS Map: | 92F/10 |
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Origin Notes and History:
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Sandy Island adopted 10 July 1923 on Ottawa file OBF 0784, as labelled on British Admiralty Chart 580, 1862 et seq, and on BC Lands' map 2A, 1913. Source: BC place name cards, or correspondence to/from BC's Chief Geographer or BC Geographical Names Office |
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The 1981 map "Welcome to the Comox Valley" published by Comox District Free Press, shows Tree Island Park rather than Sandy Island Park. Source: BC place name cards, or correspondence to/from BC's Chief Geographer or BC Geographical Names Office |
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The K'ómoks name for Sandy Island is jáji7em, meaning "having trees." Some older sources knew this simply as Tree Island. The K'ómoks people camped at the north end of this island while harvesting clams, and archaeologist Harlan Smith noted the presence in 1898 of a small shell midden, extending north from the northern end of the island. One source also said that this was a good place for clams, but added that people [also] used to go here to get roots for basketry. (information shared in March 2008 by K'ómoks First Nation, in turn excerpted from Island Comox Land Use and Reserve History, revised draft 18 June 1999, p.135.) Source: K'ómoks First Nation |