Adopted 1 May 1934 on National Defence sheet, Victoria.

Source: BC place name cards, or correspondence to/from BC's Chief Geographer or BC Geographical Names Office

Labelled "Tods Stream" on J.D. Pemberton's 1855 map of Southeastern Vancouver Island; not named on 1895, 1911 or 1912 editions of BC Lands "Map of the Southeastern Districts of Vancouver Island"; not named on Hibben & Co's 1913 street map of Victoria, nor on Geological Survey's 1915 map, 20A, Victoria.

Source: BC place name cards, or correspondence to/from BC's Chief Geographer or BC Geographical Names Office

After John Silvester Bowker (1821 - 1898), one of the early settlers at Oak Bay. Born in Massachusetts, he came to BC in the 1850's and spent some time in the Cariboo gold fields before turning to farming on the San Juan Islands; he would paddle across to Oak Bay to visit his friend, John Tod, who owned a large farm in the Willows area. Bowker married Tod's daughter, Mary, in May 1864 and the newlyweds established the Bowker Farm on a portion of Tod's property. Mary Tod Bowker lived on at the farm for some time after his death; she died in California in 1911.

Source: BC place name cards, or correspondence to/from BC's Chief Geographer or BC Geographical Names Office

The farm today would cover an area approximately from Bowker Creek to Bowker Avenue and from St. Anne's Street to the waterfront; the original farm house is still standing on Bowker Place. Most of Bowker Creek is now in culverts (see Times Colonist 21 April 1982 for a description of its course.)

Source: BC place name cards, or correspondence to/from BC's Chief Geographer or BC Geographical Names Office