Isabella Mainville Ross

Isabella Mainville Ross (10 January 1808 – 23 April 1885) was the first female registered landowner in British Columbia. She was a Métis woman, the daughter of Joseph and Josette Mainville.

Early life Ross's father was a French-Canadian who spent his life working for the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC). He married Josette, an Ojibwe woman. When Isabella was fourteen years old, she married Charles Ross at the HBC Fort known at the time as Lac La Pluie.

HBC involvement Ross's job with HBC forced his family to move throughout Canada. He was "transferred to a number of locations" They became the first Métis family to reside there. The family established a close relationship with James Douglas, as they established Fort Victoria as an important post for the fur trade. Shortly after this move, Charles died, on June 27, 1844.

Legacy Ross is an important figure in the history of Victoria, Métis peoples and indigenous feminism. The Ross Bay Cemetery, where her body lies, is named after her. Her epitaph reads:

Here Lies Isabella Mainville Ross. Born January 10, 1808. Died in Victoria April 23, 1885. She came here in 1843 with her husband, Chief Trader Charles Ross, who was in charge of building Fort Victoria. After his death she bought the land upon which you are standing for a farm. By doing so she became the first woman to own land in what is now British Columbia.