Dryad Point is situated on the northeastern point of Campbell Island and is the site of a historic lighthouse marking the intersection of Lama Passage to the east and Seaforth Channel to the north on the Inside Passage, about 173 miles (278 km) southeast of Prince Rupert and 2 miles (3.2 km) northeast of Bella Bella, British Columbia. The point is named after the Hudson’s Bay Company vessel Dryad that supplied company outposts along the coast from 1834 to 1836. The island was probably named by Captain Daniel Pender for Dr. Samuel Campbell who was the surgeon aboard HMS Plumper from 1857 to 1861. The geology of this part of British Columbia consists of tectonic terranes that gradually joined together and then accreted to the North American continent. Campbell Island consists of metamorphic rocks formed during the Mesozoic such as slate, greenstone, schist, gneiss and marble. These rocks were intruded by volcanic dikes during the Neogene–Quaternary period, about 13 million years ago, that radiated from a hotspot and today form the Anahim Volcanic Belt. This part of the central coast is the traditional territory of the Heiltsuk Nation, an Indigenous people now based in Bella Bella.

Heiltsuk bands historically travelled by carved cedar canoes designed for use in the open ocean. Each band had their own territory and inhabited separate winter villages consisting of large cedar plank houses with head chiefs, ceremonies and dialects. One such village was located on Denny Island to the east of Campbell Island across Lama Passage. In 1833, the Hudson’s Bay Company established the fur trading post called Fort McLoughlin on Campbell Island which resulted in the relocation of the Heiltsuk community from Denny Island. The fort was closed in 1843 and the village remained. At some point, a white trader operated a store at the village, but a dispute caused most of the Heiltsuk to move about 2 miles (3.2 km) north to the present-day location of the village. In 1905, a cannery was established by Japanese owners on Denny Island opposite the village of Bella Bella and operated under various owners until 1938. In 1941, an antisubmarine bomber base was established on Denny Island. When it was decommissioned in 1944, the facility was developed as a fishing resort called Shearwater with a full service marina, fishing resort, restaurant and hotel. The resort was sold in 2022, and is now owned and operated by the Heiltsuk Nation.

After British Columbia joined the Canadian Confederation in 1871, the need for an expanded system of navigational aids on the often-dangerous West Coast became increasingly important. The newly created federal Department of Marine and Fisheries took responsibility for an ambitious construction program, and by 1914, Canada had tripled its inventory of lighthouses. Most of the new lighthouses were constructed of timber, such as the lighthouse at Dryad Point originally built in 1899. It was reconstructed in 1919, and is a reinforced concrete tower 24 feet (7.3 m) high. In 1930, a new dwelling and boathouse were constructed. The light station currently includes a number of accompanying buildings such as dwellings, greenhouses, fuel storage and equipment sheds. Its earliest lighthouse keeper was the Heiltsuk leader, artist and boat builder Captain Richard Carpenter who was keeper until 1930. Since its original construction, the light station has been guiding vessels through potentially dangerous tight turns and low-lying lands at Lama Passage and Seaforth Channel. The lighthouse was designated a National Historic site in 2015, to preserve its unique character and setting. Read more here and here. Explore more of Dryad Point and Campbell Island here: