Skip to content

Princeton - a Prince Town in waiting?

The Town of Princeton has been waiting 160 years for a Royal visit - and Princeton Mayor Spencer Coyne thinks the time has come.
20195427_web1_20078318-de5768c3911b4f8b899df00c283ef161
FILE - In this Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020 file photo, Britain’s Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex smile during their visit to Canada House, in London. Prince Harry and his wife Meghan ‘stepping back’ as senior UK royals, will work to become financially independent, they announced Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020.(Daniel Leal-Olivas/Pool Photo via AP, file)

The Town of Princeton has been waiting 160 years for a Royal visit - and Princeton Mayor Spencer Coyne thinks the time has come.

Not only would Coyne like to see Prince Harry and Meghan make a long overdue trip to the community, he thinks they should consider living here.

The town website recently added a poll, asking residents if they would like Harry and Meghan to make Princeton their permanent Canadian home.

The website states:

“In 1860 Queen Victoria sent her son Albert Edward the Prince of Wales and future King of Great Britain to Canada on a goodwill tour. Local legend has it Princeton was renamed from Vermilion Forks in his honour. Some stories claim the Prince was scheduled to come to our humble little community but never made it and to this day Princeton has never had its Royal visit.

We are asking the people of Princeton if we should send an official invitation to Prince Harry and his family to settle in our fair town named in his great great great grandfather’s honour.”

“We’ve been waiting for our royal visit since 1860. We believe if they want privacy this a really great place for privacy,” said Coyne, with his tongue nestled lightly in cheek. “We are close to all the major centres…They can easily take a car or jump on an airplane and we have fibre optics.”

The town also has affordable housing on its side.

“A castle in Princeton would be less money than a castle anywhere else.”

Coyne also cited the area’s natural beauty, and the quality of the townsfolk as incentives for the Royals to settle in Princeton.

“They seem like down to earth people and this would be a good place for them to be down to earth.”

When asked who would pay for the security measures the Royal family would require, the mayor echoed Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

“There are a lot of things to work out.”

Results of the online poll have yet to be released but Coyne said if they are in favor of extending an invitation he would be happy to issue one.

“I would like to write that letter,” he said.



Andrea DeMeer

About the Author: Andrea DeMeer

Andrea is the publisher of the Similkameen Spotlight.
Read more