The Port Alberni Harbour Commission became a Canadian Port Authority under the Canada Marine Act under Letters Patent effective July 1, 1999.

Alberni commanded a military outpost in Nootka Sound from 1790 to 1792. In 1860, a tall-masted schooner, the “Meg Merrilies” moored in the Alberni Inlet. The ship’s crew constructed the first saw mill in what was to become British Columbia. The mill was managed by Captain Stamp and Gilbert Malcolm Sproat.

The economic activity generated by the mill facilitated development of a local economy and an influx of European settlers. Prior to contact, the Alberni Valley was inhabited by the Tseshaht and Hupacasath First Nations.

• 1999 – Port Alberni Harbour Commission became a Canadian Port Authority under the Canada Marina Act and Letters Patent
• 1964 – Alberni was struck by a Tsumani generated in from an Alaskan earthquake. Water levels rose 19 feet as the Tsunami flooded the low laying areas of the city.
• 1860 – a tall-masted schooner called the “Meg Merrilies” moored in the Alberni Inlet.
• 1790- Alberni commanded a military outpost in Nootka Sound