Calvert Island was named in 1788 by Charles Duncan, captain of the fur trading vessel Princess Royal.

To the east Fitz Hugh Sound, part of the Inside Passage, separates Calvert Island from the mainland.

He anchored his ship, the Princess Royal, in Milbanke Sound, then worked his way south, trading with the Heiltsuk and exploring what was then unknown waters to the British.

He passed through Hakai Passage into Fitz Hugh Sound, then anchored on the east coast of Calvert Island in Safety Cove.

At more than 1,200 square kilometres (300,000 acres) of land and sea, it is the largest provincial marine protected area on the British Columbia Coast.