Fort Durham’s Closure
Clerk Thomas Lowe finally arrived at Fort Durham (sometimes called Fort Taku) in April 1842, and his letters now tell the story of what happened at this turbulent northwest coast…
Read moreHayes River Posts
In 1826, when the first York Factory Express men descended the Hayes River from Norway House to York Factory, they passed through only one Hayes River post: Oxford House. That…
Read moreFort Durham Dustup
What stories the HBC men had to tell of Fort Durham dustups, or conflicts with the First Nations people that surrounded it! It seems that every HBC man who…
Read moreA Look-Back at James Birnie’s life
So, in 1846, James Birnie retired, a disappointed man, after 28 years of working in the fur trade of the North West Company and the Hudson’s Bay Company. How did…
Read moreJames Birnie Retires
James Birnie was a big man; a broad-shouldered and deep-chested man who stood six feet tall, according to Irene Martin, who wrote the book Beach of Heaven. He spoke in…
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