Fort Durham to Sitka & beyond
Bulwarks of wood buried in the sand with a grassy beach beyond, and high hills that plunge into the water beyond that.
“At two in the afternoon,” Sir George Simpson said, “we reached Taco, an establishment conducted by Dr. [John Frederick] Kennedy, with an assistant and twenty-two men. Here the little harbour is almost land locked by mountains, being partially exposed only to the southeast…. The fort, though it was only a year old, was yet very complete, with good houses, lofty pickets, and strong bastions.”
He and the Beaver, the steamer in which he travelled, arrived at Fort Durham on September 22, 1841, and remained there for four days — not because they had work to do there, but because a storm blew them into the harbour and would not allow them to leave. That brings the departure date of the Beaver up to the early morning of September 25, when he and the steamer left for Sitka. Yes, September 25 occurs on a Saturday, so this date is accurate. This is what Governor Simpson wrote in his book, An Overland Journey Round the World.
After being detained at Taco [Fort Durham] from Wednesday afternoon to Saturday morning by an uninterrupted storm of high wind and heavy rain, we started at day break (September 25) with about fifteen miles more of Stephen’s Passage before us. Having accomplished this distance, we crossed the entrance of the Gulf of Taco, so called from its receiving the river of the same name. This stream, according to Mr. [James] Douglas, who had ascended it for about thirty-five miles, pursued a serpentine course between stupendous mountains, which, with the exception of a few points of alluvial soil, rose abruptly from the water’s edge with an uninviting surface of snow and ice….
We next passed the Douglas Island of Vancouver by the western passage, which was from two to four miles in width, while the eastern passage, besides being still narrower, was generally obstructed by ice.
Douglas Island still carries the name of Douglas Island, and the narrow Gastineau Channel runs on its eastern side, while the wider body of water, which appears to be unnamed, runs along its western side.
Rounding the head of Admiralty Island, we descended Chatham Straits along the back of the Sitka Archipelago and thus passed, of course, the inner entrance of Cross Sound, the limit of the countless islands which commence at the Straits of [Juan de] Fuca.
Cross Sound and the waters of the mainland behind the islands is where the HBC agreed that they should be able to trade with the Russians, while the Russian American Company traded for furs on the islands. Thus they, the Russians, got the sea otter pelts, which were important to them. “Opposite to the upper end of Admiralty Island is Lynn’s Canal, the highest of the numerous inlets on this part of the coast.” Lynn Canal is also where the seven communities of the Tlingit Chilkat First Nations resided. The Chilkats were the Indigenous men who crossed Chilkat [not Chilkoot] Pass into the Yukon every year, and traded for furs with the First Nations people who lived along the Yukon and Pelly Rivers. These are also the Indigenous men who destroyed Robert Campbell’s Fort Selkirk in August, 1852. See this post: https://nancymargueriteanderson.com/destruction-fort-selkirk/
Simpson’s book goes on to tell how the steamer Beaver arrived at Sitka. If you remember, the HBC steamer Beaver is being guided north to Sitka by the Russian Steamer. If this is the same steamer that guided Douglas north to Sitka in 1840, Douglas was pleased to note that the Russian vessel was no match in speed for the Beaver. In his book, Simpson wrote:
Though the weather was very fine during the earlier part of the day (September 25), yet it again returned to its fogs toward evening, so that, even with the assistance of Hanego Joe [their First Nations guide], we were obliged to anchor at the inner entrance of Peril Straits where the tide rose and fell as much as two-and-twenty-feet. The fog having dispersed next morning (September 26) about six, we proceeded up Peril Straits, slackening our pace to half speed on reaching the narrower part of the passage distinguished as Little Peril Straits; and soon, after three in the afternoon, we came in sight of the Russian American Company’s establishment of New Archangel. We saw in the harbour five sailing vessels, ranging between two hundred and three hundred and fifty tons, besides a large barque in the offing in tow of a steamer which proved to be the Alexander from Ochotsk, bringing advices from Petersburg down to the end of April. Before we anchored, Captain Lindenberg came off to us, conveying Governor Etholine’s compliments and welcome. Salutes being exchanged, Mr. Douglas and myself soon afterwards landed, and were accompanied to his Excellency’s residence, situated on the top of a rock, by Captain Lindenberg and the captain of the fort.
So, the date? Simpson left Fort Durham in the early morning of September 25, 1841. The Beaver anchored for the night outside Peril Straits (night of September 25), and reached Sitka the next day — September 26. I am presuming they arrived in the late afternoon or evening, as they returned to sleep on the Beaver. But I am not yet confident of these dates, and certainly Simpson does not tell us anything useful.
Then I remembered there was another HBRS volume to look at: that is, London Correspondence Inward from Sir George Simpson, 1841-42. So I whipped down to the library to view it, and the letter confirmed these dates: Simpson arrived at Fort McLoughlin in September 15, and left the next day, September 16. He reached Fort Simpson on September 17, and left it the next day, September 18. On September 20 he arrived at Fort Stikine, and left it that same afternoon. On September 22 he reached Fort Taco, where I learned that while he was there, he made his decision re: closing down Forts Taco and McLoughlin in 1843. On September 25 he left Fort Taco early in the morning, and arrived at Sitka two days later.
Governor Adolph Karlovich Etholine was the governor of the Russian American Company, who had arrived at Sitka in 1840. Etholine’s wife was a native of Helsingors [Helsinki?], in Finland, and Governor Simpson described her as pretty and lady-like. This is how Governor Simpson described Etholine’s quarters at Sitka. It is no wonder that James Douglas, when he was at Sitka in 1840, was so critical of the way that the Russian American Company was run.
Governor Etholine’s residence consisted of a suite of apartments, communicating, according to the Russian fashion, with each other, all the public rooms being handsomely decorated and richly furnished. It commanded a view of the whole establishment, which was in fact, a little village; while about half way down the rock two batteries on terraces frowned respectively over the land and the water. Behind the bay which forms the harbour, rise stupendous piles of conical mountains with summits of everlasting snow…
The mouth of Sitka’s harbour faces to the west. The harbour itself was sheltered from north and west winds of winter as from its mouth it curved northward, and the settlement and anchorage is well tucked behind a headland. I think that the Beaver must had arrived at Sitka toward the end of the day, because the HBC men returned to the ship to sleep, rather than commence negotiations. Simpson, by the way, was here to finalize the negotiations between the Russian American Company and the HBC — completing the negotiations that Douglas had had with Etholine at Sitka in 1840.
We returned to the steamer for the night (September 26.) Next morning (September 27), Governor Etholine, in full uniform, came on board in his gig, manned by six oars and a coxswain, and was, of course, received with a salute. We accompanied him on shore, our vessel and the fort simultaneously exchanging, as it were, their noisy welcomes with each other…
We sat down to a good dinner in the French style, the party, in addition to our host and hostess [Madame Etholine] and ourselves, comprising twelve of the company’s officers. We afterward visited the schools…
But the two men (Etholine and Simpson) also made some changes that would affect the HBC and Russian American Company up and down the coast. As Simpson wrote, “In trading with the Indians, the Russians, as I have already had occasion to mention, use spirituous liquors, our neighbouring posts being obliged, as a matter of course, to employ the same pernicious medium of traffic. Knowing the mischiefs that ensued at our own establishments, and having reason to believe, that more fatal results occurred at Sitka, I suggested to Governor Etholine, who promptly acceded to the proposal, that on or before the last day of the year 1843, both companies should entirely abandon the practice of trading with the savages in spirituous liquors.” I wonder if that happened? “An earlier limit would have been fixed, had not Governor Etholine and myself thought that the establishments would meanwhile require to be strengthened, in order to provide against the possibility of any consequent outrages among the involuntary “tee-totallers” of the coast.” Then he says, “Such was our arrangement; but during my second visit, which took place in the ensuing spring, a scene presented itself which led, as hereinafter described, to an immediate and unconditional stoppage of rum and all its kindred.” Simpson must be referring to the death, by murder, of John McLoughlin Jr. at Fort Stikine.
“While at Sitka” Simpson said:
I took a bath, which might be a very good thing to those that like it. On entering the building, I was much oppressed by the steam and heat, while an ill-looking, long-legged, stark-naked fellow was waiting to officiate as master of the ceremonies. Having undressed in an ante-chamber so far as decency would permit, I made my way into the bath-room, which was heated almost to suffocation.
He did not enjoy the treatment, which including pouring hot water on the fire to produce steam, and hot water on himself to clean him. “The whole process occupied about an hour,” he said, and when he returned to the ante-chamber, he was so “relaxed” he couldn’t move for a quarter of an hour. He didn’t like that!
During our four days at Sitka, with the exception of a part of a day, there was one continued fall of rain; and in fact, since we reached Taco, we had had almost constant wet — a remarkable contrast to the generally fine weather which we had enjoyed from Montreal upwards.
Having taken leave of our kind friends on the previous evening, we weighed anchor about five in the morning of the thirteenth of September, but were obliged to bring up for the night about half past three in the afternoon in Lindenberg’s Harbour.
This is our first clue of the dates after they left Fort Durham. If Simpson arrived at Sitka late in the evening of September 26, then how the heck is he leaving Sitka on the morning of September 13? Let us presume that he erred, and that he is leaving Sitka about four days after his arrival there on September 26 or 27. How do the dates work after this?
They don’t. As you will see in the last post in this series, he says he left Fort Simpson on the afternoon of September 18, 1841: see https://nancymargueriteanderson.com/simpson-to-fort-durham/
After leaving Fort Simpson, he was a little vague on dates, but he visited Fort Stikine, where he dropped off John Rowand to rest and rehabilitate. After that he reached Fort Durham and spent four days there, stormbound. Than a few days travel to Sitka, where he spent four or so days. I have been able to clarify the dates from his letter to the London Committee, contained in the book, London Correspondence Inward from Sir George Simpson, 1841-42. But this book is no help at all on the return journey to Fort Nisqually. There are no dates given — except that when the Beaver is passing Whidbey Island, the date is October 17. And the next day, when they reached Fort Nisqually, it is October 18. Happily, one of the letters in the London Correspondence Inward book tells us when he arrived at Fort Vancouver — his letter written on November 25, 1841, says they reached Fort Vancouver on October 22, “our voyage to and from Sitka and the other establishments already mentioned having occupied 52 days.”
But even without knowing the exact dates, we have lots of stories to tell you.
So, Sir George Simpson and the Beaver left Sitka in the last day of September, 1841. That is September 30, not September 31, as he says. But I now realize that is where he made the first mistake: Instead of leaving Sitka on September 13, as he said above, he left it on September 30.
In the morning (September 30), when we got under way, the weather was cold and squally, while a little snow that fell in the night had partially whitened the green ice that filled the ravines of the mountains; and the channels were traversed by many restless masses which had broken off from the glaciers. In short, nothing could exceed the dreariness of this inhospitable coast. To make matters still worse for some of us, a tumbling sea deranged the stomachs of our landsmen. Having passed through Chatham Straits, we anchored for the night at Point Rowand, in Prince Frederick’s Sound.
So they anchored for the night September 30-October 1. I looked for Rowand Point in my maps, and did not find it, sadly. Simpson’s story continues:
Next day (October 1), after grounding slightly on a mud bank in Wrangell’s Straits, we reached Stikine at three in the afternoon, where we were delighted to find our fellow traveler, Mr. [John] Rowand, pretty nearly recovered from his serious illness…. Having again taken Mr. Rowand on board, we reached Fort Simpson at seven in the morning of the second day thereafter.
John Rowand is Chief Factor John Rowand of Edmonton House.
So I am guessing they may have reached Fort Simpson on the morning of October 3. In spite of the fact that according to James Douglas they held a meeting at Fort Simpson, with the gentlemen in charge of Forts Durham and McLoughlin in attendance, it almost appears as if Simpson spent little time at Fort Simpson. But we know the meeting happened: after the two northwest coast posts were closed down and the men and buildings transferred to the new site of Fort Victoria, Douglas noted that “some of the parties present when the question was discussed at Fort Simpson, have since embraced views at variance with those they then professed.”
I had also presumed that Simpson had visited both Fort Durham and McLoughlin for a second time, bringing the men in charge up to Fort Simpson for the meeting. But he did not. He travelled straight from Sitka to Stikine to Fort Simpson, where he then presumably held the meeting. However, there is nothing to prevent the gentlemen from Fort Durham and Fort McLoughlin from making their own way to Fort Simpson, if he had required them to do so. If John Work could travel from Fort Simpson all the way to Fort Victoria by canoe, to bring news of the gold find in the Queen Charlotte Islands, then these men could be paddled north, or south, to Fort Simpson. They would be travelling in sheltered waters behind the line of islands, and every post had its own northwest canoe built for travel in these Pacific coast waterways.
Nevertheless, it appears that Simpson left Fort Simpson the day after he arrived there. But as he arrived there early in the morning, he did spend one full day at Fort Simpson. Perhaps that is when the meeting was held. This is what Simpson said in his book, An Overland Journey:
Starting at half past five next morning (October 4?), we anchored for the night in a cove in Grenville Canal. This delay was entirely owing to the miserably thick weather, for with a clear atmosphere we could have run in the dark, inasmuch as the channel presented deep water and bold shores… In passing next day (October 5?) through Grenville Canal, we saw some beautiful waterfalls, which had been greatly increased by the late heavy rains, tumbling down the sides of the mountains, where they found so little soil that they carried their foam to the sea just as pure as they had received it from the clouds. We anchored within sight of Millbank Sound.
So, presumably they anchored “within sight of Millbank Sound,” for the night of October 5-6. “About eight in the morning (of October 6?), we reached Fort McLoughlin, where we remained during the rest of the day.” The Beaver and Simpson were last at Fort McLoughlin on September 15, 1841, on their way north to Sitka.
Leaving Fort McLoughlin next morning (October 7?), we were obliged, by four in the afternoon, to take refuge for the night in Safety Cove, on Calvert’s Island, by reason of our being unable to reach any other known shelter with daylight. After anchoring, I amused myself, as was my custom, by fishing, my ordinary prey being halibut, rock cod, flounders, &c &c. In this neighbourhood I noticed what was to me a very remarkable phenomenon, a sea-weed growing to the surface from a depth of thirty or forty fathoms.
So, he found our kelp beds, did he? Yes, rock cod live up and down the coast: I have fished for them many times. Halibut, yes. Flounders? There are a number of different types of flounders in Pacific coast waters. Just for your information, Calvert Island is the southernmost island of the string of islands that protects the coastal waters the Beaver runs through. To the south, however, between Calvert Island and the northernmost point of Vancouver’s Island, lies the open waters of Queen Charlotte Sound, where the next piece of land to the west is Japan! The HBC men had trouble with fog coming north: the men aboard the Beaver will have another sort of problem on their way south.
As Governor Simpson wrote on October 7, 1841:
Next day, after being once driven back to Calvert’s Island, we succeeded, on a second attempt, in crossing the grand traverse, already mentioned as the only exposed part of the coast, to Shushady Harbour in Vancouver’s Island…
When the next post in this series is written, it will appear here: https://nancymargueriteanderson.com/simpson-sails-south/
To go back to the beginning of this sea journey, go here: https://nancymargueriteanderson.com/simpson-on-the-beaver/
Copyright, Nancy Marguerite Anderson, 2026. All rights reserved.