Dugald Mactavish
Who was Dugald Mactavish, who took over Fort Vancouver after Peter Skene Ogden’s death in 1854? Bruce McIntyre Watson, in his book “Lives Lived,” tells us he was born in…
Read moreAlexander Caulfield Anderson at Lachine
Alexander Caulfield Anderson was one of the most significant men of his time (the 1840’s) in the early history of what later became British Columbia, and so I thought some…
Read moreJohn Work’s Journey to the Columbia District, 1823
Three years before the York Factory Express existed, John Work travelled over much of their route, on his way from York Factory to Spokane House, on the Spokane River. He…
Read moreWas James King murdered by Joseph-Maurice LaMothe?
Like John Cole before them, fur traders James King of the North West Company, and the New Nor’Wester’s clerk Joseph-Maurice LaMothe, made history along the North Saskatchewan River. No, neither…
Read moreFabulous Sam Black
I know I have used the word “fabulous” before when I describe a fur trader. But some are fabulously interesting, and Chief Trader Sam Black is certainly a member of…
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