Simon Fraser (explorer)
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Simon Fraser (20 May 1776–18 August 1862) was a fur trader and an explorer who charted much of what is now the Canadian province of British Columbia. Fraser was employed by the Montreal-based North West Company. By 1805, he had been put in charge of all the company's operations west of the Rocky Mountains. He was responsible for building that area's first trading posts, and, in 1808, he explored what is now known as the Fraser River, which bears his name. Simon Fraser's exploratory efforts were partly responsible for Canada's boundary later being established at the 49th parallel (after the War of 1812), since he as a British subject was the first European to establish permanent settlements in the area.
Early life in the fur trade
The son of Scottish Highlanders from Culbokie, Simon Fraser was born at Mapletown, New York, near Bennington, Vermont, during the American Revolutionary War, the ninth and youngest child in the family. Fraser's father, after whom he was named, was a British army captain who was taken as a prisoner of war by the American forces at Saratoga and who died in custody. After the war ended, Fraser's mother moved the family to Canada. With the assistance of Fraser's uncle, a judge of the Court of Common Pleas, the family settled near present-day Cadillac, Quebec. At the age of 14, Fraser moved to Montreal and, after receiving some additional schooling, was apprenticed to the North West Company two years later. Two of Fraser’s uncles were active in the fur trade, which was a major part of the commercial life of Montreal at the time, and the Frasers were related to Simon McTavish, a leading figure in the North West Company.
Between 1792 and 1805, it would appear that Fraser spent most of his time working in the company's Athabasca Department. While little is known of his activities during this time, Fraser seems to have done well, as he was made a full partner of the company in 1801 at the relatively young age of 25.
Exploration west of the Rockies
In 1789, the North West Company had commissioned Alexander Mackenzie to find a navigable river route to the Pacific Ocean. The route he discovered in 1793 — ascending the West Road River and descending the Bella Coola River — opened up new sources of fur but proved to be too difficult to be practicable as a trading route to the Pacific. Fraser was thus given responsibility for extending operations to the country west of the Rockies in 1805. Mackenzie’s expeditions had been primarily reconnaissance trips, while Fraser’s assignment, by contrast, reflected a definite decision to build trading posts and take possession of the country, as well as to explore travel routes. In this sense Fraser was responsible for the establishment of permanent European settlement in what is now British Columbia.
Ascending the Peace River and establishing posts
In the autumn of 1805, Fraser began ascending the Peace River, establishing the trading post of Rocky Mountain Portage House (present day Hudson's Hope) just east of the Peace River Canyon of the Rocky Mountains. That winter Fraser and his crew pushed through the mountains and ascended the Parsnip and Pack Rivers, establishing Trout Lake Fort (later renamed Fort McLeod) at present-day McLeod Lake. This was the first permanent European settlement west of the Rockies in present-day Canada. The name given by Fraser to this territory was New Caledonia, given in honour of his ancestral homeland of Scotland. Further explorations by Fraser's assistant James McDougall resulted in the discovery of Carrier Lake, now known as Stuart Lake. In the heart of territory inhabited by the aboriginal Carrier or Dakelh nation, this area proved to be a lucrative locale for fur trading, so a post — Fort St. James — was built on its shore in 1806. From here, Fraser sent another assistant John Stuart west to Fraser Lake. Later the two men would build another post there which is now known as Fort Fraser.
Delays and the founding of Fort George (Prince George)
Fraser had found out from the aboriginal people that the Fraser River, the route by which Mackenzie had ascended the West Road River, could be reached by descending the Stuart River, which drained Stuart Lake, and then descending the Nechako River to its confluence with the Fraser. It had been Fraser's plan to navigate the length of the river which now bears his name. Fraser and others believed that this was, in fact, the Columbia River, the mouth of which had been explored in 1792 by Robert Gray.
Unfortunately, Fraser's plan to begin the journey in 1806 had to be abandoned due to a lack of men and supplies as well as the occurrence of a local famine. Fraser would not be resupplied until the autumn of 1807, meaning that his journey could not be undertaken until the following spring. In the interval Fraser contented himself with a journey to the confluence of the Nechako and Fraser Rivers. There he established a new post named Fort George (now known as Prince George), which would become the starting point for his trip downstream.
Descent of the Fraser River
A party of twenty-four left Fort George in four canoes on May 28, 1808. From the outset, the aboriginal inhabitants warned Fraser that the river below would be all but impossible to pass. Worse, even the portages were extremely difficult, and Fraser's crews frequently ran dangerous rapids to avoid even more dangerous or laborious portages. Thirteen days after setting out, Fraser abandoned his canoes above present day Lillooet, and his party continued their journey on foot, occasionally borrowing canoes from the aboriginal communities they encountered on the way.
Fraser proved adept at establishing friendly relations with the tribes he met, being careful to have them send word to tribes downstream of his impending arrival and good intentions. For the most part, this tactic was effective, but Fraser encountered a hostile reception by the Musqueam people as he approached the lower reaches of the river at present day Vancouver. Their hostile pursuit of Fraser and his men meant that Fraser was not able to get more than a glimpse of the Strait of Georgia on July 2, 1808. A dispute with the neighbouring Kwantlen people led to a pursuit of Fraser and his men that was only broken off near present day Hope. The journey culminated in further disappointment as Fraser discovered from his readings that the river he had just navigated was not, in fact, the Columbia. The descent had taken Fraser and his crew thirty-six days.
Returning to Fort George proved to be an even more perilous exercise, as the hostility Fraser and his crew encountered from the aboriginal communities near the mouth of the river spread upstream. The ongoing hostility and threats to the lives of the Europeans resulted in a near mutiny by Fraser's crew, who wanted to escape overland. Quelling the revolt, Fraser and his men continued north upstream from present-day Yale, arriving in Fort George on August 6, 1808. The journey upstream took thirty-seven days. In total it took Fraser and his crew two-and-a-half months to descend from Fort George to Musqueam and back.
Fraser and the Battle of Seven Oaks
Fraser was just thirty-two years old when he completed the establishment of a permanent European settlement in New Caledonia through the epic journey to the mouth of the river that would one day bear his name. He would go on to spend another eleven years actively engaged in the North West Company's fur trade.
Fraser left New Caledonia in 1809, and was reassigned to the Athabasca Department, where he remained until 1814. For much of this time, he was in charge of the Mackenzie River District. After this, he was assigned to the Red River Valley area, where he was caught up in the conflict between the North West Company and Thomas Douglas, Lord Selkirk, a controlling shareholder of the Hudson's Bay Company who had established the Red River Colony. The conflict culminated in the Battle of Seven Oaks in June 1816, resulting in the death of the colony's governor, Robert Semple, and nineteen others. Though not involved in the attack, Fraser was one of the partners arrested by Lord Selkirk at Fort William. He was taken in September to Montreal where he was promptly released on bail. Fraser was back at Fort William in 1817 when the North West Company regained possession of the post, but this was evidently his last appearance in the fur trade. The following year, Fraser and five other partners were acquitted of all charges related to the incident in the colony.
Later life
In 1818, it appears that Fraser retired from the fur trade. He settled on land near present day Cornwall, Ontario and married in 1820. He spent the remainder of his life pursuing various enterprises, none with much success. He served as captain of the 1st Regiment of the Stormont Militia during the Rebellions of 1837. Five sons and three daughters grew to maturity. Fraser was one of the last surviving partners of the North West Company when he died on August 18, 1862. His wife died the next day, and they were buried in a single grave in the Roman Catholic cemetery at St. Andrew's.
A vivid and remarkable account of Fraser's explorations can be found in his published journals: W. Kaye Lamb, The Letters and Journals of Simon Fraser, 1806-1808. Toronto, The MacMillan Company of Canada Limited, 1960.
List of British Columbia communities founded by Fraser
- Hudson's Hope (1805)
- McLeod Lake (1805)
- Fort St. James (1806)
- Fort Fraser (1806)
- Fort George (Prince George) (1807)
List of placenames and institutions named for Fraser
- The Fraser River, named for him by the explorer David Thompson.
- Fraser Lake, a lake in north-central British Columbia and a community on the lake's western shore.
- Fort Fraser, just east of Fraser Lake.
- Simon Fraser University, in Burnaby, British Columbia.
- The Simon Fraser Bridge in Prince George over the Fraser River along Highway 97.
- Numerous schools, neighbourhoods and roads, most notably the Fraser Highway
External links
- Biography at the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online
- Contemporary and Historical Maps Maps depicting Fraser's travels, Posts and Forts of the Canadian Fur Trade 1600-1870, and other explorations
- Simon Fraser, Canadian Explorer
- Biography at Discover Vancouver
- Ontario Plaques - Simon Fraser
