James McMillan (fur trader)
James McMillan | |
---|---|
1st Chief Trader of Fort Langley | |
In office 1827–1828 | |
Succeeded by | Archibald McDonald |
Personal details | |
Born | August 1783 Probably in Glen Pean, Explorer, First Chief Trader of Fort Langley |
Known for | Founder of Fort Langley |
James McMillan (August 1783–26 January 1858) was a
Early life and first Fraser River expedition
Born in August, 1782, McMillan was the fourth son of Allan McMillan, Tacksman of Glenpean, Argyllshire and his wife, Margaret Cameron from Rannoch, Perthshire. With his parents and siblings, he emigrated from Scotland to British North America in 1802, and settled with them initially in what became Glengarry County, Ontario. Not long after arriving, the young James began work as a clerk for the North West Company in what is now
In June 1824, following the merger of the North West Company and the HBC, McMillan accompanied HBC Governor
Founding of Fort Langley
On June 27, 1827, McMillan was again dispatched north from the Columbia River by Simpson, this time to establish a Hudson's Bay Company presence on the lower Fraser River. After leaving Fort Vancouver, McMillan, his 25-man party and two small boats arrived at Port Orchard on Puget Sound on July 4. There they camped, awaiting the newly acquired HBC sailing vessel the Cadboro, loaded with horses and supplies, which had departed Fort Vancouver on June 24 to rendezvous with McMillan's party via the open Pacific Ocean. After waiting six days, the Cadboro finally arrived at Port Orchard on July 10.[5] When the ship approached the mouth of the Fraser River, McMillan set out looking for suitable locations for the establishment of the Fort. He found none in the immediate vicinity of the river's mouth and the Cadboro was unable to gain navigable access to the Fraser River for several days until a channel was discovered. Meanwhile, in the smaller boats, and proceeding further up river, McMillan surveyed several potential locations for the new fort on July 27–28. It was around this time that McMillan Island was named for him. Other islands named during this survey of the river were Barnston Island (for clerk George Barnston) and Annacis Island (for Clerk Francois Noel Annance).[3] Unfortunately, the Cadboro was unable to weigh anchor close enough to shore to safely unload cargo at the site McMillan had preferred to establish the Fort. The next day it sailed downriver to another spot on the south side of the Fraser, which McMillan had remarked upon earlier. This location was just west of the Salmon River's confluence with the Fraser in an area later to be known as Derby. On Monday July 30, McMillan's party unloaded horses at the site and the laborious clearance of the forest commenced.[5] The first post of the Fort was cut on August 1, 1827. On August 13, the first bastion of the fort—deemed to be the priority as a consequence of rumours of a pending massacre by Indians—was completed.[3]
Chief Factor at Fort Langley (1827-1828)
In the weeks and months immediately following the erection of the Fort, McMillan watched as the horses perished in the wilderness conditions, noted a minor earthquake,[6] and described the scene around the Fort once as "dull and monotonous."[3] However, on Christmas Eve, 1827, a surprise visit was paid by HBC clerk Alexander Mackenzie from Fort Vancouver. His party having been pinned in by ice at the mouth of the Fraser River, and apparently robbed and threatened by the
Red River Colony, personal life and final years
McMillan went on to become a Chief Factor at the HBC's Red River Colony, and he was brought in to manage a failed experimental farm at St. James on the Assiniboine River.[1] In his efforts, he even enlisted a cousin, Robert Campbell from Scotland to assist on the farm with such endeavours as trying to raise sheep from Kentucky.[7] Later, he was transferred to the Montreal area out of frustration with the farm's failure and his dislike of Red River Colony society. In 1839, McMillan retired to Scotland, near Perth, where he lived with his Scottish wife (and first cousin), Eleanor McKinlay, with whom he had eight children. He also fathered at least four North American children stemming from relations with native women from the Columbia Region, Saskatchewan and Fort George. One of them, William McMillan, was a co-signatory to the
a Wooden Statue of McMillan and Chief Wattlekainen is located at the Innes Corners Plaza in Langley[9]
References
- ^ a b c d "McMillan, James." Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online. Gregory Thomas.
- ^ a b "McMillan, James". Encyclopedia of British Columbia (2000). Harbour Publishing.
- ^ a b c d e f "The Langley Story Illustrated", Don Waite.
- ^ "Journal of John Work". Washington Historical Quarterly III, 1912.
- ^ a b ""Langley History Built on Fort", Langley Advance, 6 February 2004". Archived from the original on 30 January 2005. Retrieved 29 January 2007.
- ^ ""Cascadia Historic Earthquake Catalog, 1793-1929". Provided by: The Pacific Northwest Seismic Network". Archived from the original on 2007-01-29. Retrieved 2007-01-29.
- ^ "Campbell, Robert." Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online. Kenneth Stephen Coates
- ^ "Congress of Aboriginal Peoples, 1979 Declaration of Métis and Indian Rights, Appendix". Archived from the original on 2007-02-01. Retrieved 2007-01-29.
- ^ "Statue Carvings of Chief Wattlekainen and James McMillan". The Virtual Museum of Métis History and Culture. Retrieved 2002-08-17.