Albert Faille was an early pioneer, explorer, trapper and prospector

Prospecting

Prospecting is the physical search for minerals, fossils, precious metals or mineral specimens, and is also known as fossicking.Prospecting is a small-scale form of mineral exploration which is an organised, large scale effort undertaken by mineral resource companies to find commercially viable ore...

 of the Canadian North. He was born in Duluth, Minnesota

Duluth, Minnesota

Duluth is a port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is the county seat of Saint Louis County. The fourth largest city in Minnesota, Duluth had a total population of 86,265 in the 2010 census. Duluth is also the second largest city that is located on Lake Superior after Thunder Bay, Ontario,...

 in 1887. Faille spent his early years working in lumber camps, guiding tourists on canoe trips in the lake district about Duluth, and trapping fur-bearing animals in the winter months. After serving in the armed forces in World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

, he immigrated to Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 in 1927, coming directly to the South Nahanni River

South Nahanni River

The South Nahanni River is a major tributary of the Liard River, located roughly 500 kilometres west of Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories of Canada. It is the centerpiece of Nahanni National Park Reserve...

 via the Mackenzie River and Fort Simpson. It was there that he encountered the young Raymond M. Patterson

Raymond M. Patterson

Raymond M. Patterson was an Oxford educated writer and explorer of the Canadian northwest.Raymond M Patterson was born in England in 1898. He was educated at Rossall School and later attended Oxford University, where he trained for a career at the Bank of England...

 who brought him attention in his book "The Dangerous River" and attracted 3 documentaries. Though these focused on his search for gold

Gold

Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...

, Faille was known as a friendly knowledgeable guide of the South Nahanii region. Mr. Faille died on new years day in 1974 at his home in Fort Simpson.

1962 documentary

Faille was the subject of a 1962 short documentary Nahanni by the National Film Board of Canada

National Film Board of Canada

The National Film Board of Canada is Canada's twelve-time Academy Award-winning public film producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary, animation, alternative drama and digital media productions...

. Directed by Donald Wilder, Nahanni follows the elderly Faille down the South Nahanni River, in search of a legendary gold mine. The film is scripted by William Weintraub

William Weintraub

William Weintraub, OC is a Canadian journalist, author, filmmaker and lecturer, best known for his long association with Canada's National Film Board ....

 with a musical score by Eldon Rathburn

Eldon Rathburn

Eldon Davis Rathburn was a composer from the community of Queenstown, in Queens County, New Brunswick, Canada....

. Awards for the film included two prizes at the 1963 Canadian Film Awards as well as the award for Best Color Film Produced in 1962 at the Canadian Cinematography Awards.

External links

• Watch Nahanni at NFB.ca
• Albert Faille's Nahanni Home, a website dedicated to Faille