Alexander Monkman
Encyclopedia
Alexander Monkman was a Canadian Métis
trading pioneer.
on March 29, 1870 and grew up around Fort Garry
, however he and his family fled to Edmonton
after the Red River Rebellion
and received his education from mission schools. Monkman travelled to Montana
and became a rodeo
-rider before returning to Edmonton
to begin working towards participating in the Klondike Gold Rush
in 1898. However, after a while, Monkman realised that his convoy would not make it and was the only one to turn back - he never heard from his colleagues again.
manager at the new Grande Prairie site near Lake Saskatoon and moved there with his wife Louisa. Here he became the first non-Hudson's Bay Company
trader in the region, and succeeded in cutting off Hudson's Bay Company furs from the region. This was the spot where Danezaa and Cree
Indians met to form their summer camps, and a village soon sprang up around the trading post with mission churches, a bank and a post office. By the early 1900s Monkman held property of his own near Flying Shot Lake and received various grains from the government, who was trying to stimulate agricultural production in the area by handing out seeds to settlers for free.
In 1922, while looking for tungsten
in the Rocky Mountains
, Monkman discovered a pass that would later be named in his honour. A problem the grain farmers in his region were facing at the time was how to transport their harvest to the seaport at Vancouver
. Grain had to be transported by rail through Peace River
, Edmonton
and Calgary
, a 1700-mile trip. Monkman's route cut 1000 miles off the total distance travelled, however the Yellowhead Pass
was selected for a transport line through the mountains, even though engineers suggested that Monkman's pass was easier to traverse.
By 1936, very high freight costs had taken their toll on the farmers, and Monkman suggested that the farmers build a highway through the Monkman Pass
themselves to reduce freight costs. Thus a fundraising effort took hold; signs for the 'M.P.H.' (Monkman Pass Highway) littered the region and by 1937 the volunteers had passed the Alberta
-British Columbia
border and reached Kinuseo Falls
, building a fishing resort there. However, the war brought an end to Monkman's career - the highway project ended in 1939 and he died on September 26, 1941 back at Grande Prairie. His legacy now lives on in British Columbia's Monkman Provincial Park
and Monkman Falls
.
Métis people (Canada)
The Métis are one of the Aboriginal peoples in Canada who trace their descent to mixed First Nations parentage. The term was historically a catch-all describing the offspring of any such union, but within generations the culture syncretised into what is today a distinct aboriginal group, with...
trading pioneer.
Early life
Alexander Monkman was born at Manitoba HouseManitoba House
Manitoba House is the name of a Hudson's Bay Company fur trading post as well as a separate settlement adjacent to the post.The Manitoba House Trading Post was established in 1797 on the west shore of Lake Manitoba, about fifteen miles north of the Narrows...
on March 29, 1870 and grew up around Fort Garry
Fort Garry
Fort Garry, also known as Upper Fort Garry, was a Hudson's Bay Company trading post at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers in what is now downtown Winnipeg. It was established in 1822 on or near the site of the North West Company's Fort Gibraltar. Fort Garry was named after Nicholas...
, however he and his family fled to Edmonton
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
after the Red River Rebellion
Red River Rebellion
The Red River Rebellion or Red River Resistance was the sequence of events related to the 1869 establishment of a provisional government by the Métis leader Louis Riel and his followers at the Red River Settlement, in what is now the Canadian province of Manitoba.The Rebellion was the first crisis...
and received his education from mission schools. Monkman travelled to Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
and became a rodeo
Rodeo
Rodeo is a competitive sport which arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain, Mexico, and later the United States, Canada, South America and Australia. It was based on the skills required of the working vaqueros and later, cowboys, in what today is the western United States,...
-rider before returning to Edmonton
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
to begin working towards participating in the Klondike Gold Rush
Klondike Gold Rush
The Klondike Gold Rush, also called the Yukon Gold Rush, the Alaska Gold Rush and the Last Great Gold Rush, was an attempt by an estimated 100,000 people to travel to the Klondike region the Yukon in north-western Canada between 1897 and 1899 in the hope of successfully prospecting for gold...
in 1898. However, after a while, Monkman realised that his convoy would not make it and was the only one to turn back - he never heard from his colleagues again.
Career
Monkman was hired by Bredin and Cornwall to become the trading postTrading post
A trading post was a place or establishment in historic Northern America where the trading of goods took place. The preferred travel route to a trading post or between trading posts, was known as a trade route....
manager at the new Grande Prairie site near Lake Saskatoon and moved there with his wife Louisa. Here he became the first non-Hudson's Bay Company
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
trader in the region, and succeeded in cutting off Hudson's Bay Company furs from the region. This was the spot where Danezaa and Cree
Cree
The Cree are one of the largest groups of First Nations / Native Americans in North America, with 200,000 members living in Canada. In Canada, the major proportion of Cree live north and west of Lake Superior, in Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and the Northwest Territories, although...
Indians met to form their summer camps, and a village soon sprang up around the trading post with mission churches, a bank and a post office. By the early 1900s Monkman held property of his own near Flying Shot Lake and received various grains from the government, who was trying to stimulate agricultural production in the area by handing out seeds to settlers for free.
In 1922, while looking for tungsten
Tungsten
Tungsten , also known as wolfram , is a chemical element with the chemical symbol W and atomic number 74.A hard, rare metal under standard conditions when uncombined, tungsten is found naturally on Earth only in chemical compounds. It was identified as a new element in 1781, and first isolated as...
in the Rocky Mountains
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
, Monkman discovered a pass that would later be named in his honour. A problem the grain farmers in his region were facing at the time was how to transport their harvest to the seaport at Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
. Grain had to be transported by rail through Peace River
Peace River, Alberta
Peace River is a town in northwestern Alberta, Canada, situated along the banks of the Peace River, at its confluence with the Smoky River, the Heart River and Pat's Creek. It is located northwest of Edmonton, and northeast of Grande Prairie, along Highway 2. The Peace River townsite is nearly ...
, Edmonton
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
and Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
, a 1700-mile trip. Monkman's route cut 1000 miles off the total distance travelled, however the Yellowhead Pass
Yellowhead Pass
The Yellowhead Pass is a mountain pass across the Continental Divide of the Canadian Rockies. It is located on the border between the Canadian provinces of Alberta and British Columbia, and lies within Jasper National Park and Mount Robson Provincial Park....
was selected for a transport line through the mountains, even though engineers suggested that Monkman's pass was easier to traverse.
By 1936, very high freight costs had taken their toll on the farmers, and Monkman suggested that the farmers build a highway through the Monkman Pass
Monkman Pass
Monkman Pass, 1061 m , is a mountain pass in the Canadian Rockies, located southwest of the coal-mining town of Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia...
themselves to reduce freight costs. Thus a fundraising effort took hold; signs for the 'M.P.H.' (Monkman Pass Highway) littered the region and by 1937 the volunteers had passed the Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
-British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
border and reached Kinuseo Falls
Kinuseo Falls
Kinuseo Falls is a waterfall on the Murray River, which flows through the northern tip of Monkman Provincial Park in the Northern Rockies of British Columbia, Canada...
, building a fishing resort there. However, the war brought an end to Monkman's career - the highway project ended in 1939 and he died on September 26, 1941 back at Grande Prairie. His legacy now lives on in British Columbia's Monkman Provincial Park
Monkman Provincial Park
Monkman Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada south of the communities of Tumbler Ridge and Chetwynd, British Columbia and northeast of Prince George.-History:...
and Monkman Falls
Monkman Falls
Monkman Falls is a waterfall on Monkman Creek in the Northern Rockies of British Columbia, Canada. It is one of a series of ten waterfalls on Monkman Creek known as "the Cascades". It is named for Alexander Monkman, a fur trader then based in the Peace River Country who discovered Monkman Pass....
.