Fort Durham
Encyclopedia
Fort Durham, also known as Fort Taku, Taku, Taco, and Tacouw and in legal terms as AHRS Site JUN 036 is an archaeological site
near Taku Harbor, Alaska
, within the limits of Juneau City and Borough. It was one of three Hudson's Bay Company
(HBC) posts set up in Russian America.
In 1834 the HBC tried to establish a post on the Stikine River
, British rights to which had been one of the terms of the Russo-British Treaty of 1825. The effort was blocked, temporarily, by the Russians, resulting in high-level negotiations between the British and Russian governments. One result of these negotiations was the 1839 ten-year lease of what is today the Alaska Panhandle
. Under the terms of the agreement the HBC had the right to establish posts, hunt, and trade furs along the coast in exchange for furnishing the Russian American Company with food. The HBC took advantage immediately, sending James Douglas
north in the Beaver
in 1840. Douglas explored the Taku River
and built Fort Durham (or Taku) on the coast just south of the river's mouth. He also took possession of Redoubt San Dionisio
(Fort Saint Dionysius), which lay off the mouth of the Stikine River on Etolin Island
, near today's Wrangell, Alaska
(and renamed it Fort Stikine), which the Russians had agreed to transfer to the HBC under the 1839 lease agreement.
In 1841 the HBC governor George Simpson
ordered Fort Durham and other coastal posts closed, because the Beaver was able to conduct the coastal fur trade without the need for more than the single permanent post of Fort Simpson. The HBC closed operations at Fort Durham in 1843.
The Fort Durham Site was declared a U.S. National Historic Landmark
in 1978.
Archaeological site
An archaeological site is a place in which evidence of past activity is preserved , and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology and represents a part of the archaeological record.Beyond this, the definition and geographical extent of a 'site' can vary widely,...
near Taku Harbor, Alaska
Taku Harbor, Alaska
Taku Harbor is a small harbor located about 21 miles southeast of central Juneau, Alaska, United States. It is accessible only by air or sea; there are no roads connecting it to the rest of Alaska. It is notable for Fort Durham, a National Historic Landmark Hudson's Bay Company trading...
, within the limits of Juneau City and Borough. It was one of three 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...
(HBC) posts set up in Russian America.
In 1834 the HBC tried to establish a post on the Stikine River
Stikine River
The Stikine River is a river, historically also the Stickeen River, approximately 610 km long, in northwestern British Columbia in Canada and southeastern Alaska in the United States...
, British rights to which had been one of the terms of the Russo-British Treaty of 1825. The effort was blocked, temporarily, by the Russians, resulting in high-level negotiations between the British and Russian governments. One result of these negotiations was the 1839 ten-year lease of what is today the Alaska Panhandle
Alaska Panhandle
Southeast Alaska, sometimes referred to as the Alaska Panhandle, is the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Alaska, which lies west of the northern half of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The majority of Southeast Alaska's area is part of the Tongass National Forest, the United...
. Under the terms of the agreement the HBC had the right to establish posts, hunt, and trade furs along the coast in exchange for furnishing the Russian American Company with food. The HBC took advantage immediately, sending James Douglas
James Douglas (Governor)
Sir James Douglas KCB was a company fur-trader and a British colonial governor on Vancouver Island in northwestern North America, particularly in what is now British Columbia. Douglas worked for the North West Company, and later for the Hudson's Bay Company becoming a high-ranking company officer...
north in the Beaver
Beaver (steamship)
Beaver was the first steamship to operate in the Pacific Northwest of North America. She made remote parts of the west coast of Canada accessible for maritime fur trading and was chartered by the Royal Navy for surveying the coastline of British Columbia....
in 1840. Douglas explored the Taku River
Taku River
The Taku River is a river running from British Columbia, Canada, to the northwestern coast of North America, at Juneau, Alaska. Its mouth coincides with the Alaska-British Columbia border...
and built Fort Durham (or Taku) on the coast just south of the river's mouth. He also took possession of Redoubt San Dionisio
Fort Stikine
Fort Stikine was a fur trade post and fortification in what is now the Alaska Panhandle, at the site of the present-day of Wrangell, Alaska, United States...
(Fort Saint Dionysius), which lay off the mouth of the Stikine River on Etolin Island
Etolin Island
Etolin Island is an island in the Alexander Archipelago of southeastern Alaska, USA, at . It is between Prince of Wales Island, to its west, and the Alaska mainland, to its east. It is southwest of Wrangell Island. It was first charted in 1793 by James Johnstone, one of George Vancouver's...
, near today's Wrangell, Alaska
Wrangell, Alaska
Wrangell is a city and borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. At the 2000 census the population was 2,308.Its Tlingit name is Ḵaachx̱aana.áakʼw . The Tlingit people residing in the Wrangell area, who were there centuries before Europeans, call themselves the Shtaxʼhéen Ḵwáan after the nearby Stikine...
(and renamed it Fort Stikine), which the Russians had agreed to transfer to the HBC under the 1839 lease agreement.
In 1841 the HBC governor George Simpson
George Simpson (administrator)
Sir George Simpson was a Scots-Quebecer and employee of the Hudson's Bay Company . His title was Governor-in-Chief of Rupert's Land and administrator over the Northwest Territories and Columbia Department in British North America from 1821 to 1860.-Early years:George Simpson was born in Dingwall,...
ordered Fort Durham and other coastal posts closed, because the Beaver was able to conduct the coastal fur trade without the need for more than the single permanent post of Fort Simpson. The HBC closed operations at Fort Durham in 1843.
The Fort Durham Site was declared a U.S. National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 1978.