Lower Fort Garry
Encyclopedia
Lower Fort Garry was built in 1830 by the Hudson's Bay Company
on the western bank of the Red River
, 20 miles (32.2 km) north of the original Fort Garry
, which is now in Winnipeg
, Manitoba
, Canada
. Treaty 1
was signed there.
A devastating flood destroyed Fort Garry in 1826, prompting the company's then governor, George Simpson
, to search for a safer location down river. Governor Simpson chose the site of Lower Fort Garry because of its high ground and location below the St. Andrew's Rapids, eliminating a time-consuming portage of heavy fur packs and York boats
. However, the fort never became the administrative centre it was intended, since most of the population of the area was centred near The Forks
and objected to the extra travel required to do business at the new fort. As a result, Upper Fort Garry was rebuilt in stone at The Forks
, very near the original Fort Garry site.
The first buildings built at the fort in 1830 were the "fur loft", which housed the company store, small warehouse and trader's office, and the "Big House" (residence for the governor of the HBC or other high ranking officials). Later additions included a warehouse and a men's house. The fort's signature walls were completed in the 1840s, adding an icehouse, powder magazine, bakehouse, and warehouse bastions. These walls were non-military, intended only to make the fort appear more important and impressive to both local traders and visiting HBC officers. Many of the buildings were constructed with limestone
, which was easily obtained from nearby. The site also hosts excellent examples of Red River Frame
construction (Farm Manager's House) and Half-timbered construction (colombage pierroté) (Men's House and Big House Annex).
Although the Lower Fort did trade a small amount of furs, its main purpose was as a supply depot for the Red River settlement and the surrounding Cree
, Anishinaabe
, Métis
, and European (mostly Orkney Scot) populations. Many furs at the fort were brought from other districts, repackaged at the fort and sent to England
via York Factory. The post traded essential manufactured goods to the farmers and hunters for produce that was in turn used for provisioning company treks into the north. The fort became an industrial centre by the 1860s and included several buildings, such as a flour mill, sawmill, forge, and a brewery.
transferred the land that now comprises part of modern Manitoba. The treaty's intent was to ensure the peaceful settlement of the prairies by European immigrants, while providing First Nations people with land, access to resources and other necessities for their survival. Almost immediately after the treaty was established, the two parties disagreed on its meaning.
Indian Treaty No. 1, the precedent for the 10 subsequent numbered treaties in Western Canada, is commemorated by a Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada plaque outside the Visitor Reception Centre.
Every now and then there was a crisis that called for military action, and Lower Fort Garry was the obvious choice for a base of operations. In the 1840s, British troops (6th Regiment of the Foot) were sent to the fort when a dispute erupted with the United States over the boundary between the Oregon Territory
and what is now British Columbia
. However, some believe the request for troops was actually intended to intimidate local free traders (as trading with anyone other than the HBC was illegal). In either case, by the time the troops arrived (1846), the threat of invasion was long over. The troops (becoming a nuisance by causing minor disturbances) were put to work at the fort completing the construction of the walls. When the Red River Rebellion
broke out in 1870, Louis Riel
occupied Upper Fort Garry, and the Quebec Rifles took the lower fort. No wars or fights ever occurred at Lower Fort Garry as it was a peaceful settlement.
The fort has also been a penitentiary, a mental hospital (1885–1886), an HBC residence, and a golf course/motor country club (1911–1963). One of the mental hospital's most infamous residents was Honoré Jaxon
, Louis Riel's secretary who was found not guilty of treason by reason of insanity after the North-West Rebellion
.
's flagship national historic sites and was named one of the top 10 national historic sites in the country by Canada's History magazine. Between May and September, costumed interpreters recreate life at Lower Fort Garry in the early 1850s when Eden Colvile
was inland governor of the HBC and in residence at the fort. Original buildings and walls, hands on activities, as well as original-to-era furnishings enhance the visitor experience. The site also offers ghosts tours in October, and a Christmas program in December.
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...
on the western bank of the Red River
Red River of the North
The Red River is a North American river. Originating at the confluence of the Bois de Sioux and Otter Tail rivers in the United States, it flows northward through the Red River Valley and forms the border between the U.S. states of Minnesota and North Dakota before continuing into Manitoba, Canada...
, 20 miles (32.2 km) north of the original 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...
, which is now in Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
, Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
, 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...
. Treaty 1
Treaty 1
Treaty 1 is a controversial agreement established August 3, 1871 between Queen Victoria and various First Nations in South Eastern Manitoba including the Chippewa and Swampy Cree tribes.-History:...
was signed there.
A devastating flood destroyed Fort Garry in 1826, prompting the company's then 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,...
, to search for a safer location down river. Governor Simpson chose the site of Lower Fort Garry because of its high ground and location below the St. Andrew's Rapids, eliminating a time-consuming portage of heavy fur packs and York boats
York boat
The York boat was an inland boat used by the Hudson's Bay Company to carry furs and trade goods along inland waterways in Rupert's Land and the Columbia District. It was named after York Factory, the headquarters of the HBC, and modeled after Orkney Islands fishing boats...
. However, the fort never became the administrative centre it was intended, since most of the population of the area was centred near The Forks
The Forks
- Canada :*The Forks, Winnipeg, Manitoba, a district around the confluence of the Red River of the North and Assiniboine River*Saskatchewan River Forks, where the North Saskatchewan and South Saskatchewan rivers combine to form the Saskatchewan River...
and objected to the extra travel required to do business at the new fort. As a result, Upper Fort Garry was rebuilt in stone at The Forks
The Forks, Winnipeg, Manitoba
The Forks is a historic site and meeting place in Downtown Winnipeg located at the confluence of the Red River and Assiniboine River. For at least 6000 years, the Forks has been the meeting place for early Aboriginal peoples, and since colonization has also been a meeting place for European fur...
, very near the original Fort Garry site.
Store and supply depot
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
, which was easily obtained from nearby. The site also hosts excellent examples of Red River Frame
Red River Frame
Red River Frame or 'poteau sur sole' was a popular building construction technique used in the Red River Settlement in the 19th Century. The building style was characterized by a dressed timber structure with a horizontal log infill. The spaces between the logs were filled or 'chinked' with clay...
construction (Farm Manager's House) and Half-timbered construction (colombage pierroté) (Men's House and Big House Annex).
Although the Lower Fort did trade a small amount of furs, its main purpose was as a supply depot for the Red River settlement and the surrounding 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...
, Anishinaabe
Anishinaabe
Anishinaabe or Anishinabe—or more properly Anishinaabeg or Anishinabek, which is the plural form of the word—is the autonym often used by the Odawa, Ojibwe, and Algonquin peoples. They all speak closely related Anishinaabemowin/Anishinaabe languages, of the Algonquian language family.The meaning...
, Métis
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...
, and European (mostly Orkney Scot) populations. Many furs at the fort were brought from other districts, repackaged at the fort and sent to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
via York Factory. The post traded essential manufactured goods to the farmers and hunters for produce that was in turn used for provisioning company treks into the north. The fort became an industrial centre by the 1860s and included several buildings, such as a flour mill, sawmill, forge, and a brewery.
Treaty No. 1
On August 3, 1871, the first treaty in Western Canada was established between the federal government and seven chiefs of the Ojibway (Saulteaux) and Swampy Cree First Nations at Lower Fort Garry. Indian Treaty No. 1Treaty 1
Treaty 1 is a controversial agreement established August 3, 1871 between Queen Victoria and various First Nations in South Eastern Manitoba including the Chippewa and Swampy Cree tribes.-History:...
transferred the land that now comprises part of modern Manitoba. The treaty's intent was to ensure the peaceful settlement of the prairies by European immigrants, while providing First Nations people with land, access to resources and other necessities for their survival. Almost immediately after the treaty was established, the two parties disagreed on its meaning.
Indian Treaty No. 1, the precedent for the 10 subsequent numbered treaties in Western Canada, is commemorated by a Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada plaque outside the Visitor Reception Centre.
Every now and then there was a crisis that called for military action, and Lower Fort Garry was the obvious choice for a base of operations. In the 1840s, British troops (6th Regiment of the Foot) were sent to the fort when a dispute erupted with the United States over the boundary between the Oregon Territory
Oregon Territory
The Territory of Oregon was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from August 14, 1848, until February 14, 1859, when the southwestern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Oregon. Originally claimed by several countries , the region was...
and what is now 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...
. However, some believe the request for troops was actually intended to intimidate local free traders (as trading with anyone other than the HBC was illegal). In either case, by the time the troops arrived (1846), the threat of invasion was long over. The troops (becoming a nuisance by causing minor disturbances) were put to work at the fort completing the construction of the walls. When 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...
broke out in 1870, Louis Riel
Louis Riel
Louis David Riel was a Canadian politician, a founder of the province of Manitoba, and a political and spiritual leader of the Métis people of the Canadian prairies. He led two resistance movements against the Canadian government and its first post-Confederation Prime Minister, Sir John A....
occupied Upper Fort Garry, and the Quebec Rifles took the lower fort. No wars or fights ever occurred at Lower Fort Garry as it was a peaceful settlement.
Later uses
Training of North-West Mounted Police members took place at the fort in the winter of 1873–1874. Many of the North-West Mounted Police of 1873–74 had been there already during the rebellion in 1870, including Inspector James F. MacLeod, who had met his fiancée, Mary Drever, at Lower Fort Garry on the previous trip. The first contingent of Mounties arrived in Lower Fort Garry on October 22, 1873, and on November 3 they were sworn in and commenced training. The bitter winter was spent drilling and learning to ride. The parade ground was frozen as hard as concrete, and was pretty unforgiving when a recruit was unexpectedly pitched from his horse. By the following June they were caught up in preparations for the arrival of Commissioner G.A. French and the other divisions, and headed out to meet them at Fort Dufferin. The fort was turned over once again to the militia.The fort has also been a penitentiary, a mental hospital (1885–1886), an HBC residence, and a golf course/motor country club (1911–1963). One of the mental hospital's most infamous residents was Honoré Jaxon
Honoré Jackson
William Henry Jackson , also known as Honoré Jackson or Jaxon, was a leader of the North-West Rebellion in Canada in 1885....
, Louis Riel's secretary who was found not guilty of treason by reason of insanity after the North-West Rebellion
North-West Rebellion
The North-West Rebellion of 1885 was a brief and unsuccessful uprising by the Métis people of the District of Saskatchewan under Louis Riel against the Dominion of Canada...
.
Lower Fort Garry National Historic Site
The HBC owned the fort until 1951, when it was given to the federal government. The fort is now one of Parks CanadaParks Canada
Parks Canada , also known as the Parks Canada Agency , is an agency of the Government of Canada mandated to protect and present nationally significant natural and cultural heritage, and foster public understanding, appreciation, and enjoyment in ways that ensure their ecological and commemorative...
's flagship national historic sites and was named one of the top 10 national historic sites in the country by Canada's History magazine. Between May and September, costumed interpreters recreate life at Lower Fort Garry in the early 1850s when Eden Colvile
Eden Colvile
Eden Colvile was born in Langley, near Beckenham, Kent, England, son of Andrew Colvile and Mary Louisa Eden. His father was a merchant and member of the Hudson's Bay Company's Board of Governors. Colvile was educated at Eton and Trinity College, Cambridge...
was inland governor of the HBC and in residence at the fort. Original buildings and walls, hands on activities, as well as original-to-era furnishings enhance the visitor experience. The site also offers ghosts tours in October, and a Christmas program in December.