Sir George Simpson | |
|---|---|
 Picture taken byWilliam Notman in 1850. | |
| Governor-in-Chief of Rupert's Land | |
| In office 29 March 1821 – 7 September 1860 (1821-03-29 –1860-09-07)[a] | |
| Preceded by | William Williams |
| Succeeded by | William MacTavish |
| Charter | Hudson's Bay Company |
| Personal details | |
| Born | c. 1792[1] Dingwall,Ross-shire, Scotland |
| Died | (aged 68) |
| Resting place | Mount Royal Cemetery |
| Spouse | |
| Domestic partners |
|
| Children | 11 |
| Relatives | Thomas Simpson (nephew) |
| Awards | Knight Bachelor (1841) |
| Signature | .png) |
Sir George Simpson (c. 1792 – 7 September 1860) was a Scottish explorer businessman. He was thecolonial governor of theHudson's Bay Company (HBC) during the period of its greatest power. From 1820 to 1860, he was in practice, if not in law, the Britishviceroy for the whole ofRupert's Land, an enormous territory of 3.9 million square kilometres (1.5 million square miles) corresponding to nearly forty per cent of modern-dayCanada.[2][3]
His efficient administration of the west was a precondition for theconfederation of western and eastern Canada, which later created theDominion ofCanada. He was noted for his grasp of administrative detail and his physical stamina in traveling through the wilderness. Exceptingvoyageurs andtheir Siberian equivalents, few men have spent as much time travelling in the wilderness.
Simpson was also the first person known to have "circumnavigated" the world by land, and became the most powerful man of theNorth American fur trade during his lifetime.[4][5]
Born out of wedlock to a solicitor inDingwall, Scotland, Simpson was raised primarily by an aunt, and received a basic education at the local parish school. As a teenager, he was sent to apprentice as a clerk at an uncle's sugar brokerage in London, where he learned the intricacies of international trade, and demonstrated his clerical and managerial proficiency. He first came to the attention of the Hudson's Bay Company's management when his uncle's firm merged with that ofAndrew Colvile-Wedderburn, a member of the Hudson Bay Company's board of directors.
In 1820, despite his lack of experience in the North American fur trade, Simpson was appointed as the company's North American governor-in-chieflocum tenens. He was chosen as an outsider to replace the existing North American governor, William Williams, should he be arrested by theNorth West Company (NWC), with whom the HBC was in conflict. Simpson emigrated to North America that year, where he was placed in charge of the Athabasca Department. In 1821, upon the amalgamation of the HBC and NWC, he was appointed as the governor of the newly established Northern Department of the HBC, whose territory extended fromFort Albany to the Pacific coast. In 1826 he assumed authority over the Southern Department, making him the sole governor of the entirety of the Hudson's Bay Company's territory in North America.
His governorship was defined by the reorganization of the fur trade, a new focus on the Pacific coast, and his frequent cross-continental trips during which he would visit the forts within his domain. He made two trips to the Columbia River, in 1824 and 1827, and in 1841 made an overland journey around the world. He held the role of governor until his death in 1860.
George Simpson was bornc. 1792 inDingwall,Ross-Shire, Scotland.[b] He was theillegitimate son of George Simpson Sr., asolicitor from the nearby village ofAvoch, and was related by marriage toSir Alexander Mackenzie.[1][6] Simpson Jr.'s great-grandfather was the 2ndScottish Lord of Gruinard, George Mackenzie, grandson ofGeorge Mackenzie, 2nd Earl of Seaforth ofClan Mackenzie,[6] and descendant of LordDuncan Forbes of Culloden.[7] Having originally been sent to Dingwall for his legal apprenticeship, Simpson Sr. eventually served as a solicitor for the Sheriff's Court. In 1786, when his father Thomas Simpson died, Simpson Sr. was joined in Dingwall by his mother Isobel, and his younger siblings Jean, Mary, Geddes and Duncan.[8]
Simpson was primarily raised by his aunt Mary, who served as his foster mother particularly after his father left to work in the nearby town ofUllapool.[10][2] He received about eight or nine years of education at the parish school, where he was taught reading, writing,arithmetic and geography.[11] He studied alongside Æmelius Simpson, the illegitimate son of the schoolmaster Alexander Simpson, who would later also work for the Hudson's Bay Company.[12] Towards the end of his education, he tutoredDuncan Finlayson, who would remain a close friend.[13] In 1807, the schoolmaster Alexander Simpson married George's aunt Mary, and a year later she gave birth toThomas Simpson, George's first cousin, who he would later employ for the HBC.
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Unlike much of his family, George did not continue his education beyond the parochial level.[2] Rather than proceeding to a university education, he instead entered into the workforce. In about 1808, with the help of "assiduous entreaty" on behalf of his aunt Mary, George was given an apprenticeship in his uncle Geddes Mackenzie Simpson's sugarbrokerage inLondon, which imported sugar from theWest Indies.[15][16][17] He spent a dozen years at his uncle's brokerage, during which time gained experience with business administration and the intricacies of international trade.[18] During his time as a clerk, his work ethic and aptitude for the sugar trade won him the "favourable attention of the partners in his firm."[17] The exact nature of his work as a clerk is unknown, though as his biographer John S. Galbraith argued, he had clearly "risen to a position in the firm much more responsible than that of a mere book keeper" based on the attention he received by the partners.[19]
In 1812, his uncle's firm merged with that ofAndrew Colvile-Wedderburn, a fellow Scottish businessman who had inherited a sugar plantation inJamaica.[20] This partnership connected Simpson to the Hudson's Bay Company, as Wedderburn was on the company's Board of Governors alongside his brother-in-law,Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk.[21]
This was at the time of conflict between the HBC and theNorth West Company. Governor William Williams, who had been sent out in 1818, had arrested or captured several North West Company men. The Nor'Westers replied with a Quebec warrant for Williams' arrest. The London governors were unhappy with Williams' clumsy management and both companies were under British pressure to settle their differences. Thelocum tenens in Simpson's title meant that if Williams had been arrested, Simpson would take his place. In 1820, he joined the prominentBeaver Club.
He went by ship to New York, by boat and cart toMontreal and leftby the usual route forYork Factory onHudson Bay. He met Williams atRock Depot on theHayes River. Since Williams had not been arrested he was William's subordinate and was sent west toFort Wedderburn onLake Athabaska. There he spent the winter learning about, and reorganizing, the fur trade. On his return journey in 1821, he learned that the two companies had merged. This put an end to a ruinous and sometimes violent competition and converted the HBC monopoly into an informal government for western Canada. He escorted that year's furs to Rock Depot and returned upriver toNorway House for the first meeting of the merged companies. There he learned that he had been made governor of the Northern—that is, western—Department and Williams had been made his equal in the Southern Department south of Hudson Bay. In December 1821, the HBC monopoly was extended to the Pacific coast.
After the meeting he returned downstream to take up his duties at York Factory. In December 1821, he set out on snowshoes forCumberland House and then theRed River Colony. By July 1822, he was back at York Factory for the second meeting of the Northern Council, the first that he chaired. After the meeting he went by water toLac Île-à-la-Crosse and then by dog sled toFort Chipewyan andFort Resolution on theTıdeè Lake. He then went south toFort Dunvegan on thePeace River and thenFort Edmonton and after the thaw, back to York Factory.
In August 1824, he leftYork Factory for the Pacific, taking the unorthodoxNelson–Burntwood River route, and ascended theChurchill River andAthabasca Rivers toJasper House at the east side ofAthabasca Pass. He crossed the pass on horseback toBoat Encampment and then down theColumbia River, reaching its mouth on November 8 atFort George, previously namedFort Astoria. This 80-day journey was 20 days faster than the previous record. He moved the headquarters of theColumbia District toFort Vancouver, guessing that the south side of the river might fall to the Americans.[22]
He left in March 1825, and crossed the snow-covered Athabasca Pass. FromFort Assiniboine he went on horseback 80 miles (130 km) south toFort Edmonton on theNorth Saskatchewan River. He had ordered this new road laid out on his outward voyage. It was a major saving over the oldMethye Portage route. He went 500 miles (800 km) on horseback fromFort Carlton to the Red River settlements, and then by boat to York Factory. During this trip his servant, Tom Taylor, became separated on a hunting trip. After searching for half a day, Simpson left Taylor to his fate. Taylor reached the Swan River post after 14 days in the wilderness with no proper equipment.[23]
In 1825, he returned to Britain and learned that William Williams had retired, thereby adding the eastern area to his domain. Returning toMontreal, he went to the Red River settlements, Rock Depot for the annual meeting, the posts onJames Bay to inspect his new domain, and back to Montreal. In May 1828, he started his second trip to the Pacific along with his dog, mistress and personal piper, going first to York Factory and then using thePeace River route. This 5,000-mile (8,000 km) trip remains the longest North American canoe journey ever made in one season.[24]
He returned via Athabasca Pass toMoose Factory and Montreal and immediately went south to New York and took ship to Liverpool. After a brief courtship he married his first cousin,Frances Ramsay Simpson, in February 1830, and returned with his new wife to New York, Montreal,Michipicoten, Ontario, for the annual meeting, York Factory, and Red River. Here his wife gave birth to his first legitimate child, who soon died. In 1832,John Jacob Astor approached Gov. Simpson for talks to restrainliquor from the fur trade, and the two met in New York, but a binding agreement never ensued.[25]
In May 1833, he suffered a mild stroke. He and his wife returned to Scotland, where she remained for the next five years and gave birth to a baby girl. In the spring of 1834, he returned to Canada and attended the Southern Council at Moose Factory in May and the Northern Council at York Factory in June, inspected posts on theSaint Lawrence, and arrived back in England in October 1835.
In the summer of 1838, he went toSaint Petersburg to negotiate with BaronFerdinand von Wrangel of theRussian-American Company. The Russians recognized the HBC posts and the HBC agreed to supply the Russian posts. He then went to Montreal, Red River, Moose Factory, the Saint Lawrence posts, and down theHudson to New York, where he took ship to England. Simpson received the title ofKnight Bachelor fromQueen Victoria, giving him the non-hereditary title of Sir on 25 January 1841.
He left London in March 1841, and went by canoe toFort Garry (now the site ofWinnipeg). On this part of the trip he was accompanied byJames Alexander, 3rd Earl of Caledon, who left to hunt on the prairie and later published a journal. Travelling on horseback toFort Edmonton, Simpson caught up withJames Sinclair's wagon train of over 100 settlers heading for theOregon Country, a sign of what would soon destroy his fur trade empire. Instead of taking the usual route, he went to what is nowBanff, Alberta, made the first recorded passage ofthe pass named after him in August, and went down theKootenay River toFort Vancouver.
Guessing that the49th parallel border would be extended to the Pacific and considering the difficulties of theColumbia Bar, he proposed to move the HBC headquarters to what is nowVictoria, British Columbia, a suggestion that earned him the enmity ofJohn McLoughlin, who had done much to develop the Columbia district. Simpson took theBeaver north along the Pacific coast to the Russian post atSitka, and then another boat as far south asSanta Barbara, stopping at the HBC post ofYerba Buena.
At some point he metMariano Vallejo, aCalifornio statesman and general. He sailed to the HBC post in Hawaii (then known as theSandwich Islands) in February 1842, and back to Sitka, where he took a Russian ship toOkhotsk in June. He went on horseback toYakutsk, up theLena River by horse-drawn boat, visitedLake Baikal, went by horse and later carriage to Saint Petersburg and reached London by ship at the end of October. This trip was documented in his book,An overland journey round the world.[26]
During his visit to Hawaii, he met with KingKamehameha III and his advisers.[2] Simpson, along withTimoteo Haʻalilio andWilliam Richards were commissioned as jointMinisters Plenipotentiary on 8 April 1842. Simpson, shortly thereafter, left for England, via Alaska andSiberia, while Haʻalilio and Richards departed for the United States, via Mexico, on 8 July. The Hawaiian delegation, while in the United States, secured the assurance of PresidentJohn Tyler of its recognition of Hawaiian independence on 19 December, and then proceeded to meet Simpson in Europe and secure formal recognition by Great Britain and France. He was instrumental in arranging conferences between Hawaiian representatives and the British Foreign Office which resulted in a British commitment to recognize the independence of the islands.[2] On 17 March 1843, KingLouis Philippe I of France recognized Hawaiian independence at the urging ofKing Leopold I of Belgium, and on 1 April,Lord Aberdeen on behalf of Queen Victoria, assured the Hawaiian delegation that: "Her Majesty's Government was willing and had determined to recognize the independence of the Sandwich Islands under their present sovereign."
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By then, Simpson and his wife had a large house on theLachine Canal across from the depot from which the fur brigades started west.[2] He also owned other estates such as a Manor inCoteau-du-Lac that he sold to theComte de Beaujeu andAdélaïde de Gaspé, and another estate inDorval where he received and entertained PrinceEdward VII, of theHouse of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.[28][29] The Manor's estate included theFur Trade Depot, and was later sold to SenatorLawrence Alexander Wilson and Lt. Col. W. A. Grant of theRoyal Regiment of Canadian Artillery.[27][28][30] LordDonald Smith ofKnebworth House,Co-Premier of CanadaSir Francis Hincks, and other leading members of Montreal's society would attend Simpson's banquets.[31][32][2]
He began investing in banks, railroads, ships, mines and canals.[33] He became a board director and shareholder of Canada’s first bank, theBank of Montreal, as well as of theBank of British North America, theMontreal and Lachine Railroad, theChamplain and St. Lawrence Railroad, theSt. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad, theGrand Trunk Railway, and theMontreal Ocean Steamship Company.[5][34][35][2]
His business partners included Canada's richest manSir Hugh Allan,Sir John Rose,Sir Alexander Mackenzie, PresidentDavid Torrance, ministerLuther H. Holton, SenatorGeorge Crawford, SenatorThomas Ryan, bankerJohn Redpath, and bankersJohn Molson andWilliam Molson.[36][2][37]
With GovernorDrummond,Sir Antoine-Aimé Dorion, andJohn Young, they founded the Transmundane Telegraph Company, but the venture later failed.[38][39] In the spring of 1845, he went toWashington, D.C., to discuss the Oregon boundary with the Americans, which he had already done withSir Robert Peel. In 1846, theOregon Treaty established the current border. His wife contractedtuberculosis in 1846 and died in 1853.
In 1854, he was able to travel by rail toChicago before he boarded his voyageur canoe atSault Ste. Marie. In 1855, he was in Washington, D.C., and discussed Oregon affairs, and in 1857, defended the HBC monopoly in London. In May 1860, he went by rail toSaint Paul, Minnesota; decided that his health would not bear the trip to Red River; and returned to Lachine.
In August 1860, he entertained thePrince of Wales at Lachine, who came for the inauguration ofVictoria Bridge, in honour of his motherQueen Victoria. Simpson builtPrince of Wales Terrace in his honour. The building, made of a limestone facade in the ClassicalGreek style, consisted of a row of nine luxurious houses, and was inhabited by SirWilliam Christopher Macdonald andMcgill University's PrincipalWilliam Peterson.[40] It was later demolished to make room forSamuel Bronfman's pavilion, which was seen byAlcan CEODavid Culver as an unforgivable act of vandalism.[40][41]
A street was named in his honor, called Simpson Street, next to Parc Percy-Walters, McGregor Street, andMaison John-Wilson-McConnell.[42] The park was previously occupied by one of his houses, and was part of his 15 acre estate onMount Royal.[2] It was then occupied by Rosemount House, which was built on the land of Governor Simpson and was the home ofSir John Rose, 1st Baronet, and laterWilliam Watson Ogilvie. Galt House was also built on Simpson Street by Canadian Founding FatherSir Alexander Tilloch Galt. The entrance of Simpson Street is now occupied bySir George Simpson Tower.
Both Simpson Street and Prince of Wales Terrace were in theGolden Square Mile, a neighbourhood ofDowntown Montreal where nearly 3/4 of all the wealth in Canada was held by its inhabitants.[43] During that era, most Canadian enterprises were either owned or controlled by approximately fifty men.[44] As the most important man in theNorth American fur trade, he was one of them.[5]
Shortly after the Princes of Wales's visit, Governor Simpson suffered a massive stroke and died six days later in Lachine. At his death in 1860, he left an estate worth over £100,000, which in relation to GDP, amounted to half a billion dollars in 2023 Canadian money.[2][45] The amount is also very similar toHarlaxton Manor's building cost.[46] Simpson also gave money to the general endowment ofMcGill University in 1856, along withPeter McGill andPeter Redpath, among others.[47]
James Raffan, author ofEmperor of the North, was of the view that Simpson should be counted among Canada’sfounding fathers for his role as Governor-in-chief ofRupert's Land, and its latermerger in 1867 to form theDominion ofCanada.[48] Rupert's Land territory was Canada's largest land acquisition to form modernCanada, and included land inQuebec,Ontario,Manitoba,Saskatchewan,Alberta, theNorthwest Territories,Nunavut,Montana,Minnesota, andNorth andSouth Dakota.[49] In newspapers and books, he has been referred as theKing of the Fur-trade, theEmperor of the North, theEmperor of the Plains, theEmperor of Lachine, theBirch-bark Emperor, and theLittle Emperor.[50][51][48]
Simpson also had a passion forNapoleon, and was living during his lifetime. It was one of the passions of his life, collecting writing relating to his hero, covering his walls with Napoleonic prints atLachine Depot,Norway House andFort Garry, and infecting the factors and fur traders of theHudson's Bay Company with them.[52]
Simpson sired at least eleven children by at least seven women, only one of whom was his wife.[53]
During his years in London, he fathered two daughters, born to two separate women. Maria-Louisa, born 1815 to a mother named Maria, and Isabella, born 1817 to an unknown mother. Once Simpson left for Rupert's Land, both daughters were sent to Scotland to be cared for by his relatives.[54]
Sometime during his first year in Rupert's Land, in about 1821, he met and began a relationship with Elizabeth "Betsey" Sinclair, aMétiswasherwoman, who he likely met at Fort Wedderburn.[55] He fathered one child with her, a daughter named Maria, who died at age 16 when she drowned while travelling to the Columbia District.[56] Simpson ended their relationship when he began his 1822 trip westward, regarding her as an "unnecessary & expensive appendage" who was of little use to him while he was away travelling.[57]
James Keith Simpson (1823–1901) is poorly documented. Ann Simpson, born in Montreal in 1828, is known only from her baptismal record. Simpson fathered two sons, George Stewart (1827) and John Mackenzie (1829), with Margaret (Marguerite) Taylor.[58] George married Isabella Yale (1840–1927), daughter of fur traderJames Murray Yale, of theYale family.[59][58] George was also the brother-in-law of Eliza Yale, wife of Capt.Henry Newsham Peers, grandson ofCount Julianus Petrus de Linnée.
Soon after the birth of John Mackenzie, Simpson left Margaret tomarry his cousin. Simpson shocked his peers by neglecting to notify Margaret of his marriage or make any arrangements for the future of his two sons.[60]
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
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