On October 17, 1864, W. J. Christie, Chief Factor at Fort Edmonton, informed the Officer in Charge at Fort Garry that he had established two new posts in the district of the Upper Saskatchewan.140 He further commented that opposition from free traders had prompted his decision and that a large quantity of furs had already been secured from the local Indians. The posts he referred to were Turtle Lake and Fort Victoria.

Why the site of the Victoria Methodist mission was chosen for a Hudson's Bay Company trading post is a question lacking a definitive answer. The Hudson's Bay Company post journals have not survived and the correspondence of the missionaries present at the time are singularly devoid of references to the post's establishment. However, several explanations do present themselves other than the presence of the free traders. Firstly, the site was known to be frequented by several hundred Cree Indians. The McDougall missionaries had been moderately successful in their efforts to educate and Christianize the natives, and whole bands were known to camp near the mission for weeks on end. In the spring of 1863, John McDougall noted that ". . . for several weeks we had hundreds of lodges beside us." 141 Secondly, the site was on the banks of the North Saskatchewan River, at that time one of the most important transportation arteries in the northwest. York boats could easily land on the gently sloping river banks. 142 And finally, the route between Fort Edmonton and Fort Victoria was already serviced by a passable cart trail. Middling though this path may have been, it provided in alternative route to the northeast when the river proved impassable.143

Once the decision had been taken to establish the post at Victoria, Christie took immediate steps to make it operational. He appears to have visited the site as early as September 1864, 14  4 and presumably it was he who selected the exact location for the proposed new buildings. At this time, Christie also offered the charge of the station to John 

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McDougall, the Methodist missionary. On the insistence of his father, however, he was forced to decline, and Mr. George Flett was subsequently sent to put up the buildings and open trade with the natives. 145 Flett was also on site as early as September 1864, and from the entries which appear in the Fort Edmonton Journal, he appears to have been well provisioned and trading actively at the time. 146 In mid-October his trading stock was replenished, 147 and by November it was reported that he had secured thirty-nine prime marten pelts from the local Cree Indians. 148 Considering the brevity of the 1864 trading season, accomplishments such as this are well worth noting. IN fact, the 1864 Statement of Returns shows that trade at Fort Victoria represented four percent of the total registered for the Saskatchewan district as a whole. The valuation of fur returns for Victoria amounted to #3,928, that for the district #94,325. 149

The 1864 fur returns for Fort Victoria were not so much an immediate confirmation of Christie's decision as an indication of things to come. The Hudson's Bay Company fort, while relatively small and of district importance only, furnished the Edmonton depot with a steady supply of furs, usually of high quality. As a percentage of the district regurns, Victoria's contribution generally hovered around four to five percent range. And as long as the fur-bearing animals remained, so too did the post.

Figures available for the first period of occupation (1864 - 1883) show that Fort Victoria did indeed advance economically. The fur returns for 1865 reveal that total income amounted to $1880. 150 In 1866 it had increased to $4660, and the following year it had almost doubled again to $8040. The latter year appears to have been one of the most lucrative. The Hudson's Bay Company officials had obviously benefited from a bountiful supply of buffalo and a winter which was conducive to trapping. The fur returns declined noticeably in 1868, and presumably continued to decline until the effects of the 1870 smallpox epidemic had abated. In 1874 the income from trade amounted to $5726; in 1875, $5803; and in 1877, #3419. Statistics indicate a remarkable strengthening of trade in 1878, $11,150, but by 1882, the last year for which figures are available prior to the fort's closure in 1883, it had once again returned to normal, $4577 (see Table 9).

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The impetus of the fur trade, while profitable from the point of view of the Hudson's Bay Company, was not without its problematic aspects. Supplying Fort Victoria with the wares of the trade was not a simple task and the surviving correspondence from the post are replete with references noting shortage sof flour, sugar, gunpowder, men, etc. Day to day life at the fort was a constant struggle to meet the increasing demands of both natives and local settlers with a fluctuating supply of merchandise. IT is a fine reflection on the ability and dedication of the clerks stationed at the post that, in spite of these difficulties, they persevered and ran an efficient and relatively prosperous operation.

Not unexpectedly, trade with the local Indians accounted for nearly one hundred percent of Victoria's revenue. As was noted in period journals, buffalo robes, buffalo tongues, and dried meat were the principal items of trade, and George Flett and Philip Tait (originally Flett's assistant but by 1866 a Clerk in his own right) were constantly organizing horse and dog trains to bring these goods up to Fort Edmonton. In 1865 alone, it was noted that at least 525 tongues were shipped to Edmonton, along with 650 pounds of dried meat. 151 If weather permitted, the returning supplies were shipped by boat, although even this relatively fast method of provisioning the post did not always ensure an adequate supply of goods. In mid-August 1865, it was noted that Fort Victoria was "rather scarce of provisions." 153 It was the beginning of September before the situation was rectified.

After Clerk George Flett retired in the spring of 1866, 154 the operation at Fort Victoria appears to have taken on a new vitality. Not only did the pace of construction accelerate, but so too did the volume of trade. The fur returns for 1866/1867 have already been noted, and to assist Clerk Philip Tait, with his now more arduous duties, Christie, in April 1866, authorized the hiring of two men at $110 per man per year. 155 Accordingly, in October of the same year, "young and smart and willing" 156 Robert Logan was despatched to Victoria as Tait's assistant.  Logan's appointment as Assistant Clerk was likely a response to the increasing number of freemen trading in the vicinity of Fort Victoria.

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In July 1866, a H.B.C. servant in Edmonton noted that 1729 pounds of dried meat and one hundred pounds of common pemmican had been bartered from the local Indians. He commented further that the take was supplemented by seven buffalo hides, one leather tent, and four cart covers. 157 This flurry of activity, however, appears to have been short lived. In May 1876, the Fort Edmonton Journal recorded a major reduction in the quantity of dried meat purchased, and in October, W. J. Christie remarked that while the number of free traders had not declined, their propensity to sell had definitely done so. 158

From 1868 to 1874, the fur trade at Fort Victoria was built up slowly and laboriously. From a scant sampling of historical documents, one finds that a shortage of adequate provisions was the most common difficulty with which the clerks had to contend although the free traders and the occasional band of Blackfoot Indians were equally troublesome. David McDougall, second son of Reverend George McDougall, was perhaps the most famous free trader of this period, and officials in Edmonton regularly remarked on his numerous trips to and from Victoria and the Woodville mission at Pigeon Lake. Fortunately, the most serious incident regarding the Blackfoot was their illegal seizure of all the horses in the Victoria settlement. On Friday, July 1, 1870, thirteen horses were stolen, six of which belonged to the H.B.C. 159 As if to underline their plight, the clerks at Fort Victoria were also prone to point out the failings of their immediate predecessors. Usually this was done to account for depleted or missing stock, and seldom did they purposely denigrate the character of their colleagues. 160

The stock on hand at Fort Victoria was normally of a utilitarian nature. Axes, matches, traps, blankets, etc., constituted the bulk of the hardware items, while tea, sugar, flour, coffee and tobacco accounted for the majority of the staple products. 161 And in return for such items, the natives brought in an immense array of furs, ranging from mink to muskrat. The "List of Trade on hand at Victoria", dated February 9, 1872, bears examination. 162

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(Table 4 missing)

Suggestive of a relatively prosperous trading year, the above data also denotes the furs which Fort Victoria was most reliant upon, namely, buffalo, beaver and muskrat (also referred to as rats or musquash). This information compares favourably with the "Comparative List of Furs" for 1873 and 1874 (see Table 5). 163

If the Company prospered during these years, it should also be noted that this was by and large at the expense of its native customers. While admitting that the quality of the goods supplied to the Indians was not lacking, the remuneration afforded them for their furs was usually out of all proportion to the market value of the skins in England. Fort Victoria, of course, was not unique in this respect, for the very same exploitative policy applied to all Hudson's Bay Company territory. Table 6 affords a comparison between the buying and selling prices of the most common articles in which the Company dealt. The table was originally introduced with the statement "... that 33 1/2 percent on the prime cost of the goods is considered by the Company to cover the expenses of freight, carriage, etc., to the country." 164

(chart on page 70 not yet scanned)

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Although the fur returns for 1873 were not inordinately out of line with the partial listings for 1872, it was nevertheless decided at the Council meeting of the Northern Department of Rupert's Land that Chief Factor Richard Hardisty would report on the advisability of suspending operations at Fort Victoria in consequence of what was termed "the falling off of the trade." He was further authorized, if he thought it necessary, to reduce the administrative staff of the post to one man and assign Clerk John Bunn for service at the proposed fort at Bow River. 165 Unfortunately, correspondence from Fort Victoria during this period is the extremely scarce, and of that which is available, there is no mention of the post's closure. The servants at Victoria appear to have continued with their routine existence oblivious to the machinations at Carlton. The mending the grist mill, tended their barley fields, repaired the cart road to Edmonton, etc. 166 And as far as trade was concerned, a slight increase was noted in November 1874. 167 The only immediate concession Hardisty appears to have made to the Council was the transfer (not, however, the reduction) of personnel. In October 1874, Clerk Charles Adams was assigned to replace John Bunn.

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Chief Factor Hardisty's official report to Commissioner James A. Grahame, dated Edmonton, June 8, 1875, advised against closure of Fort Victoria. The Chief Factor argued that, as the Whitefish Lake Indians pass back and forth to the plains at Victoria, a good quantity of furs would be lost to that Company if the post were to be abandoned altogether. He commented further that: 168

A careful man can be left in charge of the place with a small supply of goods and without much expense, a quantity of furs can be collected from the people who hunt in that neighbourhood...

His advice was needed. Fort Victoria was to remain open for another eight years.

(Table 7 and 8 not yet scanned in)

With the possible exception of 1878, the income generated from Victoria

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prior to 1883, did not seem to justify Commissioner Grahame's reprieve. Competition from free traders, specifically John Alexander McDougall and company, 169 and the Hudson's Bay Company Clerk at Lac la Biche, one William E. Traill, 170 was the most immediate problem with which the officials at the post had to contend, but they were merely symptomatic of the more significant phenomena of the gradual disappearance of fur-bearing animals and the growing tendency on the part of a number of natives to rely on the government for their livelihood. That lack of fur-bearing animals "...discouraged the better class of hunters from exerting themselves to any great extent.." was evident to Hardisty as early as June 1879. 171 Starvation and a drastic decline in trade were the unfortunate results which he also foresaw. By June 1882, the situation at Fort Victoria had become so bleak that the Chief Factor succumbed to much stronger language:

I hardly know what to say in favour of this post. The Indians surrounding it, are making an attempt to settle on their farms, and live by them, but this they fail to do and trust to the Government to feed them, and I fear they are only getting into lazy and indolent habits and I consider the place, as regards the fur trade from them, is not worth keeping up.

The end finally came in June 1883. In a report dated the 19th, Hardisty informed Grahame that the post had been closed and that the buildings were now under the care of Mr. James Pruden, formerly of Lac la Biche. The latter was to occupy part of the buildings and take good care of the others for a term of one year. Any furs were to be sold to the Company at "market rates." 173

From 1883 to 1887, Fort Victoria was inoperative. Presumably, Pruden saw to it that the buildings were adequately maintained, although, since he was somewhat tardy in assuming his responsibilities, it is not certain that such indeed was the case. He was also the cause of considerable disquiet in the settlement when he attempted to graze his diseased cattle from Lac la Biche. Not unexpectedly, the settlers were insistent that he keep the animals away from healthy livestock. 174 Pruden's stay at Victoria was predictably short. In the spring of 1884 he moved to Beaver Lake. 175

What became of the buildings after Pruden's departure is not known. From scattered secondary sources, however, it appears that by 1885 the

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for was in a rather poor state of repair. In his booklet, The Alberta Field Force of '85, Colonel F. C. Jamieson noted that at the time of the rebellion the stockade was badly in need of mending and the fort in a general state of defencelessness. A Home Guard enrolled under the command of Reverend A. McLachlan, the Methodist missionary, was later charged with making the necessary repairs. 176 It was noted at the time that a breach in the palisade was mended and another bastion erected. 177

Free traders also reappeared as a result of the Hudson's Bay Company's absence. John A. McDougall, through his many agents, was actively trading in the area in 1884, 178 and it was noted in January 1887 that G. F. Tupper had opened a trading outfit in Edward McGillivray's old home. 179 How profitable were these undertakings is not altogether clear, although it was noted in the Saskatchewan Herald in February 1887 that "The fur trade [was] at a standstill." 180 The Indians were said to be taking advantage of the fine weather to hunt rather than trap. The free traders were also not completely free of competitions from the H.B.C., for the Company occasionally sent out trading expeditions from Fort Edmonton. The cart brigades normally consisted of six carts, and their stay at Victoria amounted to perhaps two or three days. 181

From a letter written by Harrison S. Young, Clerk at Edmonton, to Trade Commissioner Joseph Wrigley in Winnipeg, on October 5, 1887, we learn that Fort Victoria was reopened for outfit 1887 as an outpost of Lac la Biche. 182 It was also reported that Clerk William R. Brereton oversaw the operation and that all the supplies were shipped from Edmonton. 183 There is virtually no information as to the outpost's monetary dealings during this period, although the rapid turnover in staff would indicate a less than adequate showing on the balance sheets. During the first twelve months of operation, there were no less than three clerks stationed at Fort Victoria: William R. Brereton, May 1887 to April 1888; Thomas Edmunson, April 1888 to May 1888; and Francis David Wilson whose term began in May 1888. 184

Wilson's description of Fort Victoria at the opening of Outfit 1889 is the most detailed available for the post '87 period. As was mentioned previously, he prefaced his report by stating that the fort had been abandoned for some years and consequently the buildings were in a rather poor state of repair: 185

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The abandonment of the post has also had its effect on the trade, the Indians having formed business connections with the traders which it has been my earnest endeavour to break off. I am happy to say that in this direction I have met the greater success than I anticipated and the feeling of the Indian and half-breed towards the company is as good now as in the old days when Victoria was a more important post. In my opinion the commercial business of the post will never be of much importance, as so much of the land in the neighborhood is unfit for settlement. The settlers are entirely half breed although they live nominally by farming they really produce very little and depend upon their cattle and what little they can earn by freighting or otherwise for sustainence...

From further remarks in the letter, it is evident that by this time Fort Victoria was once again upgraded to a post in its own right, with outposts at Whitefish Lake and Saddle Lake.

What stands out in Wilson's account of the Victoria trade is the honest admission that it would never amount to much. He undoubtedly based the prediction on the fur returns for 1887 and 1888, both of which had apparently shown a considerable decline from the pre '83 era. His doubts, of course, were shared by many others, including the Commissioner of the H.B.C., J. Wrigley. As early as September 1888, Wrigley noted the heavy losses at the post, although he conceded that it was probably due to "great mismanagement" and agreed that it would be advisable to await the results of another outfit. 186

Changing the personnel, however, did not produce the anticipated increase in trade. Losses continued to mount. In 1888 they equaled eight hundred dollars while by 1890 they had climbed to over one thousand dollars. 187 Having presumably come to the realization that personnel was not the sole problem facing Fort Victoria, the powers that be within the Hudson's Bay Company once again raised the question of abandoning the post. The option was bandied about during the summer of 1891, but it was given yet a second reprieve. On August 5, 1891, Factor T. Livock of Edmonton advised against the proposal as "Opposition traders would certainly then establish themselves there." 188

The threat posed by the free traders during the 1890s remains a moot point in the history of Fort Victoria. Indications are that they were moderately successful at best, and at no time presented a serious threat to the H.B.C.'s dominance in northeastern Alberta. Louis Thompson was the most well-known trader at this time, and he was certainly

(picture occupying page 77 has not yet been scanned.)

(start of page 78. Table 9 not scanned.)

far from wealthy. The ineffectiveness of the free traders aside, however, the fur returns for Fort Victoria declined steadily from 1891 onwards. By 1897, the Company had had enough. As "...it did not seem possible to collect sufficient Fur to produce a profitable result", 189 it was decided to close the post permanently. Sometimes between June 1, 1897 and May 31, 1898, its doors were shut for the last time.

At the beginning of the three decades covered in this chapter, the fur resources of the northeastern Alberta were still plentiful. The Hudson's Bay Company, not unmindful of this fact, was convinced that it should be the beneficiary of this salutary state of affairs. Thus, Fort Victoria, was established. From 1864 to 1874, the Company's expectations seem to have been met. The fur returns suggest a reasonable return on its investment, and the presence of loyal and dedicated employees served only to strengthen the post's position vis-a-vis its rivals. By 1883, however, the nature of things had changed considerably. Opposition from free traders had increased, but more importantly, the fur-bearing animals were disappearing from the territory and the natives were becoming accustomed to a more sedentary way of life. Fort Victoria's record during

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its second period of occupation was, to say the least, unimpressive. But how could it have been otherwise? The trend towards agriculture which was barely noticeable in '83, had by the mid-1890s become predominant. The era of the canoe, of the York boat, and of the fur trade had come to an end.

(Table 10, occupying page 80, not yet scanned)

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