Alexander Mackenzie

In the year of 1764, Sir Alexander Mackenzie was born at the Luskentyre House
in Stornoway on the Isle of Lewis. He was the third of the four children born to Kenneth
'Corc' Mackenzie and Isabella MacIver. After his mother had died in Scotland, he sailed
to New York with his father to visit his uncle, John Mackenzie around the year, 1774.
The North West Company was formed during the year 1783. The company was formed
by fur traders from Montreal. However, after the French lost New France to Britain,
during the Seven Years War, they didnt have anyone to work for. The Hudson Bay
Company also worked with fur, therefore rivaling with the North West Company. With
the command of the North West Company, Alexander Mackenzie travelled to Lake
Athabasca, during 1788. He became one of the founders of Fort Chipewyan. He then set
out by canoe on the Mackenzie River, he was hoping to find the Northwest Passage,
which he did not. The river was named after him, in his honor. On May 1793 Mackenzie
followed the route of the Peace River. He crossed the Great Divide and found the upper
reaches of the Fraser River. The local natives informed him that the Fraser Canyon to the
south was unreachable and populated by belligerent tribes. He then decided to follow a
grease trail by ascending the West Road River, crossing over the Coast Mountains and
descending the Bella Coola River to the sea. He followed this advice and reached the
Pacific coast at Bella Coola, British Columbia. His exploration time was from 1789 to
1793. The technology used, was the canoe and help from the natives.