Archibald McDonald
Encyclopedia
Archibald McDonald was Chief Trader for the Hudson's Bay Company
at Fort Langley
, Fort Nisqually
and Fort Colville
and one-time deputy governor of the Red River Settlement.
, in Appin
, then located in the county of Argyll
, Scotland
. His paternal grandfather, Iain (or John) McDonald, had been one of the few male survivors of the Massacre of Glencoe
.
, and joined the Red River Colony
, in part because he could act as an interpreter between the overseers of the colony, who spoke English, and the settlers, who, like him, were native Gaelic
-speakers. He arrived on the Red River
in 1813 with a group of Selkirk's colonists, and was made deputy governor under Miles Macdonell
. In 1820, he joined the HBC, and after the merger with the North West Company
in 1821, was sent out to the Columbia River
.
travelled together from York Factory to the Columbia. In the same year, he was promoted to chief trader and put in charge of Fort Langley, near the modern city of Vancouver. He held that post until 1833, when he was reassigned to Fort Nisqually. In 1835, he was assigned to Fort Colville, where he was chief trader from 1833 to 1841, and chief factor until 1844.
In 1848, he retired to St. Andrew's East
, Canada East
, on a homestead he named "Glencoe House" after his birthplace. It was here that he died in 1853.
of the Chinook
Confederacy, but she died giving birth to their son, Ranald
. In 1825, Archibald remarried, to Jane Klyne, a daughter of Michel Klyne
, French Canadian
postmaster at Jasper House
, and Suzanne Lafrance, of a prominent Métis
family. They had thirteen children, and remained together until Archibald's death.
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...
at Fort Langley
Fort Langley National Historic Site
Fort Langley is a former trading post of the Hudson's Bay Company, now located in the village of Fort Langley, British Columbia. Commonly referred to as "the birthplace of British Columbia", it is designated a National Historic Site of Canada and administered by Parks Canada.-A new fort:After John...
, Fort Nisqually
Fort Nisqually
Fort Nisqually was an important fur trading and farming post of the Hudson's Bay Company in the Puget Sound area of what is now DuPont, Washington and was part of the Hudson's Bay Company's Columbia Department. Today it is a living history museum located in Tacoma, Washington, USA, within the...
and Fort Colville
Fort Colville
The trade center Fort Colville was built by the Hudson's Bay Company at Kettle Falls on the Columbia River, a few miles west of the present site of Colville, Washington in 1825, to replace Spokane House as a regional trading center, as the latter was deemed to be too far from the Columbia River...
and one-time deputy governor of the Red River Settlement.
Early life
McDonald was born in Leechkentium , to parents Angus and Mary (née Rankin), on the south shore of Loch LevenLoch Leven (Highlands)
Loch Leven 'is a sea loch on the west coast of Scotland. It is spelled Loch Lyon in Timothy Pont's map of the areaand is pronounced Li' un. There is a Leven in Lennox and another in Glen Lyon similarly pronounced...
, in Appin
Appin
Appin is a remote coastal district of the Scottish West Highlands bounded west by Loch Linnhe, south by Loch Creran, east by the districts of Benderloch and Lorne, and north by Loch Leven...
, then located in the county of Argyll
Argyll
Argyll , archaically Argyle , is a region of western Scotland corresponding with most of the part of ancient Dál Riata that was located on the island of Great Britain, and in a historical context can be used to mean the entire western coast between the Mull of Kintyre and Cape Wrath...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. His paternal grandfather, Iain (or John) McDonald, had been one of the few male survivors of the Massacre of Glencoe
Massacre of Glencoe
Early in the morning of 13 February 1692, in the aftermath of the Glorious Revolution and the Jacobite uprising of 1689 led by John Graham of Claverhouse, an infamous massacre took place in Glen Coe, in the Highlands of Scotland. This incident is referred to as the Massacre of Glencoe, or in...
.
The Red River Colony
As a young man, McDonald became friends with Lord SelkirkThomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk
Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk was a Scottish peer. He was born at Saint Mary's Isle, Kirkcudbrightshire, Scotland. He was noteworthy as a Scottish philanthropist who sponsored immigrant settlements in Canada at the Red River Colony.- Early background :Douglas was the seventh son of Dunbar...
, and joined the Red River Colony
Red River Colony
The Red River Colony was a colonization project set up by Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk in 1811 on of land granted to him by the Hudson's Bay Company under what is referred to as the Selkirk Concession. The colony along the Red River of the North was never very successful...
, in part because he could act as an interpreter between the overseers of the colony, who spoke English, and the settlers, who, like him, were native Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic language
Scottish Gaelic is a Celtic language native to Scotland. A member of the Goidelic branch of the Celtic languages, Scottish Gaelic, like Modern Irish and Manx, developed out of Middle Irish, and thus descends ultimately from Primitive Irish....
-speakers. He arrived on 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...
in 1813 with a group of Selkirk's colonists, and was made deputy governor under Miles Macdonell
Miles Macdonell
Miles MacDonell was the first governor of the Red River Colony , a 19th-century Scottish settlement located in present-day Manitoba and North Dakota.He was born in Inverness, Scotland, around 1767...
. In 1820, he joined the HBC, and after the merger with the North West Company
North West Company
The North West Company was a fur trading business headquartered in Montreal from 1779 to 1821. It competed with increasing success against the Hudson's Bay Company in what was to become Western Canada...
in 1821, was sent out to the Columbia River
Columbia River
The Columbia River is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, Canada, flows northwest and then south into the U.S. state of Washington, then turns west to form most of the border between Washington and the state...
.
Hudson's Bay Company
In 1828, he and Governor George SimpsonGeorge 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,...
travelled together from York Factory to the Columbia. In the same year, he was promoted to chief trader and put in charge of Fort Langley, near the modern city of Vancouver. He held that post until 1833, when he was reassigned to Fort Nisqually. In 1835, he was assigned to Fort Colville, where he was chief trader from 1833 to 1841, and chief factor until 1844.
In 1848, he retired to St. Andrew's East
Saint-André-d'Argenteuil, Quebec
Saint-André-d'Argenteuil is a municipality in the Laurentides region of Quebec, Canada, part of the Argenteuil Regional County Municipality. It is located along the Ottawa River, just south of Lachute.-History:...
, Canada East
Canada East
Canada East was the eastern portion of the United Province of Canada. It consisted of the southern portion of the modern-day Canadian Province of Quebec, and was primarily a French-speaking region....
, on a homestead he named "Glencoe House" after his birthplace. It was here that he died in 1853.
Personal life
In 1823, Archibald married Princess Raven (also known as Princess Sunday), daughter of Chief ComcomlyChief Comcomly
Chief Comcomly or Concomly was a Native American chief of the Chinookan people. He was the principal chief of the Chinook Confederacy, which extended along the Columbia River from the Cascade Range to the Pacific Ocean....
of the Chinook
Chinookan
Chinook refers to several native amercain groups of in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States, speaking the Chinookan languages. In the early 19th century, the Chinookan-speaking peoples lived along the lower and middle Columbia River in present-day Oregon and Washington...
Confederacy, but she died giving birth to their son, Ranald
Ranald MacDonald
Ranald MacDonald was the first man to teach the English language in Japan, including educating Einosuke Moriyama, one of the chief interpreters to handle the negotiations between Commodore Perry and the Tokugawa Shogunate.-Early life:MacDonald was born at Fort Astoria, in the Pacific Northwest of...
. In 1825, Archibald remarried, to Jane Klyne, a daughter of Michel Klyne
Michel Klyne
Michel Klyne was an employee of the North West Company and later the Hudson's Bay Company, serving as postmaster at Jasper House in the Rocky Mountains.-Early life:...
, French Canadian
French Canadian
French Canadian or Francophone Canadian, , generally refers to the descendents of French colonists who arrived in New France in the 17th and 18th centuries...
postmaster at Jasper House
Jasper House
Jasper House National Historic Site, in Jasper National Park, Alberta, is the site of a trading post on the Athabasca River that functioned in two different locations from 1813 to 1884 as a major staging and supply post for travel through the Canadian Rockies.The post was originally named Rocky...
, and Suzanne Lafrance, of a prominent 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...
family. They had thirteen children, and remained together until Archibald's death.