James Douglas

In 1828, James Douglas married Amelia Connolly, the daughter of New Caledonia’s Chief Factor, William Connolly. The couple had thirteen children, only seven of whom survived to reach adulthood.

He died in Victoria at the age of 73. His funeral procession was possibly the largest in the history of British Columbia, and he was interred in the Ross Bay Cemetery.

Many roads, schools and natural landmarks have been named after him. ‘Sir James Douglas Elementary School’ was built in Victoria, in 1910, on the property that used to be Sir James Douglas’ farm.

James Douglas was born to John Douglas, a Scottish planter, and Martha Ann Tefler, a free person of mixed European and African ancestry. They had many children together but were not formally married.

In 1812, James was sent to Lanark, Scotland, for schooling. Later, he went to school in Chester, England, where he learned to speak and write in fluent French.

In 1819, 16-year-old James Douglas joined the North West Company’s fur trade, and moved from Liverpool to Lachine, Lower Canada. For a year, he was stationed at Fort William, Ontario, as a clerk.

He was transferred to �le-�-la-Crosse on the Churchill River in northern Saskatchewan in 1820. There, ‘The Hudson’s Bay Company’ (HBC), a powerful competitor, was also active, and minor armed skirmishes were common.

He began acquiring knowledge by reading books brought over from Britain. He developed warm relations with the various Aboriginal people, or the First Nations people who were neither Inuit nor M�tis, in Canada.

In 1821, the rivalry between the companies ended with the merger of the North West Company and the Hudson’s Bay Company. Douglas became an employee of the HBC, and was rapidly promoted in the company.

In 1827, he established Fort Connolly on Bear Lake. He made a very good impression on William Connolly, his superior, with his skills, and they got along very well.

Between 1850 and 1854, James Douglas negotiated treaties with the Native American tribes and acquired fourteen parcels of land for the Crown from them, totaling 570 sq. km., in return for paltry compensation.

In 1862, when the Cariboo Gold Rush began, he ordered the construction of the Cariboo Road, running 400 miles from Fort Yale to the gold fields of Barkerville, in three years’ time.