The significance of Highlanders in the development of the Canadian West

When Alexander Mackenzie, a 28-year-old fur trader from the Highlands of<br/>Scotland, inscribed his initials on a rock in Bella Coola in 1793, in what is now<br/>Pacific Coast British Columbia (BC), it signalled the beginning of a new<br/>transcontinental era in the Canadian fur trade. Ninety-three years later, Donald<br/>Alexander Smith, a descendant of Clan Grant, drove the final spike into the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) at Craigellachie, British Columbia, and completed the line which made the West accessible to settlement, securing its place in the Confederation of Canada. Scottish Highlanders were a distinct and influential group throughout the progress of Canada from a colony to a nation, and nowhere was their involvement more pronounced than in the exploration and development of the West. They featured prominently amongst the ranks of Canadian fur traders and explorers, rail contractors and politicians. This dissertation examines the effect that an origin in the Highlands had on the experiences of seven successful entrepreneurs, who were active from the late eighteenth century through to the early twentieth century.

Name dc:type.qualificationname

Master of Literature (awarded by UHI/Aberdeen)

Level dc:type.qualificationlevel

Master's Thesis

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

University of Aberdeen

Year dc:date.issued

2008

Author dc:creator

• De Lima Hutchinson, Cathal Stewart

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Harper, Marjory

Language dc:language

eng

Identifier

oai:pure.atira.dk:studenttheses/a221dedd-39c6-4d02-a140-7ecdaee87ee6

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:pure.atira.dk:studenttheses/a221dedd-39c6-4d02-a140-7ecdaee87ee6