In 1821 the hbc and nwc merged new entity called

• In 1821 the HBC and NWC merged.
• New entity called Hudson’s Bay Company
• Puzzle in that the NWC had been the larger
entity only a short while before, & each company
contributed half the capital of the new one.
• Some explanations:
• Montreal base distant and costly
• No provision for NWC capital accumulation
• Strong leadership in HBC: George Simpson
• HBC Charter had some value
Pre-Merger, 1821
Post-Merger, 1825
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• NWC and HBC both sent explorers into
“New Caledonia” (a.k.a. North Central BC)
looking for a passage to the pacific.
• Alexander Mackenzie travelled north, and
then (after a stint learning more about
wayfinding) out to the west coast.
• Simon Fraser and David Thompson, among
others, sought the Columbia. When
Thompson finally found it, JJ Astor’s
American Fur Company had arrived by sea.
Pacific Slope
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The Road to Oregon
• Until the middle of the 19
th
century, the HBC operated as a
monopsony under Simpson’s leadership. Challenges came
from the south.
• Lewis and Clark travelled across the continent, following
existing routes and with the explicit assistance of Indigenous
guides, forged a path to “Oregon.”
• The region west of the Rockies and north of the Columbia
was open to both Americans and British. (Oregon, Columbia,
New Caledonia)
Sir George Simpson is not amused. (Wikimedia Commmons)
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The Sydney Morning Herald
–
April 28, 1846
THE POSITION OF THE OREGON QUESTION
(From the Spectator, December 6, 1845.)
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