Hudson's Bay Company Archives: A Tale of Two Bison

Tales and Treasures from the rich legacy of the Hudson’s Bay Company.

Created by Canada’s History

 — Posted February 9, 2012

Comparing ship logs with fur trade post journals can illustrate a better picture of events and provide clues that one record alone might not. As Hudson's Bay Company Archives’ senior archivist Denise Jones demonstrates, we can follow the progress of two buffalo headed for London, England in the fall of 1843 by looking at ship’s log for the Prince Rupert and the York Factory post journal.

Read the transcript

More from the HBC Archives

Hudson's Bay Company Archives: An Expert Overview

Archives Keeper Maureen Dolyniuk gives an expert overview of the history and mandate of the Hudson's Bay Company Archives.

Hudson's Bay Company Archives: Private Records of Gertrude Perrin

Archivist Bronwen Quarry shares story of Gertrude Perrin and the importance of private records within the Hudson's Bay Company Archives.

Hudson's Bay Company Archives: Post Journals and Francis Heron

Maureen Dolyniuk, Manager of the Hudson's Bay Company Archives at the Archives of Manitoba in Winnipeg, explains the importance of Post Journals and the story of Francis Heron.

Hudson's Bay Company Archives: Photos

Senior archivist Debra Moore describes the depth and breadth of the photo archive at the Hudson's Bay Company Archives.

Themes associated with this article

Related to Fur Trade

Tales & Treasures: Plain Clothes

Dr. Jamie Morton shows us two examples of Indigenous clothing items from the Canadian prairies: A moose hide coat from the John Halkett collection and a beaded Cree hood, both made with HBC trade goods.

Video

The Trapper

From the archives: A photo essay from 1943 follows the story of Isaiah Clark, a Cree trapper, as he prepares to head into the wilderness in search of valuable furs.

Article

Cool and Calculating

From the Archives: The September 1935 issue of The Beaver gave readers a tour of the Hudson’s Bay Company’s fur-grading and cold-storage operations in London, England.

Article

Christmas at Moose Factory

Doug Sinclair and Eduard Buckman, the film crew for Fur Country, struggle with the terrain, which delays their arrival in Moose Factory until Christmas afternoon.

Article