Talk:York Factory Express

Map
I'll try to get around to adding a map before long. Pfly (talk) 04:02, 6 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Done... now I'll try to improve the map at some point. Pfly (talk) 05:16, 6 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Map looks great, haven't examined it in fine detail; article reads good, real terse for now, but there's colour to be added for sure; various events took place along the route worth mentioning/gussying with.Skookum1 (talk) 05:45, 6 April 2008 (UTC)

Simpson in 1820s
I'm pretty sure that was an inspection tour of the new company turf, in the wake of the integration with the NWC just previously, part p.r., part oversight (in the context of overseer) and show-of-pomp to impress not only the customers/indigenous peoples but also company staff in the region; J. Morris doesn't quite say that but "pomp" as company style/policy was something that continued on as tradition; Douglas was famous for it, even in his early days in New Caledonia; shows of grandeur; find that Morris-quote account youll scan what I mean (hmmm maybe I know where it is...). Anmyway I'd add something about the purpose of his visit it would be good to say something briefly but I don't have the cite ready...and am damned long-winded anyway...another consideration to realize here is the genesis of the term Pacific Northwest partly because of the Northwest Company; the company operating in the Northwest, in the same context Columbia Department/District re Columbia; the Northwest as axiomatically the Northwest Company's turf and the Pacific Northwest being that part of it on the Pacific Slope, as I believe was anothr term originating in that period, perhaps even in that account re Simpson. Anyway the etymology of Pacific Northwest is a topic for another page, another time, but it's an interesting notion, no? Not that the Northwest Company had a Pacific Northwest Department/District....or - ?? Hmmm. Any idea what the Fort George office was addressed as within NWC organizational charts?Skookum1 (talk) 05:44, 6 April 2008 (UTC)

Boat Encampment on map, pls
I just stubbed this up, potentially it could be a very large article, despite never having been much of a town (which it was for a while...). It was the major staging ground between the Prairie forts and Fort Colville; I'm wondering if you could add it to the map so the map could double as an illustration for the Boat Encampment article.Skookum1 (talk) 06:17, 10 April 2008 (UTC)

York boats in Columbia District
The boat info is interesting, especially as the name "York" is key. But I'm not sure whether the boats used west of the Continental Divide were or should be called York boats. They were made in and for use in the far west and never went to York Factory. They were probably quite similar, but may have differed in some key ways (like, no keels--the York boats had keels as I understand). I added what little info I have on the topic. Also added a note about the extensive use of pack horses in the Columbia District. Perhaps something about how different the rivers and terrain is between the far west and Rupert's Land--necessitating different boats and transport styles. I almost added that the brigade crossing of the Continental Divide itself was done with minimal if any horses but rather by men carrying packs--but I am not quite positive that was the case. Wanted to say something about how the fur companies, from the PFC on, used indigenous canoes (or at least designs based on indigenous canoes) for coastal transport in the PNW--but that would be irrelevant to the Express, which is what this article is about. I'm not even sure whether the info on York boats is relevant to the Express--which did not carry bulk cargo. Were York boats really used for the Express east of the Rockies? Seems that canoes might be faster for the light loads. In the Columbia District bateaux were used for the Express (two per express brigade in the 1820s according to Mackie). But the crazy PNW rivers required something stronger than canoes. To the east of the Rockies though...? Pfly (talk) 15:51, 6 July 2009 (UTC)