Fort Calgary

Last updated

Fort Calgary
Native name
Mohkinstsis; Wîchîspa; Guts'ists'i
FortCalgary1878.jpg
North-West Mounted Police with Kainai Nation members at Fort Calgary, 1878
Etymology Calgary House, a castle at Calgary Bay on the Isle of Mull, Scotland
Location750 9th Avenue SE
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Coordinates 51°02′43″N114°02′44″W / 51.04528°N 114.04556°W / 51.04528; -114.04556
Area12 hectares (30 acres)
Built1875
Original useNorth-West Mounted Police outpost
Demolished1914
Current useMuseum, park, social centre
Governing bodyFort Calgary Preservation Society
OwnerCity of Calgary
Website www.fortcalgary.com
Official nameFort Calgary National Historic Site of Canada
Designated15 May 1925

Fort Calgary was a North-West Mounted Police outpost at the confluence of the Bow and Elbow rivers in present-day Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Originally named Fort Brisebois, after the outpost's first commander, the outpost was renamed Fort Calgary in June 1876.

Contents

The outpost was built in 1875 as a part of the North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) larger effort to curtail American rum and whisky runners in the region, and to establish relationships with the Indigenous peoples of the territory. The fort was expanded in 1882 after it was designated as a "district post". The NWMP continued to use the fort until 1914 when the site was sold to Grand Trunk Pacific Railway. The fort was demolished to make way for a rail terminal.

The site was later purchased by the municipal government of Calgary in 1973, with work on an interpretive centre taking place in 1977. The site was reopened as a historic site and museum in 1978, with the museum initially documenting the NWMP and its role in the area. The scope of the museum was later reoriented in 1995 to focus on the local history of Calgary. During the 1990s, reconstructions of several buildings that once stood at Fort Calgary took place at the historic site.

Background

The confluence of the Bow and Elbow River, where the fort was built, is on the traditional territory of the Niitsitapi (Blackfoot Confederacy; Siksika, Kainai, Piikani), the îyârhe Nakoda (Chiniki, Bearspaw, Wesley), the Tsuut'ina people and Métis Nation, Region 3, and has been a significant age-old gathering place.[ citation needed ]

By the early 1870s, American whisky and rum runners were conducting trade with First Nations in the area. [1] The illegal trade and American incursion prompted the government of Canada to create the North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) in 1873 to reassert Canadian sovereignty and curtail the whisky trade in the region. [2] By 1874, the NWMP had captured or chased away most of the illegal traders, and had begun work on several forts in the area; believing that the lawlessness seen in the settlement of the American west was preventable if law enforcement was in place before settlers arrived into the area. [1] After Fort Macleod was established, the whisky traders moved their operations further away from it. [3] A decision was made to build an NWMP outpost at the midway point between Fort Macleod and Fort Edmonton in June 1875. [4] "F" Troop, commanded by Éphrem-A. Brisebois, was tasked with establishing the outpost at the midway point. [3] [4]

History

Members of the NWMP at Fort Calgary, 1875 1875Mounties.jpg
Members of the NWMP at Fort Calgary, 1875

The I. G. Baker Company arrived at the site in July 1875, having been hired to construct the NWMP outpost. The fort was initially planned to be located near present-day Holy Cross Centre, with an advanced troupe of "F" Troop marking a spot near the site. [1] However, Brisebois elected to build the fort near the junction of the Bow and Elbow Rivers instead. [1] Materials including spruce and pine were logged upstream and floated down to the site. [5] The fort was originally bounded by a wooden palisade with several structures inside it; including a stables, barracks, guard room, and storage facilities. [5] The fort was completed by December 1875, and cost the Canadian government C$2,476 to build. [6] The outpost was initially known as the Bow River Fort until it was officially named Fort Brisebois in December 1875, after the commander of "F" Troop. [3] However, Brisebois' superiors at NWMP headquarters had felt Brisebois misused his authority in naming the outpost and decided to rename the outpost Fort Calgary in June 1876. [7] [8] The name was recommended by James Macleod of the NWMP, who took the name from Calgary House in Scotland. [9]

The outpost had inadequate heating and insulation after it was completed, resulting in poor living conditions for its garrison. [8] Combined with Brisebois' poor leadership, the members of "F" Troop mutinied during the winter of 1875–76 and sent a delegation to the headquarters in Fort Macleod to list out complaints against the commander. [8] Brisebois was not relieved immediately after that incident, although was eventually replaced by Lawrence Herchmer in August 1876. [8]

Hunt Houses built near the fort, 1910. The houses were built by Metis employees of the Hudson's Bay Company after the company relocated its operations near Fort Calgary. Hunt House.jpg
Hunt Houses built near the fort, 1910. The houses were built by Métis employees of the Hudson's Bay Company after the company relocated its operations near Fort Calgary.

The I. G. Baker Company incorporated the area around the fort as a part of its larger transportation network on the Whoop-Up Trail; [10] and built a trading post and storehouse a few hundred metres away from the fort. [8] The commercial opportunities provided by the transportation network also attracted the Hudson's Bay Company, who relocated their trading post at the Ghost River to the Elbow River across from Fort Calgary. [8] [10] Initially, the outpost also housed a mission of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, although the mission later relocated upriver in 1875. [4] By 1877, a permanent church was established at the I. G. Baker Company post. During the latter half of the 1870s, the area found itself as a stopover route for travellers going from Fort Benton, Montana to Fort Edmonton. [11]

The decline in the illegal whisky and buffalo trade lessened the need for a fortified outpost in the area, resulting in the fort's detachment to decline to four constables by 1880. [11] However, the situation would reverse in the early 1880s, with several plans drafted to develop the area surrounding Fort Calgary. [12] In August 1882, the outpost was designated as a "district post," and its detachment was reinforced to provide a permanent police presence as well as enforce legal ordinances for the Canadian Pacific Railway reserve adjacent to the fort. [13] [14] James Walker, a former NWMP member and owner of the Bow River Saw and Planing Mill was contracted to expand the outpost. [14] The contract called for the construction of a barracks, a guardroom with 12 holding cells, a hospital, officers' quarters, a sergeants' mess, and facilities for tradesmen. [14] To accommodate the outpost's expansion, the fort's palisades were taken down, and several of the outpost's older buildings were razed. [5] The expansion cost the government approximately C$35,000. [14]

From 1882 to 1902, a number of changes were made to the site, with buildings being torn down and built to address contemporary needs. [5] Police operations at the fort ended in 1914, after Grand Trunk Pacific Railway bought the site for C$250,000. [15] All the fort's remaining buildings were demolished by Grand Truck Pacific Railway to make way for a rail terminal. [16]

Post-demolition history

On 15 May 1925, the site where Fort Calgary stood was designated as a National Historic Site of Canada. [17]

In 1973, the municipal government purchased the site, intending to develop it into a historic site. [18] The city launched an archaeological study of the site to determine the exact location of the demolished fort. [18] In 1975, during Calgary's centennial year, archaeologists unearthed parts of the original wooden fort and its artifacts. [9] However, they were forced to quickly re-cover them due to their rapidly uncontrolled disintegration while exposed to the open air. [9] After an interpretive centre was built in 1977, the site was officially reopened as a historical museum in 1978. [18] Initially, the museum's exhibits were focused on the NWMP and their relationship with the First Nations, and the force's perception in popular culture. [18]

Exhibits at the site's interpretive centre, 2014 Fort Calgary A trip around inside some of the attractions. (14565455371).jpg
Exhibits at the site's interpretive centre, 2014

The museum's operations were reoriented in 1995, changing the museum's focus to one oriented towards the history of Calgary. [18] The reconstruction of Fort Calgary's stables and wagon shed was also constructed during this period. [18] In 2000, a replica of the NWMP's two-storey barracks was completed on the site. [9] After the final report from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada was released in 2015, the museum's administration shifted its focus to better include indigenous perspectives of the site. [19]

From 2014 to 2020, a three-phase expansion and restoration project of the historic site occurred, costing approximately C$36 million. [20] The first stage includes restorations to Deane House and Hunt House, while the second phase saw the development of the "F" Troop memorial exhibit. [20] The museum's interpretive centre was renovated and expanded as a part of the final phase of the project. [20] The expansion and renovations of the interpretive centre cost approximately C$10.4 million. [20]

Grounds

Exterior of the reconstructed NWMP barracks in 2020 Fort Calgary in 2020.jpg
Exterior of the reconstructed NWMP barracks in 2020

Fort Calgary Historic Park is a 16 hectares (40 acres) historic site that sits on a grassy flood plain along the south shore of the Bow River, near the river junction with the Elbow river. [2] [18] However the National Historic Site of Canada designation is confined to a parcel of land surrounding the area where the fort originally stood, approximately 12 hectares (30 acres) in size. [17]

The site contains several reconstructions of structures that were built within the fort, including the stables, wagon shed, and barracks modelled after the one built in 1888. [9] [18] [21] The reconstructed buildings were completed during the 1990s and 2000. [9] [18] An interpretive centre was also erected on the site in 1977; [18] with the size of the centre expanded to 5,000 square metres (54,000 sq ft) during the 2010s. [20] Exhibits and audio-visual and interactive presentations of Calgary's history and the NWMP are situated in the 1888 barracks and the interpretive centre. [21]

An art installation of wood slats used to outline the original fort and the height of its palisades. Watching the City Grow.jpg
An art installation of wood slats used to outline the original fort and the height of its palisades.

In 2016, an art installation was unveiled at the site, with vertical wood slats topped with metal and placed on the outline of the original fort. [22] The wood slats used for the installation is approximately the same height as the palisades used for Fort Calgary. [22] From a certain angle, the wood slats are shaped to resemble 12 standing figures. [22] The installation is illuminated with red lights during the night. [22] The art installation is titled Marking and was created by Jill Anholt. [22]

Fort Calgary is also situated near two landmarks whose history is intertwined with the fort's, the Deane House and Hunt House. [18]

Deane House

The Deane House in 2006. It was built in 1906 near Fort Calgary for its superintendent. The building was moved to its present site across the Elbow River in 1929. Deane House 3.jpg
The Deane House in 2006. It was built in 1906 near Fort Calgary for its superintendent. The building was moved to its present site across the Elbow River in 1929.

The Deane House was built near Fort Calgary in 1906 for the superintendent of Fort Calgary, Captain Richard Burton Deane. He wrote about the house in his 1916 memoir Mounted Police Life in Canada. [23] The house was originally constructed near 9th Ave and 6th St SE, facing east towards the barracks. Deane felt the previous superintendent's house was not good enough for his wife Martha. Although the budget for the project was $5,000, the total cost was $6,200. In 1914, the Grand Trunk Railway bought the house and relocated to the southeast corner of the lot; serving as an office and station master's house. [24] The house was then purchased by C. L. Jacques in 1929 and moved across the Elbow River, where it stands today. It was used as a boarding house for several decades and was named Jasper Lodge. It was later purchased by Alex Brotherton who renamed the building Gaspé Lodge. [25] Alex Brotherton died in the home in 1968 and the property was sold and proceeds divided among his children (Alfena Cunningham and Patrica Brotherton (Patricia Perkins), whose descendants still live in Calgary.

In 1973, the city bought the building and turned it into a cooperative studio space for artists and writers and an exhibition space called the Dandelion Gallery. [26] In the summer of 1975, Joan Clark, Edna Alford and Velma Foster published the first edition of Dandelion Magazine, a publication that would become known as Alberta's leading literary magazine. [27] In 1978, the City closed the Dandelion Artists' Cooperative with plans to turn the house into a teahouse and restaurant. [26] Today, the house continues to be owned by the city. It currently features a restaurant called Deane House and has undergone significant renovations as part of the MakeHistory upgrades to Fort Calgary. [28]

Hunt House

Hunt House in 2018. It is the oldest building located in Calgary. Hunt House 1.jpg
Hunt House in 2018. It is the oldest building located in Calgary.

The Hunt House is the oldest building in Calgary still located on its original site. It was built between 1876 and 1881 for Métis employees of the Hudson's Bay Company located at 8th Street and 9th Avenue SE. The last person to live in the house was William Hunt, a rail worker, who died in the mid-1970s. [29] It became an Alberta Provincial Historic Resource in 1977. [30] The Métis Cabin, thought to have been built around the same time, was moved to the Calgary Brewing and Malting Company grounds in the 1930s and recently has been moved back to its original spot.

Affiliations

The museum is affiliated with the Canadian Museums Association, Canadian Heritage Information Network, and the Virtual Museum of Canada.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sam Steele</span> Canadian soldier and police official

Major General Sir Samuel Benfield Steele was a Canadian soldier and policeman. He was an officer of the North-West Mounted Police, head of the Yukon detachment during the Klondike Gold Rush, and commanding officer of Strathcona's Horse during the Boer War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sam Livingston</span>

Samuel Henry Harkwood Livingston born in Ireland, he came to Canada following an unsuccessful venture in the Californian gold rush of 1849, and eventually found his way to Jumping Pound, North-West Territories, in 1873 where he opened a trading post. He was going to settle near the confluence of the Bow and Elbow Rivers in 1875 but, when the North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) arrived and established Fort Calgary, Livingston and his family moved further up the Elbow River to the current location of the Glenmore Reservoir. When the Glenmore Dam was built and the area flooded, part of the Livingston house was preserved and now stands at Heritage Park. Sam Livingston was an important man to Alberta's history. The Glenmore Reservoir gets its name from Sam too; Sam and Jane started a school on their farm that Sam named 'Glenmore School' after a place in Ireland. Glenmore is a village in County Kilkenny and quite close to his birthplace in County Wicklow.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Clift King</span> Canadian politician

George Clift King was the second mayor of the town of Calgary, Alberta.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Macleod</span> Town in Alberta, Canada

Fort Macleod is a town in southern Alberta, Canada. It was originally named Macleod to distinguish it from the North-West Mounted Police barracks it had grown around. The fort was named in honour of the then Commissioner of the North-West Mounted Police, Colonel James Macleod. Founded as the Municipality of the Town of Macleod in 1892, the name was officially changed to the already commonly used Fort Macleod in 1952.

The I. G. Baker Company was a mercantile and grocery company based in Fort Benton, Montana, started by Isaac Gilbert Baker and his brother, George Amos Baker, as I. G. Baker & Brother in 1866. After the Conrad brothers were admitted as partners in 1873, the company name was changed to I. G. Baker & Co., which name was retained after the Conrads purchased George Baker’s interest in 1874. In 1891, the Canadian assets of the company were purchased by its chief rival there, the Hudson's Bay Company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Whoop-Up</span> Human settlement in Lethbridge County, Alberta, Canada

Fort Whoop-Up was the nickname given to a whisky trading post, originally Fort Hamilton, near what is now Lethbridge, Alberta. During the late 19th century, the post served as a centre for trading activities, including the illegal whisky trade. The sale of whisky was outlawed but, due to the lack of law enforcement in the region prior to 1874, many whisky traders had settled in the area and taken to charging unusually high prices for their goods.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elbow River</span> River in Alberta, Canada

The Elbow River is a river in southern Alberta, Canada. It flows from the Canadian Rockies to the city of Calgary, where it merges into the Bow River.

Éphrem-A. Brisebois was a Canadian politician, soldier, and police officer with the North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) of Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inglewood, Calgary</span> Neighbourhood in Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Inglewood is an urban neighbourhood in central Calgary, Alberta, Canada, centred on 9th Avenue SE for several blocks east of the Elbow River and downtown. It also contains the Business Revitalization Zone of Inglewood.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park</span> Provincial park in Alberta, Canada

Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park is located about 100 kilometres (60 mi) southeast of Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, or 44 kilometres (30 mi) east of the community of Milk River, and straddles the Milk River itself. It is one of the largest areas of protected prairie in the Alberta park system, and serves as both a nature preserve and protection for many First Nations (indigenous) rock carvings and paintings. The park is sacred to the Blackfoot and many other aboriginal tribes.

Fort La Jonquière was a French fort built along the Saskatchewan River in the spring of 1751. It was purported to have been the furthest west outpost of New France. The fort was named after the Governor General of New France at the time, Jacques-Pierre de Taffanel de la Jonquière, Marquis de la Jonquière, by Jacques Legardeur de Saint-Pierre, western commander of the French (1750-1753). There is no surviving record of its exact location, nor physical evidence, but it was most likely located near Nipawin, Saskatchewan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tourism in Alberta</span> Tourism in Alberta, Canada

Alberta has been a tourist destination since the early days of the 20th Century, with attractions including national parks, National Historic Sites of Canada, urban arts and cultural facilities, outdoor locales for skiing, hiking and camping, shopping locales such as West Edmonton Mall, outdoor festivals, professional athletic events, international sporting competitions such as the Commonwealth Games and Olympic Winter Games, as well as more eclectic attractions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Provincial historic sites of Alberta</span>

Provincial historic sites of Alberta are museums and historic sites run by the Government of Alberta.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">March West</span> 1874 journey of the North-West Mounted Police across Canada

The March West was the initial journey of the North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) to the Canadian prairies, made between July 8 and October 9, 1874.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red Coat Trail</span> Highway in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba

The Red Coat Trail is a 1,300-kilometre (810 mi) route that approximates the path taken in 1874 by the North-West Mounted Police in their March West from Fort Dufferin to Fort Whoop-Up.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Calgary</span> Largest city in Alberta, Canada

Calgary is a city in the Canadian province of Alberta. It is the largest city in Alberta and the largest metro area within the three Prairie Provinces region. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Walsh</span> Historic site in Saskatchewan, Canada

Fort Walsh is a National Historic Site of Canada that was a North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) fort and the site of the Cypress Hills Massacre. Administered by Parks Canada, it forms a constituent part of Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park.

Mînî Thnî is a First Nations settlement within the Stoney 142/143/144 Indian reserve in southern Alberta, Canada. It is located along the Canadian Pacific Kansas City railway between the Trans-Canada Highway and the Bow River, upstream from Ghost Lake. It has an elevation of 1,240 metres (4,070 ft). The settlement is located in census division No. 15 and in the federal riding of Wild Rose. The settlement and the Indian reserve are part of the Stoney Nation.

This is a timeline of the history of Calgary, Alberta, Canada..

References

Notes
  1. 1 2 3 4 Bullick 2007, p. 61.
  2. 1 2 Bullick 2007, p. 60.
  3. 1 2 3 Foran & Foran 1982, p. 38.
  4. 1 2 3 Gilpin 2017, p. 8.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Fort Calgary Archaeological Site". Canada's Historic Places. Parks Canada. Retrieved 25 January 2021.
  6. ↑ Foran & Foran 1982, p. 39.
  7. ↑ Allen, Robert S. (23 March 2015). "Fort Calgary". The Canadien Encyclopedia. Historica Canada. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Foran & Foran 1982, p. 40.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Bullick 2007, p. 62.
  10. 1 2 Gilpin 2017, p. 11.
  11. 1 2 Foran & Foran 1982, p. 44.
  12. ↑ Gilpin 2017, p. 16.
  13. ↑ Gilpin 2017, p. 19.
  14. 1 2 3 4 Foran & Foran 1982, p. 46.
  15. ↑ Foran & Foran 1982, p. 62.
  16. ↑ White, Stephanie (2012). Unbuilt Calgary: A History of the City That Might Have Been. Dundurn. p. 42. ISBN   9781459703322.
  17. 1 2 "Fort Calgary National Historic Site of Canada". Canada's Historic Places. Parks Canada. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  18. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Wood, Patricia K. (2000). "The Historic Site as Cultural Text: A Geography of Heritage in Calgary, Alberta". Material History Review (52): 39.
  19. ↑ "Fort Calgary Preservation Society Civic Partner 2018 Annual Report". Fort Calgary Preservation Society. 2018. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  20. 1 2 3 4 5 "Fort Calgary Expansion and Restoration". majorprojects.alberta.ca. Government of Alberta. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  21. 1 2 Fisher, Mike (15 December 2015). "Stroll through history at Fort Calgary". travelalberta.com. Travel Alberta.
  22. 1 2 3 4 5 Dippel, Scott (2 April 2016). "Fort Calgary art installation evokes outlines of original fort". CBC News. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 25 January 2021.
  23. ↑ Deane, Captain R. Burton. "Mounted Police Life in Canada: A Record of Thirty-one Years' Service". Archive.org. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
  24. ↑ "Fort Calgary | MAKE HISTORY - Deane House Rehabilitation". www.fortcalgary.com. Retrieved 2018-07-25.
  25. ↑ Alberta Register of Historic Places Retrieved 2018-12-06
  26. 1 2 Sanders, Harry (2005). Historic Walks of Calgary. Calgary, Alberta: Red Deer Press. p. 174. ISBN   0-88995-297-3.
  27. ↑ Melnyk, George (1999). The Literary History of Alberta, Volume Two. Edmonton, Alberta: University of Alberta Press. p. 180. ISBN   0-88864-324-1.
  28. ↑ East Village Free Press Retrieved 22 October 2015
  29. ↑ "The old calgary shack at the heart of our history | CBC News". CBC. Retrieved 2018-07-24.
  30. ↑ "The Glenbow Museum > Archives Photographs Search Results". ww2.glenbow.org. Retrieved 2018-07-25.
Bibliography
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.