History David Thompson
...nd of his education he was chosen to work for HBC (Hudson’s Bay Company). In May of 1784, fourteen year old David Thompson set sail aboard Prince Rupert and never saw England or his mother again. Then the real journey began. He worked for the HBC then moved on to working for the Nor’Westers. It was a greater opportunity for him and let him do what he loved, watching the stars. He also made more money to help out his wife, Charlotte Small, and his children. He did not believe in bringing alcohol in the trade because it just created havoc. This is a little about David Thompson. Thompson’s real voyage began in December, 1810. His goal was to beat the American’s to the mouth of the Columbia and establish a British claim to the territory by setting up a post before the American’s did. Things let’s say didn’t end up being that easy. David had to take dogsleds and snowshoes because the horses wouldn’t make it through this rough terrain. He set out from Boggy Hall on December 29. After much hunger and hardships, he crossed the mountains through the Athabasca Pass. He reached the crossroads of the Columbia and Canoe River on January 18, 1811. His plan was to go up the Columbia to reach Kootenae House, but his men refused to go on, and were forced to spend the winter at the Canoe River. They built clinker-built canoes and headed down the Columbia. They arrived, by horse, at Kettle Falls, on the Columbia, at the end of June. They arrived at the mouth of Columbia on the Pacific Ocean on July 14, 1811. Three months earlier, the Tonquin had landed at the mouth of the Columbia, and Thompson found himself a guest at Astoria, the...