Andrew Colvile (born Andrew Wedderburn; 6 November 1779 – 3 February 1856) was a Scottish businessman, notable as the governor of the Hudson's Bay Company, a huge organisation set up for the

North American fur trade The North American fur trade is the (typically) historical Fur trade, commercial trade of furs and other goods in North America, beginning in the eastern provinces of French Canada and the northeastern Thirteen Colonies, American colonies (soon- ...

but also instrumental in the early

history of Canada The history of Canada covers the period from the arrival of the Paleo-Indians to North America thousands of years ago to the present day. The lands encompassing present-day Canada have been inhabited for millennia by Indigenous peoples, with d ...

. He was also chairman of the

West India Docks The West India Docks are a series of three docks, quaysides, and warehouses built to import goods from, and export goods and occasionally passengers to, the British West Indies. Located on the Isle of Dogs in London, the first dock opened in 18 ...

Early life and family background

Andrew was born Andrew Wedderburn in 1779. His grandfather, Sir John Wedderburn, 5th Baronet of Blackness, was involved with the

Jacobite rising of 1745 The Jacobite rising of 1745 was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the Monarchy of Great Britain, British throne for his father, James Francis Edward Stuart. It took place during the War of the Austrian Succession, when the bulk of t ...

, and was convicted of treason. The punishment for this was threefold: the

death penalty Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty and formerly called judicial homicide, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for actual or supposed misconduct. The sentence ordering that an offender be punished in s ...

, the confiscation of all his estates (he had property at Inveresk), and the attainting of his family, including the baronetcy. At least two of his sons moved to Jamaica, including Andrew's uncle and father. The former, John Wedderburn of Ballendean, is notable for the civil case brought under

Scots law Scots law () is the List of country legal systems, legal system of Scotland. It is a hybrid or mixed legal system containing Civil law (legal system), civil law and common law elements, that traces its roots to a number of different histori ...

by his former slave Joseph Knight. Andrew's father, James Wedderburn, set up as a doctor without academic qualification. After 28 years, James had become a wealthy slave-owner and sugar planter. In 1773 James moved back to Inveresk—the estate had been restored—and married. At some point James changed his name from Wedderburn to Wedderburn Colvile. Andrew's sister Jean married

Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk FRS FRSE (20 June 1771 – 8 April 1820) was a Scottish landowner and philanthropist. He was noteworthy as a Scottish philanthropist who sponsored immigrant settlements in Canada at the Red River Colony. E ...

, in 1807. His brother James Wedderburn (born ) was

Solicitor General for Scotland His Majesty's Solicitor General for Scotland () is one of the Law Officers of the Crown, and the deputy of the Lord Advocate, whose duty is to advise the Scottish Government on Scots Law. They are also responsible for the Crown Office and P ...

until his death in 1822; his posthumous daughter

Jemima Blackburn Jemima Wedderburn Blackburn (1 May 1823 – 9 August 1909) was a Scottish painter whose work illustrated rural life in 19th-century Scotland. One of the most popular illustrators in Victorian Britain, she illustrated 27 books. Her greatest or ...

became a highly regarded artist, and played the role of an elder sister to her cousin

James Clerk Maxwell James Clerk Maxwell (13 June 1831 – 5 November 1879) was a Scottish physicist and mathematician who was responsible for the classical theory of electromagnetic radiation, which was the first theory to describe electricity, magnetism an ...

, the physicist. Andrew's other legitimate brother was Peter Wedderburn Ogilvy, who became a sea captain; his sons went into the army. Andrew had a half-sibling whom he very publicly rejected: the son of his father by an enslaved woman in Jamaica. When the mixed-race Robert Wedderburn showed up at the family seat seeking to claim kinship, he was sent away with a flea in his ear. After that rejection, Robert wrote ''The Horrors of Slavery'', which was circulated by the

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the political movement to end slavery and liberate enslaved individuals around the world. The first country to fully outlaw slavery was Kingdom of France, France in 1315, but it was later used ...

movement. Andrew furiously denied the claims, and in turn insulted Robert's mother.

Career

Andrew remained in Europe, inherited his father's estates and set up as a sugar broker (Wedderburn and Company). When his brother-in-law began buying into the

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), originally the Governor and Company of Adventurers of England Trading Into Hudson’s Bay, is a Canadian holding company of department stores, and the oldest corporation in North America. It was the owner of the ...

, Andrew followed suit. By 1810, he was on the HBC board, and worked to rationalize the company's administration. In 1820, he was largely responsible for sending out Sir George Simpson to take charge of HBC affairs in North America. During Simpson's long administration (1821–1860) the two worked closely together, one in London business circles and the other in the wilds of Rupert’s Land, which eventually became western Canada.

Marriages and children

His first wife was Elizabeth Susannah, daughter of John Wedderburn of Clapham, but she died in 1803, only a year after their marriage. They had no children, but he inherited the Wedderburn estate in Jamaica. In 1806, he married the Hon. Mary Louisa Eden (1788–1858), fifth daughter of

William Eden, 1st Baron Auckland William Eden, 1st Baron Auckland, Privy Council of Ireland, PC (Ire), Royal Society, FRS (3 April 174528 May 1814) was a British diplomat and politician who sat in the British House of Commons, House of Commons from 1774 to 1793. Early life A m ...

, and was thus connected to an influential family of politicians and diplomats. The couple had four sons and 12 daughters: # Eleanor Colvile (1808–1824) # James William Colvile (1810–1880) was a lawyer, civil servant and then judge in India, and a judge on the

Judicial Committee of the Privy Council The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is the highest court of appeal for the Crown Dependencies, the British Overseas Territories, some Commonwealth countries and a few institutions in the United Kingdom. Established on 14 August ...

, the

court of last resort In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

for the British colonies. # John Colvile (1811–1830) # Isabella Colvile (1812–1896) married a clergyman in rural England and was the mother of Francis Marindin, a key figure in early football. # George Colvile (1813–1814) # Louisa Colvile (1815–1836) # Emily Colvile (1817–1889) # Eden Colvile (1819–1893) was appointed Governor of

Rupert's Land Rupert's Land (), or Prince Rupert's Land (), was a territory in British North America which comprised the Hudson Bay drainage basin. The right to "sole trade and commerce" over Rupert's Land was granted to Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), based a ...

and also governor of the HBC. # Jean Colville (1820–1895) # Georgiana Mary Colvile (1822–1889) married

Frederic Rogers, 1st Baron Blachford Frederic Rogers, 1st Baron Blachford (31 January 1811 – 21 November 1889) was a British civil servant, styled as Sir Frederick Rogers, 8th Baronet from 1851 to 1871. Biography He was born on 31 January 1811, in London. He taught at Eton Colle ...

, a

mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

Whitehall Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London, England. The road forms the first part of the A roads in Zone 3 of the Great Britain numbering scheme, A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea, London, Chelsea. It ...

. # Charlotte Colvile (1823–) # Isalen Mary Colvile (1825–) # Caroline Colvile (1827–1846) # Margaret Agnes Colvile (1829–1905) in 1858 married the writer and publisher Charles Kegan Paul. Their son was

Eden Paul Maurice Eden Paul (27 September 1865, in Sturminster Marshall – 1 December 1944) was a British socialist activist, physician, writer and translator.'Paul, Maurice Eden' in ''Who Was Who'' Early life Paul was the younger son of the publisher ...

, the socialist physician and translator. # Alice Douglas Colvile (1830–1845) # Katharine Colvile (July 1834–November 1834)

Legacy

Several places were named after him, directly and indirectly. Many of them are near Kettle Falls, an ancient and important salmon fishing site on the upper reaches of the

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...

, in what is today the

state of Washington Washington, officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is often referred to as Washington State to distinguish it from the national capital, both named after George Washington ...

, near the

Canada–United States border The international border between Canada and the United States is the longest in the world by total length. The boundary (including boundaries in the Great Lakes, Atlantic, and Pacific coasts) is long. The land border has two sections: Canada' ...

. In 1825 the HBC moved its trading post for that region from

Spokane House Spokane House was a Factory (trading post), fur-trading post founded in 1810 by the British-Canadian North West Company, located on a peninsula where the Spokane River and Little Spokane River meet. When established, the North West Company's fart ...

and named the new site Fort Colvile (NB spelling). It was abandoned in 1870, and flooded over by the

Grand Coulee Dam Grand Coulee Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington, built to produce hydroelectric power and provide irrigation water. Constructed between 1933 and 1942, Grand Coulee originally had two powerhous ...

in 1940; the Colville people derive their name from their association with this trading post. In 1859, the U.S. Army established a new Fort Colville (two Ls) at Pinkney City, Washington, which was operational till 1882. The city of Colville, Washington was established nearby at about that time. Colville National Forest has its headquarters there. Near to the city is the Colville Air Force Station (now closed). On

Vancouver Island Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are of land. The island is the largest ...

a new settlement was named Colville Town, but was renamed

Nanaimo Nanaimo ( ) is a city of about 100,000 on the east coast of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. "The Harbour City" was previously known as the "Hub City", which was attributed to its original layout design with streets radiating fr ...

in 1860. The Colville River (Alaska) is named after him.

References

Footnotes

Bibliography

External links

Letter from George Simpson, Governor of the Hudson's Bay Company, to Andrew Colvile, member of the Governing Committee in London
20 May 1822. {{DEFAULTSORT:Colvile, Andrew 1779 births 1856 deaths Hudson's Bay Company people People from East Lothian

Andrew Andrew is the English form of the given name, common in many countries. The word is derived from the , ''Andreas'', itself related to ''aner/andros'', "man" (as opposed to "woman"), thus meaning "manly" and, as consequence, "brave", "strong", "c ...