John Work ( – 22 December 1861) was a

Chief Factor A factor is a type of trader who receives and sells goods on commission, called factorage. A factor is a mercantile fiduciary transacting business that operates in their own name and does not disclose their principal. A factor differs from a co ...

of 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 ...

and head of one of the original founding families in

Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Gre ...

. Work joined the Hudson's Bay Company in 1814 and served in many capacities until his death in 1861, ultimately becoming a member of the company's Board of Management for its Western Department. He also served 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 ...

's Legislative Council. At the time of his death, Work was the largest private land owner of Vancouver Island. Work left an important legacy in the form of sixteen journals which chronicle his trading expeditions from 1823 to 1851. His journals provide a detailed record of

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (PNW; ) is a geographic region in Western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common ...

land features, native peoples, and the Hudson's Bay Company's fur trading business in the early 19th century.

Early life

John Work was born in Taughboyne parish, St Johnstown in

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county of the Republic of Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is the northernmost county of Ireland. The county mostly borders Northern Ireland, sharing only a small b ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, probably in 1792. He was the eldest of six children of Henry Wark. He anglicized his name to "Work" when he joined the Hudson's Bay Company. There is no record of his schooling, but in later life his poor writing was taken as a sign of a deficient education. Work joined the Hudson's Bay Company on 15 June 1814 at

Stromness Stromness (, ; ) is the second-most populous town in Orkney, Scotland. It is in the southwestern part of Mainland, Orkney. It is a burgh with a parish around the outside with the town of Stromness as its capital. Etymology The name "Stromnes ...

in the

Orkney Islands Orkney (), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago off the north coast of mainland Scotland. The plural name the Orkneys is also sometimes used, but locals now consider it outdated. Part of the Northern Isles along with Shetland ...

. This began his lifelong association with that company.Sampson, William R.
"John Work"
''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online'', University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 2000. "John Work"
, Hudson's Bay Company Employee Biographical Sheet, Hudson's Bay Company Archives, Archives of Manitoba, Manitoba Government, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, July 1997.

Career

Work began his work in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

at two posts on

Hudson Bay Hudson Bay, sometimes called Hudson's Bay (usually historically), is a large body of Saline water, saltwater in northeastern Canada with a surface area of . It is located north of Ontario, west of Quebec, northeast of Manitoba, and southeast o ...

. He was first assigned as a steward at

York Factory York Factory was a settlement and Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) factory (trading post) on the southwestern shore of Hudson Bay in northeastern Manitoba, Canada, at the mouth of the Hayes River, approximately south-southeast of Churchill. York ...

in 1814 and 1815. He was then moved to a junior trader position at Severn House, where he became district master in 1818. After the Hudson's Bay Company merged with

North West Company The North West Company was a Fur trade in Canada, Canadian fur trading business headquartered in Montreal from 1779 to 1821. It competed with increasing success against the Hudson's Bay Company in the regions that later became Western Canada a ...

in 1821, Work was retained as a senior clerk and was put in charge of the Island Lake District, a position he held until 1823. In 1823, Work was reassigned to the Columbia District. He traveled west in a party led by

Peter Skene Ogden Peter Skene Ogden (alternately Skeene, Skein, or Skeen; baptised 12 February 1790 – 27 September 1854) was a British-Canadian fur trader and an early explorer of what is now British Columbia and the Western United States. During his many exped ...

. On this trip, Work began keeping a travel journal. It is a detailed record of his journey to 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 ...

via the

Athabasca River The Athabasca River (French: ''Rivière Athabasca'') in Alberta, Canada, originates at the Columbia Icefield in Jasper National Park and flows more than before emptying into Lake Athabasca. Much of the land along its banks is protected in nationa ...

and

Athabasca Pass Athabasca Pass (el. ) is a high mountain pass in the Canadian Rockies on the border between Alberta and British Columbia. In fur trade days it connected Jasper House on the Athabasca River with Boat Encampment on the Columbia River.Whittaker, ...

. His party reached a site known as Boat Encampment on the Columbia on 13 October, and proceeding down the river with the Hudson's Bay Company trading brigade that had been sent to meet them. The party reached the

Spokane River The Spokane River is a tributary of the Columbia River, approximately long, in northern Idaho and eastern Washington in the United States. It drains a low mountainous area east of the Columbia, passing through the Spokane Valley and the city o ...

on 21 October. At that point, Ogden and Work traveled overland to their winter quarters at

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 ...

in what in now eastern

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

state.

During the 1824 trapping season, Work helped Finan McDonald extend the company's fur trade into the Flathead country of

Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...

. In the fall of 1824, Work accompanied Governor George Simpson and Chief Factor

John McLoughlin John McLoughlin, baptized Jean-Baptiste McLoughlin, (October 19, 1784 – September 3, 1857) was a French-Canadian, later American, Chief Factor and Superintendent of the Columbia District of the Hudson's Bay Company at Fort Vancouver from 1 ...

down the Columbia River to the company's headquarters at Fort George (now

Astoria, Oregon Astoria is a Port, port city in and the county seat of Clatsop County, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1811, Astoria is the oldest city in the state and was the first permanent American settlement west of the Rocky Mountains. The county is the ...

). In November 1824, Work joined an expedition led by Chief Trader James McMillan that explored the lower

Fraser River The Fraser River () is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Blackrock Mountain (Canada), Blackrock Mountain in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia just south of the City of V ...

looking for a site to establish a major trading post. On the return trip, his party discovered the Cowlitz Portage, which became an important route between the Columbia River and

Puget Sound Puget Sound ( ; ) is a complex estuary, estuarine system of interconnected Marine habitat, marine waterways and basins located on the northwest coast of the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. As a part of the Salish Sea, the sound ...

. In the spring of 1825, Work helped move the company's headquarters from Fort George to the newly established

Fort Vancouver Fort Vancouver was a 19th-century fur trading post built in the winter of 1824–1825. It was the headquarters of the Hudson's Bay Company's Columbia Department, located in the Pacific Northwest. Named for Captain George Vancouver, the fort was ...

on the north bank of the Columbia facing the mouth of the

Willamette River The Willamette River ( ) is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States. Flowing northward ...

. Later that year, Work was put in charge of

. Work spent the 1825–26 trapping season trading furs in western Montana where he reopened Flathead House. However, his most important job was to establish a new post on the Columbia near

Kettle Falls Kettle Falls ( Salish: Shonitkwu, meaning "roaring or noisy waters", also Schwenetekoo translated as "Keep Sounding Water") was an ancient and important salmon fishing site on the upper reaches of the Columbia River, in what is today the U.S. s ...

to be named Fort Colvile. After completing Fort Colvile, Work closed Spokane House in April 1826. Work ran his trading operations from Fort Colvile until the summer of 1829, often making short trading expeditions into British Columbia or accompanying fur cargo to Fort Vancouver. Paul Kane-BushCamp-ROM

In 1830 Work was promoted to the rank of Chief Trader, and John McLoughlin put Work in charge of the Snake country trading brigade which had previously been run by Peter Skene Ogden. During the next year, Work travelled over 2,000 miles across

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

into what is now eastern

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

, western Montana, northwestern

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

, and along the

Humboldt River The Humboldt River is the longest river in the northern and central part of Nevada. It extends in a general east-to-west direction from its headwaters in northern Nevada's Jarbidge Mountains, Jarbidge, Independence Mountains, Independence, and ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

. His expeditions were profitable, but Ogden had already explored and heavily trapped these areas. Because of this, Work recommended the annual Snake country expeditions be stopped. The next year, Work was sent into the Salmon River country of Idaho and Montana's Flathead country. The rugged terrain, hostile

Blackfeet The Blackfeet Nation (, ), officially named the Blackfeet Tribe of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation of Montana, is a federally recognized tribe of Siksikaitsitapi people with an Indian reservation in Montana. Tribal members primarily belong ...

Indians, and competition from the American trappers made these expeditions difficult. Work was promoted Chief Trader at the end of the 1831 season.Work, John (edited by T. C. Elliott)
"Journal of John Work, April 30th to May 31st, 1830"
''Oregon Historical Quarterly'' (Volume 10, Number 3), Oregon Historical Society, Portland Oregon, September 1909. In 1832, the Hudson's Bay Company sent Work to the

Sacramento Valley The Sacramento Valley is the area of the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California that lies north of the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta and is drained by the Sacramento River. It encompasses all or parts of ten Northern California ...

in Mexican

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. Trapping in the valley was very poor. Two previous Hudson's Bay Company trapping expedition led by Ogden and

Alexander Roderick McLeod Alexander Roderick McLeod ( 1782 – 11 June 1840) was a fur trader and explorer in British North America who began his career with the North West Company in 1802. McLeod became a trader and brigade leader with the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) ...

had already been through the valley 1829 and 1830. There was also another Hudson's Bay Company brigade led by Michel Laframboise and an American trapping party along with Work's brigade trapping in the same area during the 1832 season. Hostile Indians forced Work and Laframboise to join forces. Their party explored the coast from

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

Cape Mendocino Cape Mendocino ( Spanish: ''Cabo Mendocino'', meaning "Cape of Mendoza"), which is located approximately north of San Francisco, is located on the Lost Coast entirely within Humboldt County, California, United States. At 124° 24' 34" W longit ...

. Work returned to Fort Vancouver in October 1833. In 1834, Work was posted to

Fort Simpson Fort Simpson (Slavey language: ''Łı́ı́dlı̨ı̨ Kų́ę́'' "place where rivers come together") is a village, the only one in the entire territory, in the Dehcho Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada. The community is located on an ...

and put in charge of the company's trade along the British Columbia coast. He supervised the construction of the fort, which was being relocated from the

Nass River The Nass River is a river in northern British Columbia, Canada. It flows from the Coast Mountains southwest to Nass Bay, a sidewater of Portland Inlet, which connects to the North Pacific Ocean via the Dixon Entrance. Nass Bay joins Portland I ...

to McLoughlin Bay. During a trading expedition in 1840, Work fell out of a tree, tearing open his abdomen and exposing his intestines. After pushing his intestines back into his body, he spent several days near death before continuing his journey. In 1841, Governor Simpson decided to close all the coastal posts except Fort Simpson and Fort Stikine. His plan was to use the company's ship ''Beaver'' for most of the coastal trade. In 1842, John McLoughlin's son was in charge of Fort Stikine. Work felt he needed more help so he arranged for the junior clerk at Fort Stikine to be transferred to Fort Simpson. This left the young McLoughlin without any company support at his post. A few months later, McLoughlin was murdered and his powerful father blamed Work for transferring his son's only assistant away from Fort Stikine. In addition, it took over a year for Work to capture and send the three men involved in the murder south to Fort Vancouver. Work's relations with McLoughlin never recovered. Fortunately for Work, McLoughlin resigned from the company in 1846. A month later, Work was promoted to the rank of Chief Factor. Fort Victoria watercolour

In 1845, the Hudson's Bay Company decided to put the Columbia Department in the hands of three Chief Factors. In 1846, Work, Ogden, and James Douglas were selected to run of department. Work was placed in charge of the coastal trade including Forts Simpson, Fort Stikine,

Fort Langley Fort Langley is a village community in Township of Langley, British Columbia, Canada. It has a population of approximately 3,400 people. It is the home of Fort Langley National Historic Site, a former fur trade post of the Hudson's Bay Company ...

, and the ''Beaver''. Work's new job required extensive travel up and down the coast. In 1849, Work decided to abandon Fort Stikine and establish

Fort Rupert Fort Rupert is the site of a former Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) fort on the east coast near the northern tip of Vancouver Island, British Columbia. The unincorporated community on Beaver Harbour is about by road southeast of Port Hardy. Coal & ...

to exploit

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other Chemical element, elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal i ...

deposits on the northern part of Vancouver Island. When the miners went on strike in 1850, Work went by canoe from Fort Simpson to Fort Victoria to consult with Douglas. He then went by canoe to Fort Rupert and successfully persuaded the miners to go back to work. In 1849, Work settled his large family at Fort Victoria where his children could get an education. However, Fort Simpson remained his headquarters until 1851. In 1852, Work purchased 823 acres of farmland north of the Fort Victoria and built a fine home there. A year later, Governor James Douglas appointed Work to the Legislative Council of Vancouver Island. Work supported Douglas in the controversy surrounding the appointment of

David Cameron David William Donald Cameron, Baron Cameron of Chipping Norton (born 9 October 1966) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016. Until 2015, he led the first coalition government in the UK s ...

as chief justice of Vancouver Island. He opposed the establishment of an assembly for the colony because there were "so few people to govern" and "nobody to pay taxes to cover expenses." Work also continued his duties as Chief Factor of the Hudson's Bay Company, acting as a trustee for its Fur Trade Branch which purchased land for settlers who could not afford the required minimum 20-acre lots at £1 per acre. For two month in 1861, Work was acting governor while Douglas was away on business. Work remained both a Chief Factor for the Hudson's Bay Company and a member of the Legislative Council until his death in December 1861.

Family

In 1825, Governor Simpson suggested that Work marry the daughter of a Cayuse Indian chief, to secure good relations with the Native Americans living in along the Columbia River. Work did not follow the governor's advice. Instead, he married Josette Legace, a mixed-blood woman from the

Spokane tribe The Spokan or Spokane people are a Indigenous peoples of the Northwest Plateau, Native American Plateau tribe who inhabit the eastern portion of present-day Washington (state), Washington state and parts of northern Idaho in the United States o ...

in 1826. Work's wife accompanied him on many of his trading expeditions. In addition, she and their younger children lived with him at Fort Simpson from 1836 until 1849, while their older children attended school at Fort Vancouver and then at the

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

mission school A mission school or missionary school is a religious school originally developed and run by Christian missionaries. The mission school was commonly used in the colonial era for the purposes of Westernization of local people. These may be day s ...

on the Willamette River near what is now

Salem, Oregon Salem ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County, Oregon, Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, w ...

. After finishing their schooling in 1841, the older girls joined the family at Fort Simpson. In 1849, Work moved his family to Fort Victoria so the younger children could get an education. Work settled his family on an 823-acre farm north of the fort and built a large home there, which he called ''Hillside''. By 1859, he owned over 1,800 acres, making him the largest private landowner on Vancouver Island. Because of his remote assignments and constant travel, Work and his wife were unable to have a formal wedding until 1849. The couple was finally married in a church ceremony on 6 November 1849 at Fort Victoria. Work was the father of eleven children, three boys and eight girls. * Jane, born at Fort Colvile in 1827, married

William Fraser Tolmie William Fraser Tolmie ( "Dr. Tolmie") (February 3, 1812 – December 8, 1886) was a surgeon, fur trader, scientist, and politician. He was born in Inverness, Scotland, in 1812, and by 1833 moved to the Pacific Northwest in the service of ...

in 1850 * Sarah, born at Fort Colvile in 1829, married Roderick Finlayson in 1849 * Leticia, born in Idaho in 1831, married Edward Huggins in 1857 * Margaret, born at Fort Vancouver in 1836, married E. Jackson in 1861 * Mary, born at Fort Simpson in 1837, married James Allan Grahame in 1860 * John, born at Fort Simpson in 1839 * Catherine, born at Fort Simpson between 1840 and 1842, married C. Wallace in 1861 * Suzette, born at Fort Victoria in 1843, married Edward Gawler Prior in 1878 * Henry, born at Fort Simpson in 1844 or 1845 (died in an accident at a young age) * David, born at Fort Simpson in 1846 * Cecilia, born at Fort Simpson in 1849, married C. Jones in 1870 Several of Work's sons-in-law were also well known Hudson's Bay Company employees, including Doctor

, Roderick Finlayson, Edward Huggins, and James Allan Grahame.

Legacy

Work chronicled his trading expeditions in sixteen meticulously kept journals, covering the period from July 1823 to October 1835 plus one additional trip in 1851. Although his journals are written as matter-of-fact business correspondence, they provide a detailed record of the

Oregon Country Oregon Country was a large region of the Pacific Northwest of North America that was subject to a long Oregon boundary dispute, dispute between the United Kingdom and the United States in the early 19th century. The area, which had been demarcat ...

in the early 19th century. His journals have survived intact, making them among the oldest first-hand accounts of land features, native peoples, and the Hudson's Bay Company fur trading operations in the Pacific Northwest. As such, they are important historical records. In addition, there are many geographical features in the Pacific Northwest named in honor of John Work.

Mount Work Mount Work is a mountain in the Gowlland Range on southern 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 ...

, in the

Gowlland Range The Gowlland Range is a low, small mountain range on southern Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, located just east of Saanich Inlet and south of Brentwood Bay. It has an area of and is a subrange of the Vancouver Island Ranges which in ...

flanking the east shore of

Saanich Inlet Saanich Inlet (also Saanich Arm) is a body of salt water that lies between the Saanich Peninsula and the Malahat, British Columbia, Malahat highlands of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. Located just northwest of Victoria, British Colum ...

and just northwest of Victoria, is named for him, Most of the range is in Mount Work Regional Park. Also named for him is Work Point at the west end of the

peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

. Other locations named for him include Work Channel, on the northeast side of the Tsimpsean Peninsula, just northeast of

Prince Rupert Prince Rupert of the Rhine, Duke of Cumberland, (17 December 1619 ( O.S.) 7 December 1619 (N.S.)– 29 November 1682 (O.S.) December 1682 (N.S) was an English-German army officer, admiral, scientist, and colonial governor. He first rose to ...

and near Fort Simpson, where he had served as Chief Factor; Work Bay in Finlayson Channel; and Work Island near Butedale.

References

External links