The area was explored by
Charles Bayly, the first overseas governor of the
Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), around 1675, and the original Fort Albany was established in 1679. The fort was named in honour of
Henry Stuart, 6th Duke of Albany. It was one of the original
Hudson's Bay Company trading posts, the others being
Moose Factory on the south shore of
James Bay, Charles Fort (later
Rupert House) on the east,
York Factory in the Port Nelson region, and New Severn (aka
Fort Severn). In these early days of the company, each fort was run by a governor, who served for a number of years and oversaw the company employees, managing the trade of their fort. This policy officially changed in the 1770s, and the company began establishing series of inland posts that fed into the coastal forts and factories, which would function as depots for storage and ports for trade back to
Europe. According to a report by long-time company factor Andrew Graham, by 1771, around the time of the change in policy, Fort Albany was staffed by 30 men in addition to the chief factor and his officers, and oversaw the sub-houses Henley House and East Main, each with eleven men governed by a sloop master. In 1777, Gloucester House was built 243 miles upriver from Henley House and in 1786,
Osnaburgh House was built at the outflow of Lake St. Joseph. This westward expansion significantly increased the trade of Fort Albany. In 1793, the Governor of Albany Fort established posts on the Rainy River and Winnipeg River. Posts supplied from the HBC-run Fort Albany competed with
North West Company men from Lake Superior and even HBC posts supplied from
York Factory, until the union of the two companies in 1821. Fort Albany was the headquarters of the Albany District of the Hudson's Bay Company, which, as of 1830, bordered
Severn District to its northwest,
Moose District to its southeast, the far western reaches of
Upper Canada to its south,
Lac La Pluie District to its southwest, and
Winnipeg District to its west. The east-flowing Albany River drew furs from as far west as
Lake St. Joseph. From there, a portage ran west to
Lac Seul, the
English River, the
Winnipeg River and beyond. A north-flowing branch, the
Kenogami River led upstream toward Lake Superior at
Wawa, Ontario and another branch, the
Ogoki River led toward Lake Nipigon. Following the 1821 merger of HBC with the North West Company, Albany District thrived, recovering from the decline in trade caused by competition while the supply of fur-bearing animals dwindled. In order to curb the extinction of fur-bearing animals, the Governor of Rupert's Land George Simpson established beaver preserves throughout the district.
Land transfer to Canada In 1868, the Hudson's Bay Company surrendered their North American territory known as Rupert's Land to
Great Britain, which then gave it to the newly-formed Dominion of
Canada with an 1869 "deed of surrender." Following this transfer to the Dominion, the province of
Ontario engaged in litigation, arbitration, and negotiation to define its northern and western borders. In 1878, arbitrators granted Ontario territory north to the English and Albany rivers, causing Fort Albany to become part of the province. The
Canada (Ontario Boundary) Act, 1889 officially expanded the province of
Ontario north to Albany River and west to
Lake of the Woods. At the suggestion of magistrate E. B. Borron, Ontario initially allowed the old HBC regime to manage the territory, until the province was able to more substantially take on its management, which began by appointing HBC officers as justices of the peace.
Treaty No. 9 In 1905,
Treaty 9 was signed by the Indigenous people living around Fort Albany, who had become concentrated in the area over the past few decades and who had been seeking a binding agreement with the government to protect their way of life. The signature of this treaty marked the legal creation of
Fort Albany First Nation. == See also ==