Did you know that TWO Fort Pelly's were built? - read on....
Historic Fort Pelly
Did you know that TWO Fort Pelly's were built? - read on....
Fort Pelly (1)
A North West Mounted Police post, and the headquarters for the Swan River District.
The Fort Pelly - Livingston Museum gives a very interesting count of the history of the area. Fort Pelly was built by the Hudson's Bay Company back in 1824. Fort Livingston was built by the North West Mounted Police in 1874. For a time Fort Livingston served as the capital for the North-West Territories.
The Archaeology and History of Fort Pelly 1: 1824 - 1856
Fort Pelly 1 was a Hudson's Bay Company post which operated in eastern central Saskatchewan from 1824 to 1856. The site was excavated by the Royal Saskatchewan Museum (formerly known as the Saskatchewan Museum of Natural History, Department of Natural Resources). Gil Watson supervised the field excavations, conducted in 1971, 1972 and 1974. Fifteen features, the palisades, and a large sample of artifacts were found. The report focuses on the archaeology and history of Fort Pelly 1. Emphasis is on the description and analysis of structural and artifactual data as they reflect the social and cultural aspects of the post #8217;s historic occupation. The historical, structural and artifactual analyses demonstrate Fort Pelly #8217;s importance and influence in the fur trade in the 19th century. They also reveal various social activities occurring at the Fort, the centers of these activities, the acquisition of goods from outside suppliers, and the degree of luxury enjoyed at the site.
Saskatchewan Tourism
Fort Pelly
GPS: 51d 46.69m N 102d 00.17m W 1382 feet
Location: 5 km's west of the town of Pelly and 10 km's south.
"The first Fort Pelly was constructed in 1824 by the Hudson's Bay Company on this low-lying flat close by the Assiniboine River. It soon was named headquarters for the Swan River district of the company's organization -- a district which included most of the area south of the Saskatchewan River system and west of Fort Ellice. In 1856, a new post was constructed a few yards from this site on higher ground not so liable to flooding. The old buildings continued in use for a number of years as warehouses and stables
The elbow of the Assiniboine River was an age-old meeting place for Indians. Only ten miles from the Swan River, it became strategically important in the fur trade after 1793. Until 1912, one or more trading posts operated at or within a few miles of the elbow. The H.B.Co. operated Marlboro House, 1793, and Albany House No. 1, 1795-98, about a mile south of here. Both had competing N.W.Co. posts alongside. Forts Hibernia No. 1, 1807, and Pelly No. 1, 1824-56, of the H.B.Co. stood a quarter mile north of here. Fort Pelly No. 2, 1856-1912, stood a quarter mile east of here. Trails from Fort Qu'Appelle and Fort Ellice forded the river near here. The H.B.Co. stern-wheeler 'Marquette' occasionally steamed this far from Fort Garry."
