Fort Gibraltar

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In the early 19th century fur-trading was the main industry of Western Canada. Two companies had an intense competition over the trade. The first, the Hudson's Bay Company was a London, England-based organization. The second, the North West Company was based in Montreal. Hudson's Bay company was distinctly English in its culture and flavour while the North West Company was a mix of French, Scottish and First Nations cultures.

The voyageurs of the North West Company were a highly mobile group of fur traders. They established temporary encampments in the forks region that later became Winnipeg.

In 1809 the North West Company built Fort Gibraltar. The fort was erected in the vicinity of the Hudson's Bay Company's continental headquarters of Fort Douglas. It proved an irritant to the HBC for ten years. There were many conflicts between the mostly Scottish employees of the HBC and the NWC employees, who were mostly French-Canadians.

On March 17, 1816, Fort Gibraltar was captured and destroyed by Colin Robertson, a former NWC employee who became a leader of the Selkirk Colony. The capture was ruled illegal by British authorities and the North West Company was given permission to rebuild the fort in 1817.

Before eventually amalgamating with the Hudson's Bay Company, North West Company had 97 trading posts compared to the 84 in Manitoba that flew the Hudson's Bay Company standard.

On March 26, 1821, The North West Company was merged with its rival under the name of the Hudson's Bay Company.

In 1987, the Hudson's Bay company sold what remained of the North West Company to investors based in Winnipeg. The investors revived the name of the North West Company.

Today, the North West Company operates as a Winnipeg-based corporation and is one of the most successful retailers in Canada.

A reconstructed Fort Gibraltar located in Whittier Park in St. Boniface, Winnipeg was built in the late 1970's for the Festival du Voyageur, the largest winter festival in Western Canada.

[edit] Historical summary of Fort Gibraltar

• 1809 The North West Company builds Fort Gibraltar

• 1816 Fort Gibraltar is captured and destroyed by the Selkirk Colony

• 1817 Fort Gibraltar is rebuilt by the North West Company

• 1821 The North West Company merges with Hudson's Bay Company - Fort Gibraltar continues its operations under the Hudson's Bay Company standard

• 1822 Fort Gibraltar’s name is changed to Fort Garry

• 1835 Fort Garry is abandoned but its warehouses are still used

• 1852 Fort Garry is destroyed by the Red River flood

• 1978 Fort Gibraltar is rebuilt by the Festival du Voyageur