About Alexander Mackenzie

Mackenzie was born (near) 1764 in Stornaway Scotland. In 1774, Alexander's father moved his family to New York due to an economic depression in Scotland. After attending school, Mackenzie moved to Montreal (Canada) to work for the fur trading company; Finaly and Gregory. Eventually, Mackenzie would take over a trading post at Ile a la Crosse, which merged with the Northwest Company in 1787. That same year, Mackenzie was assigned a post at Athabasca Lake along with Peter Pond (first in command) in order to explore the area, and open up new trading routes. After much controversy with Pond, Alex took up head of operations at the post, due to his indomitable will to find a trade route to the Pacific which he thought might be linked to Cook's River and the Great Slave Lake. Shortly after Pond left in 1788, Mackenzie established Fort Chipewyan on Athabasca Lake, as a base to find a trade route to the Pacific.