Alexander Henry (the elder)

Alexander Henry 'The Elder' (August 1739 – 4 April 1824) is one of the leading pioneers of the British-Canadian fur trade following the British Conquest of New France; a partner in the North West Company, and a founding member and vice-chairman of the Beaver Club.

In 1763-64, he lives and hunts with Wawatam of the Ojibwa, who had adopted him as a brother.

"Blessed with as many lives as a cat," his time with the Ojibwa and subsequent explorations are retold in his Travels and Adventures in Canada and the Indian Territories between the years 1760 and 1776 (published New York, 1809), which he dedicates to his friend Sir Joseph Banks.

The book is considered an adventure classic and one of the best descriptions of Native Indian life at this time.

An "easy and dignified" raconteur, in 1776 Henry is invited to give an account of his journeys at the Royal Society in London and at Versailles to Queen Marie Antoinette.

In the 1780s, Henry introduces John Jacob Astor into the Canadian fur trade and subsequently Astor stays as Henry's guest during his annual visits to Montreal.

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