COMING TO AMERICA PARTS I - III

 

Big Medicine (aka Bert) & Mike (a voyageur great-grandson) 

COMING TO AMERICA PART I — Echoes of the Frontier: Ancestors on Both Sides of the Fur Wars

https://a-drifting-cowboy.blogspot.com/2026/03/coming-to-america-part-i-echoes-of.html

COMING TO AMERICA PART II — From Conquest to Exile: The Struggles of French Canadians Under British Rule, 1763–1830

https://a-drifting-cowboy.blogspot.com/2026/03/coming-to-america-part-ii-from-conquest.html

COMING TO AMERICA PART III — Threads of Liberty: Ancestral Rejections of British Dominion Across Scottish, French, and American Lines

https://a-drifting-cowboy.blogspot.com/2026/03/coming-to-america-part-iii-threads-of.html

A special thank you to Grok xAI for your research and enhancements of my family history. -- Drifting Cowboy

PART II — Comparing Alexander Mackenzie's 1793 Expedition to the Lewis and Clark Expedition

 

Alexander Mackenzie's 1793 journey across the Rockies to the Pacific Coast stands as a pioneering feat of North American exploration, but it shares intriguing parallels and contrasts with the more famous Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804–1806. Both ventures embodied the spirit of endurance, reliance on Indigenous knowledge, and the quest for transcontinental routes, yet they diverged in purpose, scale, and historical context. Below, I'll break down the key similarities and differences, drawing on the narrative flair of Mackenzie's story while highlighting how Lewis and Clark's Corps of Discovery built upon or echoed such earlier efforts.

Similarities

• Quest for the Pacific and Transcontinental Routes: Both expeditions aimed to find an overland path from the interior of North America to the Pacific Ocean. Mackenzie, starting from Lake Athabasca in what is now Canada, became the first European to cross the continent north of Mexico, reaching the Bella Coola River on July 22, 1793. Similarly, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, departing from near St. Louis, Missouri, followed the Missouri and Columbia Rivers to the Pacific, arriving at the mouth of the Columbia in November 1805. These journeys sought viable trade routes—Mackenzie for the fur trade, Lewis and Clark for American expansion into the newly acquired Louisiana Territory.
• Harsh Natural Challenges and Endurance: Each group faced extreme hardships from rugged terrain, weather, and wildlife. Mackenzie's party battled starvation, grizzly bears, and treacherous mountain passes, often on foot after abandoning canoes. Lewis and Clark encountered similar perils: grizzlies (famously, they killed several), near-starvation during bitter winters, and daunting crossings like the Bitterroot Mountains. Both relied on sheer grit, with journals recounting moments of desperation—much like Mackenzie's vermilion inscription on a rock, Lewis and Clark left markers and caches along their path.
• Crucial Role of Indigenous Knowledge and Hospitality: Indigenous peoples were pivotal to success in both cases. Mackenzie's expedition depended on Chipewyan and Sekani guides for navigation and survival, culminating in a warm welcome from the Nuxalk with salmon feasts, symbolizing cultural exchange. Lewis and Clark benefited immensely from Shoshone, Nez Perce, and other tribes, especially Sacagawea, a Shoshone woman who served as interpreter and guide. Encounters often involved feasts, trade, and shared knowledge—e.g., Nez Perce providing horses and food, mirroring the Nuxalk's generosity. These interactions highlighted a blend of European ambition with Indigenous expertise, though not without tensions.
• Scientific and Economic Motivations: Both documented geography, flora, fauna, and ethnography. Mackenzie's notes informed fur trade expansion, while Lewis and Clark's detailed journals (including plant specimens and animal descriptions) fulfilled President Thomas Jefferson's mandate for scientific discovery, aiding U.S. claims and commerce.

Differences

• Timing, Sponsorship, and National Context: Mackenzie's trek predated Lewis and Clark by over a decade, occurring in 1793 under the auspices of the North West Company, a British-Canadian fur trading firm. It was a private commercial venture driven by competition with the Hudson's Bay Company. In contrast, Lewis and Clark's was a government-funded U.S. military expedition (1804–1806), authorized by Jefferson post-Louisiana Purchase, with geopolitical aims to assert American sovereignty against British, Spanish, and Russian interests.
• Scale and Composition: Mackenzie led a small, agile group of about 10 men (voyageurs and Indigenous guides), emphasizing speed and minimal supplies. Lewis and Clark commanded a larger "Corps of Discovery" of around 33–45 members, including soldiers, interpreters, and even a dog (Seaman). This allowed for more structured operations, like building forts (e.g., Fort Mandan and Fort Clatsop), but also increased logistical challenges.
• Routes and Geography: Mackenzie's path was northern and Canadian-focused, traversing the Peace and Fraser Rivers, crossing the Rockies via the Grease Trail (an Indigenous trade route), and ending at Bella Coola, British Columbia—a shorter but more arduous 1,200-mile journey. Lewis and Clark covered about 8,000 miles round-trip through U.S. territories, following the Missouri River west, portaging over the Rockies, and descending the Snake and Columbia Rivers to present-day Oregon. Their route was more southerly, encountering diverse ecosystems from prairies to coastal rainforests.
• Outcomes and Legacy: Mackenzie's success proved an overland route existed but found it impractical for large-scale trade due to rapids and mountains; his book Voyages from Montreal (1801) inspired others, including Lewis and Clark, who reportedly read it. The Corps' return in 1806 fueled U.S. westward expansion, the Oregon Trail, and Manifest Destiny, with immediate impacts like strengthened claims to the Pacific Northwest. Mackenzie's feat, while groundbreaking, remained more tied to Canadian fur trade history and less mythologized in popular culture.

For a quick visual summary, here's a table comparing key aspects:

Aspect	Alexander Mackenzie (1793)	Lewis and Clark (1804–1806)
Duration	About 4 months (May–September)	Over 2 years (May 1804–September 1806)
Party Size	~10 (voyageurs, Indigenous guides)	33–45 (soldiers, interpreters, civilians)
Sponsorship	North West Company (private fur trade)	U.S. Government (Jefferson-commissioned)
Route	Canada: Lake Athabasca to Bella Coola, BC (~1,200 mi)	U.S.: St. Louis to Pacific via Missouri/Columbia (~8,000 mi round-trip)
Key Challenges	Starvation, grizzlies, Rocky Mountains	Grizzlies, winters, Bitterroots, disease
Indigenous Role	Guides (Chipewyan/Sekani); Nuxalk hospitality	Sacagawea as guide; trade with multiple tribes
Outcome	First European transcontinental crossing; inspired trade	Mapped West for expansion; boosted U.S. claims

In narrative terms, if Mackenzie's adventure crested with a grizzly-threatened ascent and a salmon-feast welcome, Lewis and Clark's echoed it on a grander scale—

Grok’s narrative

Lewis and Clark's Odyssey: Torrents of Fury and Beacons of Brotherhood

The Missouri River churned like a living beast under the keelboat Discovery's prow, its muddy waters frothing against the wooden hull as the Corps of Discovery shoved off from Camp Dubois near St. Louis on that fateful May morning in 1804. A haze of woodsmoke lingered in the air, mingling with the sharp tang of river mud and the earthy scent of blooming cottonwoods. Meriwether Lewis, his eyes sharp as a hawk's beneath a tricorn hat, scanned the horizon with a mix of scholarly curiosity and steely resolve. Beside him, William Clark, broad-shouldered and unflinching, barked orders to the ragtag crew of soldiers, French boatmen, and frontiersmen—thirty souls bound by Jefferson's grand vision: to pierce the veil of the unknown West, claim its rivers for commerce, and touch the Pacific's roaring edge.

The early days unfolded in a symphony of sweat and splendor. The Missouri twisted through the Great Plains like a coiled serpent, its banks alive with the thunderous gallop of bison herds—thousands of shaggy beasts kicking up dust clouds that choked the sky. Prairie winds howled like banshees, lashing the men's faces raw, while swarms of mosquitoes descended in buzzing black veils, their bites raising welts that burned like fire. Lewis, ever the scientist, paused amid the chaos to sketch a prairie dog popping from its burrow, its chirps cutting through the din, or to press a vibrant wildflower between journal pages stained with ink and sweat. Clark, mapping with charcoal-smeared hands, captured every oxbow and bluff, his voice steady as he rallied the men through sandbars that snagged their boats like hidden traps.

As golden autumn leaves swirled into the river, winter's icy grip seized them at Fort Mandan, a hasty stockade of cottonwood logs amid the snow-swept Dakota plains. Blizzards screamed through the nights, frost riming beards and blankets, temperatures plunging to forty below. But warmth bloomed in the earth lodges of the Mandan and Hidatsa villages nearby. Chiefs in buffalo-hide robes, their faces etched with ritual paint, welcomed the corps with crackling fires and steaming bowls of corn mush laced with dried berries. Stories flowed like mead—tales of spirit dances and ancient hunts—while the air thickened with the savory smoke of roasting dog meat, a delicacy that sustained them through the howling dark. It was here that Sacagawea entered their saga: a Shoshone teen, heavy with child, her dark eyes holding the quiet fire of the mountains. Married to the gruff interpreter Charbonneau, she offered her tongue for tongues unknown, her knowledge a compass in the wild.

With spring's thaw came renewal—and reckoning. The Missouri narrowed to a fury at the Great Falls, a cascade of whitewater thundering over ledges like the wrath of gods, mist rising in rainbows that mocked their toil. For eighteen grueling miles, the men portaged: backs bent under 3,500-pound loads, feet shredded on volcanic rock, muscles screaming in protest. Blisters burst into bloody sores, and the sun beat down like a hammer on an anvil. Starvation stalked them; they scavenged roots that tasted of bitter earth, boiled hides into gluey soup, and once, in desperation, devoured candles of tallow that sat heavy in their guts like stones.

Deeper into the wilderness, grizzlies emerged as nightmarish guardians. One colossal brute, its fur matted with mud and scars, charged Lewis through a willow thicket—eyes glowing amber fury, paws thundering the ground like war drums. Muskets cracked in a deafening barrage, powder smoke acrid in the throat; the beast absorbed eight balls before collapsing in a heap of steaming blood and guttural roars. "A most tremendous animal," Clark scrawled that night by flickering firelight, the men's hands trembling as they bandaged gashes, their laughter edged with the hysteria of survival.

The Bitterroot Mountains loomed as a frozen apocalypse: jagged peaks cloaked in September snow, trails vanishing into abysses of fog and ice. Horses' hooves cracked on slick granite, men slipped into chasms where echoes mocked their cries. Hunger clawed deeper—colts slaughtered for stringy meat, portable soup thinned to watery ghosts. Lewis's journal bled despair: "The most terrible mountains I ever beheld, where starvation and cold conspire against us." Visions of home flickered like dying embers, morale fracturing like the ice underfoot.

Yet, cresting the divide, hope ignited on the western flanks. The Nez Perce appeared like apparitions from the mist—tall warriors on appaloosa steeds, their quilled shirts vibrant against the evergreen backdrop. In their plateau villages, under skies streaked with eagle cries, a feast erupted: camas bulbs baked to caramel sweetness in earthen ovens, their nutty aroma mingling with the sizzle of salmon fillets over alder-wood flames. The fish's flesh, pink and flaky, dripped with river-fresh juices, restoring color to gaunt cheeks. Laughter echoed as Nez Perce elders shared pipe smoke and legends of Coyote the trickster, while teaching the corps to hollow ponderosa logs into sleek canoes, their axes ringing like bells of rebirth.

Down the Snake and Columbia they plunged, rivers raging through basalt gorges where waves crashed like tidal giants, soaking them in icy spray that numbed fingers to claws. Whirlpools sucked at paddles, cliffs loomed sheer and shadowed, but the Pacific's salt-kissed breeze whispered victory. Arriving at the ocean's mouth in November 1805, amid pounding surf and relentless rain, they tasted triumph laced with brine. Fort Clatsop rose from the sodden forest—logs slick with moss, roofs leaking like sieves—where Chinook and Clatsop hosts arrived with dugouts laden with bounty: elk haunches roasted to smoky perfection, eulachon fish rendered into golden oil that lit their lamps, and whale blubber chewy as jerky, its oceanic richness a balm against the chill.

The homeward trek in 1806 sealed their legend: maps unrolling the West like a treasure scroll, crates brimming with beaver pelts, pressed plants, and grizzly claws. Alliances forged in fire and feast—Shoshone horses bartered through Sacagawea's kin, Mandan corn sustaining the return—proved the expedition's heartbeat. Lewis and Clark returned as heroes, their odyssey a blaze of American audacity, but etched in their souls was the indelible truth: without the Indigenous beacons—their feasts, trails, and timeless wisdom—the corps would have perished in those grizzly-shadowed torrents. It was a saga of fury and fellowship, where the wild's wrath met humanity's unyielding hope, carving rivers into the map of a nation reborn.

PART I link: https://laprairie-voyageur-canoes.blogspot.com/2026/03/part-i-sir-alexander-mackenzie-overview.html

Thank you to Grok xAI for the historical updates and wonderful narrative. -- Drifting Cowboy

PART I — Sir Alexander Mackenzie: Overview and Expeditions

 

Sir Alexander Mackenzie (c. 1764–1820) was a Scottish-born fur trader and explorer who became one of Canada's most renowned figures in North American exploration.  Emigrating to North America as a child, he entered the fur trade in Montreal and rose through the ranks of the North West Company (NWC), a major rival to the Hudson's Bay Company.  Driven by the commercial goal of finding a viable trade route to the Pacific Ocean for furs, Mackenzie led two groundbreaking expeditions that expanded European knowledge of the continent's interior.  He was knighted in 1802 for his achievements and published his accounts in Voyages from Montreal, on the River St. Laurence, through the Continent of North America, to the Frozen and Pacific Oceans; in the Years 1789 and 1793 (1801), which influenced later explorers like Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. 

The 1789 Mackenzie River Expedition to the Arctic Ocean

Mackenzie's first major expedition aimed to find a northwest passage or direct route to the Pacific for the fur trade, inspired by earlier reports from traders like Peter Pond about a great western river.  Departing from Fort Chipewyan on Lake Athabasca (in present-day northern Alberta) on June 3, 1789, he led a small party including his cousin Alexander MacKay, French-Canadian voyageurs (paddlers and laborers), and Indigenous guides (primarily Chipewyan and possibly Slavey people).  They traveled in birchbark canoes loaded with provisions, trade goods, and astronomical instruments for navigation.

The route followed the Slave River north to Great Slave Lake, then descended what Mackenzie initially called the "River of Disappointment" (now the Mackenzie River) for over 1,000 miles through dense boreal forests, rapids, and mosquito-infested wetlands.  Encounters with Indigenous groups like the Dene provided guidance and food, but challenges included harsh weather, food shortages, and the midnight sun disrupting sleep.  On July 14, 1789, they reached the river's delta at the Arctic Ocean (near present-day Inuvik, Northwest Territories), confirming it was not the Pacific but a frozen northern sea.  The group observed whales, ice floes, and permafrost, noting the latitude around 69°N. 

The return upstream was grueling, battling currents and fatigue, arriving back at Fort Chipewyan on September 12, 1789, after covering over 3,000 miles in just over three months.  Though disappointed, Mackenzie's journey mapped vast new territories, established trade contacts, and proved the river's potential for northern expansion.  He later traveled to England to study navigation, improving his skills for future ventures. 

The 1792–1793 Peace River Expedition to the Pacific Ocean

Undeterred, Mackenzie launched a second expedition to reach the Pacific, departing Fort Chipewyan on October 10, 1792.  His party included Alexander MacKay, six voyageurs, two Indigenous attendants, and a dog, with canoes carrying 3,000 pounds of supplies.  They ascended the Peace River westward, wintering at a makeshift fort (Fort Fork) near present-day Peace River, Alberta, from November 1792 to May 1793, enduring extreme cold and hunting for survival.  Resuming on May 9, 1793, they navigated the Peace River's canyons, crossed the Continental Divide via portages, and descended the Parsnip and Fraser Rivers (near present-day Prince George, British Columbia). 

Local Sekani and Dakelh (Carrier) Indigenous peoples warned of dangers on the Fraser, so the group abandoned canoes and trekked overland through rugged mountains, following grease trails (ancient trade routes greased with oolichan oil) with packs up to 90 pounds each.  Assisted by Nuxalk (Bella Coola) people, they reached the Pacific at Dean Channel (near Bella Coola, British Columbia) on July 20, 1793.  Mackenzie inscribed on a rock: "Alexander Mackenzie, from Canada, by land, the twenty-second of July, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-three."  This made him the first European to cross North America north of Mexico, covering about 2,300 miles. 

The return journey retraced their steps, arriving at Fort Chipewyan on August 24, 1793.  The expedition opened new fur trade territories and demonstrated the feasibility of transcontinental travel, though the route proved too arduous for regular commerce. 

Legacy and Significance

Mackenzie's expeditions mapped over 4,000 miles of previously uncharted land, fostered alliances with Indigenous nations, and boosted the NWC's operations in the west.  His book advocated for British control of Pacific ports to dominate the fur trade to China, influencing imperial strategies.  The Mackenzie River and numerous sites bear his name, and his routes are preserved in trails like the Alexander Mackenzie Heritage Trail.  His work inspired U.S. President Thomas Jefferson to commission the Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804–1806), accelerating American westward expansion.  Mackenzie retired to Scotland in 1812, where he died at age 56. 

Grok’s Narrative… 

Mackenzie's Crossing: Endurance and Encounter

In the summer of 1793, the jagged spine of the Rocky Mountains loomed like the ramparts of an untamed fortress. Alexander Mackenzie, the fur trader turned explorer, led his small party of voyageurs and Indigenous guides through the unforgiving terrain. Their canoes had long been abandoned, replaced by weary feet trudging over snow-dusted passes and treacherous scree slopes. The air was thin, biting cold even in July, and the men's breaths came in ragged gasps. Starvation gnawed at their bellies—rations had dwindled to scraps of pemmican and the occasional hare snared in desperation. But worse than hunger were the shadows in the underbrush: grizzly bears, massive and unpredictable, their roars echoing through the valleys like thunderous warnings from the land itself.

Mackenzie's journal entries, scrawled by flickering campfire light, spoke of the peril. "The mountains rise interminably," he wrote, his quill trembling from exhaustion. "We press on, driven by the promise of the great western sea, yet each step courts death." One night, as the group huddled around a meager fire, a grizzly charged from the darkness. Its eyes gleamed with feral hunger, claws raking the earth. The men fired their muskets in a frantic volley, the beast retreating with a bellow that shook the pines. But the encounter left them shaken, wounds bandaged with torn cloth, and morale fraying like their threadbare coats.

Days blurred into a haze of hardship. Rivers turned to rapids that nearly claimed lives, and the party forded icy streams that numbed their limbs. Mackenzie, ever the stoic Scot, urged them forward with tales of glory and the fur trade's riches awaiting on the Pacific shores. His Indigenous companions—Chipewyan and Sekani hunters whose knowledge of the land was their true compass—shared stories of spirits in the peaks, reminding the group that survival demanded respect for the wild, not conquest.

At last, after weeks of torment, they crested the final divide. The world opened below them: a verdant descent toward the coast, where the Bella Coola River wound like a silver thread to the sea. Descending into the lush valleys, the air grew milder, scented with cedar and salt. But their trials weren't over yet—encounters with local peoples could turn hostile, as rivalries and misunderstandings simmered in this frontier.

It was in the Nuxalk village near the river's mouth that fortune shifted. The coastal people, masters of the bountiful Pacific, spotted the ragged band emerging from the forest. Instead of arrows or war cries, they offered open arms. Chiefs in cedar-bark cloaks approached, their faces painted with ochre symbols of welcome. "You have crossed the great divide," one elder said through gestures and halting trade pidgin, his voice warm as the summer sun. The Nuxalk, with their deep-rooted knowledge of the land and sea, saw not invaders but fellow travelers worn by the journey.

That evening, under a canopy of ancient firs, the feast began. Salmon, fresh from the river's run, roasted over open flames, their pink flesh flaky and rich with the ocean's essence. Halibut and eulachon were piled high, drizzled with oil from the fish's own bounty. Berries—huckleberries and salal—burst with sweetness, a stark contrast to the party's starvation fare. Mackenzie's men, gaunt and wide-eyed, ate until their stomachs protested, laughter mingling with the crackle of the fire. The Nuxalk shared songs of the sea spirits, tales of Raven the creator, weaving their wisdom into the night. In return, Mackenzie inscribed his name on a rock with vermilion: "Alexander Mackenzie from Canada by land 22d July 1793."

This moment epitomized the expedition's essence—a brutal test of human endurance fused with the invaluable Indigenous knowledge that made survival possible. 

Mackenzie's guides had navigated the Rockies' mazes, and now the Nuxalk's hospitality bridged the final gap to the Pacific. It wasn't just a crossing of continents; it was a convergence of worlds, where grit met grace, and the unknown yielded to alliance. Mackenzie returned east a hero, his path paving the way for future explorers, but he carried with him the unspoken truth: without the land's original stewards, his adventure would have ended in those grizzly-haunted heights.

PART II — Comparing Alexander Mackenzie's 1793 Expedition to the Lewis and Clark Expedition

https://laprairie-voyageur-canoes.blogspot.com/2026/03/part-ii-comparing-alexander-mackenzies.html

Thank you to Grok xAI for the historical updates and wonderful narrative. -- Drifting Cowboy