North West Company Fort on the South Bank of the Qu'Appelle River

28-Sept-1932 T.T. Selby letter to Dr Stewart, MB Historical Society

Over a number of years in the 1930's, Thomas Tresham Selby corresponded with Dr. Stewart, President of the Manitoba Historical Society.  Having spent almost 50 years living in the area around Fort Ellice (St. Lazare), Thomas T. Selby had been researching the location of forts and local histories from the area. In the fall of 1932, Thomas T. Selby sent a letter to Dr. Stewart with a number of pages of information attached.  Copies of these records are included below and can be found at the Archives of Manitoba.

One of the document details the North West Company Fort on the banks of the Qu'Appelle River. Thomas indicated the fort was probably located on Section 29-17-30 West of the 1st Meridian and about 2 miles south of Welby on the C.N.R rail line. A digitized copy of the written document is on the right and I've transcribed the text below:

28-Sept-1932 T.T. Selby letter regarding North West Company Fort on the south bank of the Qu'Appelle River.

I visited the above site a short time ago. It is situated about two thirds of the way down the south bank of the Qu'Appelle River and surrounded by bush. It seems to me to have been about 150 feet square and the cellars are still most plainly visible, as are others which must have been outside the fort proper, also some fallen chimneys. A place was pointed out to me where the gun powder was stored, also the well. The road leading from the valley to the Fort is easily traced. I presume the N.W. Co.'s fort still spoken of by the natives as having stood side-by-side with the H.B. Fort near the Cut Arm may have been this one.

I was accompanied on this trip by Alex Hayden, whose wife is one of four sisters still living, grand-daughter of the Indian girl who survived the massacre in 1805. 
[Dated] 28th Sep 1932