Fraser, Simon

Fraser, Simon, Scottish nobleman

Fraser, Simon: see Lovat, Simon Fraser, 11th Baron.

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Fraser, Simon, Canadian explorer

Fraser, Simon, 1776–1862, Canadian explorer and fur trader. Born in Bennington, Vt., he was taken to Canada as a child. He entered the service of the North West Company in 1792, and in 1801 he was made a partner. In 1805 he was chosen to inaugurate the company's operations beyond the Rocky Mts., and after exploring and establishing trading posts on the upper reaches of the Fraser River, he and John Stuart and 20 companions explored (1808) the same river to tidewater. It was one of the most difficult and dangerous exploration trips on record in North America. He was disappointed to discover that the river he had explored was not the Columbia as he had hoped. In 1811, Fraser was placed in charge of the important Red River department of his company, where he came into conflict with the earl of Selkirk over the Red River Settlement. Fraser's journals of the expedition were edited by W. K. Lamb (1960).

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Fraser, Simon

(born May, 20, 1776, Mapletown, N.Y.—died Aug. 18?, 1862, St. Andrews West, Canada West) Canadian explorer and fur trader. In 1784 he moved to Canada, where he became a clerk (1791) and later a partner (1801) in the North West Co. In 1805 he set out to find more suitable trade routes for the fur company. He discovered a river (later Fraser River) that he mistook for the Columbia River, realizing his error only after having followed its course for more than a year. In 1817, as head of the company's Red River Valley department, he was arrested for his alleged participation in the Seven Oaks Massacre. After his acquittal, he retired to Ontario. Simon Fraser University is named for him.