Anthony Henday
Anthony Henday was a British explorer associated with the Hudson's Bay Company, active from 1750 to 1762. He is recognized for being one of the first European men to explore deep into Canada's interior, although specific details of his life prior to his exploration career remain vague. Born around December 24, 1725, in Shorwell on the Isle of Wight, Henday's early life was marked by modest means and social challenges. His work with the Hudson's Bay Company began in 1750, where he rapidly advanced under the guidance of James Isham, who advocated for inland exploration.
Henday's notable journey commenced on June 26, 1754, and included significant interactions with Indigenous groups, although accounts of his travels are inconsistent due to multiple surviving copies of his journal. His explorations led to the establishment of regular trade routes with various tribes, despite encountering challenges such as competition with French traders. After leaving the Hudson's Bay Company in 1762, Henday felt underappreciated for his contributions. While his later life remains largely undocumented, his legacy endures as an influential figure in the history of Canadian exploration and Indigenous relations, serving as a symbol of early exploration and its complexities.
Anthony Henday (explorer)
Laborer, net maker, explorer
- Born: December 1, 1725
- Birthplace: Isle of Wight
- Died: 1762
- Place of death: Unkn own
Significance: Anthony Henday was the first European man to explore inland into the wild Canadian west.
Background
Anthony Henday was a British explorer who worked for the Hudson’s Bay Company from 1750 to 1762. He was credited with the achievement of being the first white male to have travelled far into the Canadian inlands. While the exact date of his birth is unknown, early records show that Anthony Henday might have been baptized on December 24, 1725 in the village of Shorwell, on the Isle of Wight. His parents, Anthony and Mary Hendy received poor relief funds from their local parish and further supplemented their earnings through taking care of the parish children. The early life of Anthony Henday was mired in occasional poverty. His father was a yeoman who earned a small piece of cultivatable land. Records from the Hudson’s Bay Company show that Anthony Henday was classified as a laborer. This classification is speculated to have originated from his father’s social status.
Anthony Henday’s original journal about his travels into the Canadian west has not survived. Four copies of his journal survive and they contradict one another at different points. This makes it impossible to ascertain the authenticity of the exact chain of events that might have taken place during his journey. Even with the inconsistencies in information, what cannot be denied is that Anthony Henday’s journey into the Canadian west was a staggering success. This success prompted the Hudson’s Bay Company to change their policy to support many inland journeys by many other travelers who wanted to follow Henday’s footsteps.
Life’s Work
The British government outlawed Henday as a smuggler in 1748. This fact was unknown to the Hudson’s Bay Company when he was hired as a laborer and net maker in the year 1750. Henday’s superior at York Factory was James Isham. Isham would later prove to be an important catalyst for Henday’s rise through the ranks of the Hudson’s Bay Company. In fact, James Isham had been suggesting the company send employees inland to set up trading posts since 1743. The Hudson’s Bay Company was looking to improve their returns through interior trade and the blueprint of Henday’s journey was already set well before he was employed by the company. Henday’s travels to Split lake with a group of natives in March 1754 was thought to have been an exercise for the bigger journey that was ahead of him.
Anthony Henday left for his great inland journey on June 26, 1754. He was accompanied by a group of natives. The leader of the group was named Little Deer. On the date of 22 July, the group reached the French outpost at fort Paskoyac near the Saskatchewan River. The French traders who were posted there stopped Henday and his group. The four copies of Henday’s journal are contradictory on exactly how he managed to keep travelling west after being stopped. The next part of Henday’s journey is even more confusing because of more inconsistencies in the copies of his journal. The only common element is that the natives travelling with him were joined by their families after the group crossed the Saskatchewan River. The overwhelming numbers of Henday’s group is thought to be why French to let him carry on. On October 14 Henday reached present day Alberta in western Canada, where he came in contact with the Archithinue, with whom he was hoping to trade. Here, Henday made his proposal to the Archithinue chief about sending some of the young men back with him to York Factory to trade. In response the chief pointed out that the journey was too arduous and most of his tribe did not know how to use the canoes that were necessary for crossing the Saskatchewan River. The meeting with the Archithinue tribe was not a success. Henday eventually moved along towards Innisfail, Red Deer. At this point he might have been in sight of the Canadian Rockies, but no mention of this is made in his journal.
Anthony Henday had mixed success on his travels back to York Factory. While paddling down the Saskatchewan River, bands of native people from different tribes joined his group to trade with the company. The downside of this development was that most of the natives ended up trading their best fur with the French traders at Fort Paskoya. Only a quarter of the furs actually managed to make it back to York Factory. Anthony Henday’s journey came to an end on June 23, 1755. The legacy of this journey left the Hudson’s Bay Company in regular trade with different native peoples.
Anthony Henday was not a man who liked to remain passive. Only a week into his return to York Factory, Henday set off inland again in the company of a young man named William Grover. This expedition was not a success as Grover was unable to stand the pressure of the grueling journey and was forced to go back. Ill health was also becoming an issue for Henday. This became apparent when he failed to complete an expedition sanctioned by James Isham in 1756 due to ill health. Before leaving the Hudson Bay Company’s service in 1762, Anthony Henday managed one more journey into the Canadian west in 1759. No journal exists of this particular expedition but the results were an overwhelming success as large groups of native people returned with Henday. Anthony Henday left the services of Hudson’s Bay Company because he felt he was not getting the recognition he deserved or being paid the wages that were appropriate for his skills.
Impact
Anthony Henday meant different things to generations of scholars who perceived his achievements through the lens of the particular era in which they lived. The written works about Henday recognize him as an explorer, social scientist, and as a symbol. Henday single-handedly managed to inspire inland journeys into the Canadian wilderness for a whole generation of explorers. His humble origins and the context of his rise as an experienced wanderer helped serve as a symbol of the true spirit of exploration.
Personal Life
Not much is known about Anthony Henday and his personal life. A truly accurate record of the progression of his life begins with his employment in the Hudson’s Bay Company in 1750 and ends with his resignation in 1762. Nothing is known of what happened to Anthony Henday after this date.
Bibliography
Belyea, Barbara. "Henday, Anthony." Encyclopedia of the Great Plains. University of Nebraska—Lincoln, 2011. Web. 25 Jan. 2016. <http://plainshumanities.unl.edu/encyclopedia/doc/egp.ea.015>.
Stephen, Scott P. A Puzzle Revisited: Historiographic and Documentary Problems in the Journal of Anthony Henday. National Library of Canada, 1997. Web. 25 Jan. 2016. <http://mspace.lib.umanitoba.ca/bitstream/handle/1993/1753/MQ52736.pdf;jsessionid=05A9CCAA2024A62161F8D03B9915D199?sequence=1>.
Warkentin, Germaine. Canadian Exploration Literature. Toronto: Oxford UP, 1994. Print.
Wilson, Clifford. "Henday, Anthony." Dictionary of Canadian Biography. Vol. 2. University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003. Web. 27 Jan. 2016. <http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/henday‗anthony‗3E.html>.