Henry Kelsey

Henry Kelsey entered the service of the Hudson's Bay Company as an apprentice boy in 1684, stationed at York Factory on Hudson Bay. Blessed with an extraordinary ear for languages, he mastered Cree and Assiniboine, adopting Indigenous survival techniques and winning the trust of local bands.

In 1690, the HBC sent Kelsey inland to encourage distant prairie tribes to trade at Hudson Bay. Traveling by canoe and on foot with Cree companions across present-day Manitoba and Saskatchewan, he became the first European to see the Canadian prairies, the immense herds of plains bison, and the grizzly bear. He later served as Governor of York Factory.