St. Charles City Republican intelligencer. [volume] (St. Charles City [Charles City], Iowa) 1857-1861, 1861-02-07
Selkirk Settlement,
OR THE RED RIVER or THE NORTH.

OR THE RED RIVER or THE NORTH.
If the reader will take the trouble
to look npon the map of the great
Northwest, he will discover, laid
down upon it, beautiful River of the
larger class running in a due north
course until it discharges its waters
in Winnipeg Lake and from thence
into Hudson's Bay. This river has
its source in Lake Travcrs and for
nearly two hundred miles forms the
dividing line between the State of
Minnesota and Dacotah Territory
thence it passes through the British
possessions.
But little has been known Of the
country travcrsed by this river until
quite recently. A year and half ago
some entcrprising American traders
conceived the idea of applying steam
navigation to the Red River, and a
small steamboat was actually taken
across the portage from the waters
that flow towards the tropics, and
launched in the Red River whose
waters flow into the Polar Seas. This
steamer was called the IAason Norihup
The journey to Red River is usually
made, from St. Paul, by passing up
the Mississippi River, via. St. Cloud
to Crow Wing, thence leaving the
Mississippi, taking north-wcsterly
course, and touching the Red River at
its confluence with Buffalo creek,
about l20 miles south of Pcmbina, a
settlement in Minnesota at the south
ern boundary of the British posses
sions From the descriptions of
traveller, given in in a late number of
Harpcr's Magazine, VIC learn that the
banks of the Red River arc thickly
wooded with elm, oak and poplar, and
this wall of trees is at the travellers
right throughout the journey down
the river, always bounding the eastern
horizon. This general prospect is
varied by lines Of timber stretching
away to the west and marking the
course of the tributaries of Red River
from that direction. All else is prai-
ric.
But few human habitations are
found in all this region, with the ex-
ccption of the small settlement at
Pembina, until passing into the British
dominions. About sixty miles down
the river from Pembina is the junction
of the Assiniboin river with the Red
River-thc former coming in from the
west 1t was here that the Earl OF
Sclkirk, more than fifty years ago
planted his colony, and here are situ-
ated Fort Garry and Fort Assiniboin,
the former just below the mouth of
the Assiniboin river and on the west
bank of the Red River, and the latter
directly opposite on the cast bank Of
the Red River.
Here in this far-off country, isolated
from all the world without, is settle.
ment of more than six thousand souls
including those scattered along the
valley from Pcmbina northward. There
arc four parishes in Red River settle
ment, St. Boniface, St. Norbet, St
Francis Xavier, and St. Charles-al
Catholic. The English have thei
Episcopal church, and the Scotch thei
Presbyterian. The Scotch settlers
who occupy with the English the POI
ton of the settlement around For
Garry, are mostly farmers. The hall
breeds are generally Catholics an,
live mostly by hunting.
There are seventeen schools in tn
settlement, generally under the su
pervision of the ministers Of the de
nomination to which they belong
One parish at the lower or northcr
extremity of the settlement, called tn
Indian parish, comprises populatio
' as follows:
Half breeds and natives .....S SIG
S.atcb 11S