The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1909-06-07
TR|UMPHAL PROGRESS 0F TRAIL
BLAZERS" GREETED BY THRONGS
Will Reach Winnipeg Fully Three Hours Ahead Schedule
of the Valleys Which Are Again Made Resound With Echong
Music of Steamboat Whistes-:HaH Century Since First
Steamer Piled Her Way Through Historic Waters

river on visit to Fort Garry to make
as they said, acquaintance with the
interesting people of Fort Garry"
About the same time as the machin-
cry of the Arson Northup was being
placed on the Red river, Captain j.
B. Davis and E. D. Robinson bought
the steamer "Freighter,' Mississippi
boat, and started up the Minnesota
river, intending to pass through Big
Stone lake and over the portage Of
Lake Traverse and down the Red
river.
Steamer Disabled
An accident, however, occurred 70
the steamer on Big Stone lake during
the winter of 1S60-61 and she was dis
abled and deserted and her works
were dragged along the banks of the
Red river to the Hudson Bay post at
Georgetown. Here Mr.. Burnbank
built the large steamer "Internation-
all a stern wheeler. fiat bottomed
vessel, which long remained the larg-
est Of the Red river fleet, indeed she
was rather too large for the shadows,
rapids and serpentine tunrings of the
Red. The International began her ca
reer in 1862, running to Fort Garry.
Until 1864 the trade on the Red river
was carried on by the Anson Northup
and the International, when the boats
were sold to n. w. Kitson, or in plain
er words. as it was said at ths time.
to tho Hudson's Bay company.
These years, Norman w. Kitson was
the chief factor in Red river steam
boat history. He lived in St. Boniface
and afterwards returned to ST. Paul
and managed the two steamers which
preserved the. monopoly OF the conf
pany.
Wall OF Exclusion.
When it served his purpose the An
son Northup was laid aside and the
International continued to run several
times a year. but only to carry Hud-
sons Bay freight. The wall of exclu-
sion 1S647O- was thus still kept up
and the settlers and importers were
compelled to use OK or pony carts for
ten years after the appearance of the
Anson Northup. which had promised
deliverance. The kitson line thus be-
came the representative of transpor-
tation monopoly, a trust or combine Of
the early days and Kitson was COM
modorc.
Finally new factor in steamboat
ing and also transportation by land
appeared in the person of James j.
Hill. In 1871 he took the situation on
the Red river in hand and built new
boat for Hill. Griggs & company. The
craft was named the Selkirk. and was
we'll suited to the draught of the river
and the rapids. The first trip to Win
nipeg was made April 20, 1871, and
of this trip a writer said: "She was
loaded to the hurricane decks with
freight and passengers. Even the
rates of the Selkirk were extortinate
and it is said the first cargo paid the
entire cost of the construction"
Landed at Lombard.
The SelkirK landed on the opposite
side of the river from the Internation-
al. not opposite Fort Garry, but at the
foot of Lombard street, where Banna-
tyne and Begg erected a warehouse.
But the owners of the Selkirk were
not satisfied with what they were get
ting and wanted to secure all the Red
river trade for themselves and their
next step was to invoke the aid of
the United States government, to
whom they claimed that the Interna-
tional was British bottom, and she
was stopped from running.
The action was bitterly condemned
by the settlers, who refused to give
the Hill lines their freight to carry,
and kitson got over his difficulty BY
becoming an American citizen, and hi;
boats were once more put on the rr.
His opposition to Hill & company
too strong and the other line began g.,
find itself in difficulties, and Hill,
Griggs & company were compelled to
sell to kitson. who assumed control of
the Selkirk, International and Dakota.
This. however. meant that the Kit
son monopoly was stronger than ever
and the people found 1t very hard to
bear. and steps were taken by the
Winnipeg merchants to form a COM
pany as opposition to Kittson, but to
do this they had to conform to the
laws as we'll
Winnipeg Company.
James Douglas was appointed man
ager of this company and work start
ed with capital of $4,000, most of
which was subscribed in Winnipeg.
Mr.. Douglas got over the trouble Of
laws by living between
Moorhead, Minn.. and Winnipeg. The
company built two beautiful steamers,
the hulls being brought from Cincin-
natl and the machinery from Minne-
apclis. The vessels were christened
the Manitoba and the Minnesota, and
the Manitoba made the first trip to
Winnipeg, arriving May 21, 1875, with
1862 cabin passengers. 157 deck pas
sengers and 365 tons of freight.
When this steamer arrived. Winnipeg
went wild over her and gave her a