Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1940-04-20
Rv WALTER E. TAYLOR

CartOgTaphers preparing maps of
the upDeF Columbia river and
western Montana use many geo
graphical notes that were prepared
more than a century ago by the
great David Thompson, one Of
Montana's first pathfinders. 1t Is
fact that portions of this region
surveyed by Thompson have never
been surveyed since. Railroad
builders and highway engineers
have used ThOmpSOn's maps and
surveys often and have found
them TO be amazingly accurate. His
old surveys have been checked
often with the best modern instru-
ments and have been found TO con-
tain few errors.
Modern engineers shake their heads
and wonder how Thompson, i'll
equipped as he was, could have done
such perfect work under the conditions
under which he lived and travelled in
the first decade of the 18th century.
Lakes, mountains and rivers appear
with remarkable accuracy on his charts.
And surveying was merely hobby, or
sideline with Thompson, for he was
first of all a trader. He knew how to
find the easiest trails through the
mountains and when the railroads came
years later the surveyors discovered
6hat the trails followed by David
Thompson were the easiest grades for
railroad building The Northern Pacific
follows ThOmpson's old Indian lake
road" across western Montana and
Idaho.
Modern times mapmakerS agree with
J. B. Tyren, the Canadian author, who
wrote:
David Thompson was the greatest
hand geographer who ever lived. He
came down to Fort Churchill a IA
year-old boy from a London charity
home in 1884. While his greatest work
was being done he was never within
a thousand miles of any civilized
community"
T. C. Elliot, the Washington his
torian, says, In the year 1909 Just
two white men were enjoying life,
health and the pursuit of happiness,
or, to express it in one word of six
letters, living in the wide area of
country between the Pacific ocean and
the Rocky mountains and the 43d and
49th parallels of north latitude
and those two men were David Thomp-
son, an Englishman of Welsh descent,
and Finan Mcdonald, a full-blood
Thompson's assistant in the business
Of fur trading. He also helped Thomp-
son with his mapmaking.
First Real Montana Explorer
Lewis and Clark crossed western
Montana, but David Thompson was
the first man to do any real exploring |
there, and his work has been of use |
10 men ever since. But the world was I
aardy in giving David Thompson the
recognition he deserved. He died in |
poverty at Montreal In 1857. His body |
lies In an unmarked grave In Mont |
real cemetery. Efforts to locate 1t have /
not met with success.
j. B. Tyrell deserves much credit |
for giving David Thompson his right
ful place in history Tyrell, for many
years member Of the Canadian geo.
graphical survey, stated that his work
With that body convinced him that
1t one time or another some man had
lone very careful work In mapping the
northwest Tyreu discovered that that
nan had been David Thompson; and
ne also learned that at 20 Thompson
lad completed the task Of writing q
narrative of his northwestern travels,
N accurate narrative written from de-
allied day-by-day journals OF his wan
lerings In the northwest.
About a quarter of q century ago
Tyrell began a one-man campaign to
ct the world, especially the people Of
he northwest, know what they owed n
o the early works Of David Thompson.
lie made numerous speeches on the
ubject Of ThompSon's life and work
'efore historical societies and other