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38-612: Construction of Revelstoke Dam started in 1978, and was completed in 1983. Areas inundated by the dam include the Dalles des Morts or "Death Rapids", which was the stretch of canyon just above the dam's location, and various small localities along the pre-inundation route of the Big Bend Highway , which was the original route of the Trans-Canada Highway until the building of its Rogers Pass section. Just below

76-657: A First Nations gallery opened in 2009, with exhibits about the art, history and culture of the Secwepemc (Shuswap) , Okanagan and Ktunaxa peoples. Sinixt are not included in the exhibit, but also consider the Revelstoke Dam to fall within their territory. There is also a theatre, gift shop, and outdoor walkway across the top of the Powerhouse. BC Hydro completed an expansion to add a fifth unit. The unit went online in 2011 and added 500 MW capacity, bringing

114-556: A half feet wide in midships, with both ends sharp, and without a keel—worked, according to the circumstances of the navigation, with paddles, or with oars." From Fort Vancouver in the west, the express route ran up the Columbia River past the posts of Fort Nez Perces , Fort Okanogan , and Fort Colvile to Boat Encampment (today under Kinbasket Lake ). It then followed the Wood River and its tributary Pacific Creek to

152-439: A harrowing survival ordeal, and a confession of cannibalistic survival: Dalles des Morts [mis-spelled "Dalle de Mort" on Trutch's 1871 map of British Columbia.] The French form originated with NWC voyageurs in 1817, when seven men were wrecked here and all their food was lost. They began walking along the river hoping to reach Spokane House, the nearest establishment, over 300 miles (480 km) away. High water forced them up into

190-603: A pun on the staircase-like stones underneath some rapids and also on the rapidly draining narrow chutes that typify a "Dalles". In the case of Dalles des Morts, the pun carries the extra weight of "gravestone", as that is the usual meaning of the phrase in French. The more famous "Dalles" in the Pacific Northwest is the namesake of The Dalles, Oregon , which was the site of the Grand Dalles de la Columbia and also

228-659: A shipment might be lost at sea or attempting to cross the bar at the mouth of the Columbia River. The furs acquired by trading and trapping during the previous year were sent back on the supply ships and sold in London in an annual fur sale. The York Factory Express evolved from an earlier route used by the Montreal-based North West Company (NWC). During the War of 1812 the NWC and their American competitors,

266-817: The Committee's Punch Bowl at the summit of Athabasca Pass. The route then travelled down the Whirlpool River and the Athabasca River to Jasper House and Fort Assiniboine , then overland 130 km (80 mi) to Fort Edmonton . (In 1848, the western end of the portage shifted to Athabasca Landing and used the Athabasca Landing Trail ). From there, it continued down the North Saskatchewan River and Saskatchewan River to Lake Winnipeg and via Norway House on

304-770: The Pacific Fur Company (PFC), struggled commercially over the Columbia River basin. At the mouth of the Columbia was the principal station of the PFC, Fort Astoria , established in 1811 and named after its principal owner, John Jacob Astor . Although it was under threat of confiscation by the British during the War of 1812, the PFC was peaceably liquidated in 1813, when Fort Astoria and its stock in trade were sold to

342-694: The Red River Colony to the Pacific Northwest. Upon arriving at Fort Vancouver , fourteen of them were relocated to Fort Nisqually , while the remaining seven families were sent to Fort Cowlitz . Despite this, arrangements with the Pugets Sound Agricultural Company , an HBC subsidiary, proved to be unsatisfactory for the settlers, who all gradually moved to the Willamette Valley . By 1825 there were usually two brigades, each setting out from opposite ends of

380-690: The York boat , was used to carry furs and trade goods along inland waterways in Rupert's Land east of the Rocky Mountains. The express brigades also used these boats, although they did not carry bulk cargo. The boats were named after their destination: York Factory, headquarters of the HBC, and may have been modeled after Orkney Islands fishing boats (themselves a descendant of the Viking long boat). The York boat

418-743: The British Government pressured the NWC to merge with the HBC. George Simpson , the Governor of Hudson's Bay Company, visited the Columbia District in 1824–25, journeying from York Factory. With the help of John Rowand , the Chief Factor at Fort Edmonton, George Simpson investigated a quicker route than previously used, following the Saskatchewan River and crossing the mountains at Athabasca Pass . This route

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456-566: The Columbia Express due to its destination (referring as much to the Columbia Department as to the Columbia River ). The 1838 Express had had a difficult journey from Fort Edmonton , and the party contained an unruly upper-crust greenhorn who had eloped with one of the daughters of HBC Governor Simpson, who during an ill-advised transit of the rapids panicked and jumped from the canoe with his wife in his arms, upsetting

494-484: The Columbia only a few miles above the rapids. Prospecting occurred along lower Downie Creek and the settlement survived until the inundation, unlike Laporte which vanished after the goldrush. The first run by the steamer Forty-Nine was in 1865 but made it only as far as the Narrows due to heavy ice, but the next year the steamer braved the rapids of the Narrows and in 1866 began regular service from Marcus to La Porte for

532-666: The Dalles per se. During the Big Bend Gold Rush from 1865 on, the Dalles des Morts marked the head of steamboat navigation on a route that stretched from Marcus, Washington Terr. via the Arrow Lakes to the port-boomtowns of La Porte and nearby Downie Creek , which lay at the foot of the rapids, and also at the foot of the portage to the goldfields on the creeks flanking the Goldstream River , which joined

570-448: The Fir: A Biography of David Douglas, Botanist, by A.G. Harvey; Harvard University Press, 1947, p.110) Source: Provincial Archives of BC "Place Names File" compiled 1945-1950 by A.G. Harvey from various sources, with subsequent additions "In 1817 a party of seven Nor'westers was sent back to Spokane House [from Boat Encampment ] because they were too ill to traverse the Rocky Mountains with

608-544: The HBC continued the practice of using canoe-like wooden-plank boats, as good birch bark was in short supply west of the Rockies. Called Columbia boats , they were specifically developed for use in the Columbia District and constructed on the Columbia River, especially at Fort Colvile , because cedar was available in that area. In the 1840s, John Dunn, a former HBC employee described the Columbia boat as "made from quarter-inch pine board, and are thirty-two feet long, and six and

646-629: The NWC, and several of its employees also joined the NWC. Renaming Fort Astoria as Fort George, the NWC developed an overland supply route from there to its inland depot at Fort William on Lake Superior . In the ensuing years, the NWC continued to expand its operations in the Pacific Northwest . Skirmishes with its major competitor, the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), had already flared into the Pemmican War . The conflict ended in 1821 when

684-723: The Petites Dalles or Little Dalles before the inundation of that portion of the Columbia. 51°31′N 118°30′W  /  51.517°N 118.500°W  / 51.517; -118.500 York Factory Express The York Factory Express , usually called "the Express" and also the Columbia Express and the Communication , was a 19th-century fur brigade operated by the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC). Roughly 4,200 kilometres (2,600 mi) in length, it

722-449: The almost impenetrable forest. One by one they died, the survivors resorting to cannibalism. The last one was found by Indians on the shore of Upper Arrow lake and was taken to Kettle Falls, whence he was conducted to Spokane House. His story that he had killed his last companion in self defence was not believed, and he was dismissed from the NWC service, escaping more serious punishment owing to lack of evidence against him. (from Douglas of

760-477: The annual York Factory Express of the Hudson's Bay Company , an annual shipment of goods, books, personnel and mail between York Factory and Fort Vancouver, a tradition that had continued an earlier annual journey by North West Company staff from Fort George to Fort William on Lake Superior. The westbound journey was known as the Autumn Express because of the time of year of its schedule, and also as

798-459: The canoe in the process and resulting in the death of all but one who had been aboard, including himself and his wife but sparing Matooskie , a native woman in the party who had lost her child in the journey via Athabasca Pass . She made her way to Fort of the Lakes , at the head of Upper Arrow, and was taken to Fort Colvile with her story. This happened in rapids below the Dalles des Morts, not in

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836-459: The dam was the location of La Porte , one of the boomtowns of the Big Bend Gold Rush and the head of river navigation via the Arrow Lakes and Columbia River from Marcus, Washington . The Revelstoke Dam Visitor Centre is located 5 km (3.1 mi) north of Revelstoke and is open seasonally. The centre features interactive exhibits, activities about the dam and hydroelectricity and

874-471: The duration of the gold rush . The other main route to the rush was via Pettipiece Pass from Seymour Arm on Shuswap Lake , another port town which sprang up at the end of the steamboat route from Savona's Ferry at the farther end of Kamloops Lake and accessed by a newly built but easy road from Cache Creek via the Semlin Valley to Savona's Ferry, today's town of Savona. From Kamloops Lake

912-496: The express route. Mail and furs from Red River, the Mackenzie and Columbia River Brigades then needed to be loaded on the ship returning to Britain by the second or third week of September. Each brigade consisted of about 40 to 75 men and two to five specially made boats and travelled at breakneck speed. Indians along the way were often paid in trade goods to help them portage around falls and navigable rapids. An 1839 report cites

950-413: The mistaken "Dalle des Morts". A dalles is a term from French as used by the voyageurs in the Pacific Northwest , adapted from the usual meaning of dalle as a flagstone, or in other contexts as a gutter on a ship's deck or bridge for the purpose of draining excess water. The context of "river rapids" does not turn up in French dictionaries, but appears to be a local variation on the usual meanings,

988-408: The rest of the party. Their canoes and provisions were lost at the rapids here. Without supplies, they proceeded on foot very slowly, as they were weak and had only water for sustenance (there being no berries at this time of year). On the third day, the first man died and his remains were eventually eaten by the survivors. This continued until only two men were left, La Pierre and Dubois. Only La Pierre

1026-825: The route ran via the South Thompson River , Little Shuswap Lake , and the Little River . Still others came to the goldfields on the longer route around the Big Bend from the East Kootenay and the Wild Horse Creek Gold Rush and Montana . The name was formally registered in English as Death Rapids on December 12, 1939, but rescinded on April 3, 1986, upon the inundation of the site by the reservoir. Joseph Trutch's 1870s map uses

1064-453: The route, Fort Vancouver on the lower Columbia River and the other from York Factory on Hudson Bay . The annual ship from Britain arrived at York Factory typically the first week in August, with the express canoe leaving for Canada by the second week in August. York Factory would be in a turmoil unpacking and repacking trade goods, mail, and special orders to send out to Hudson Bay posts along

1102-590: The route. This continued until 1846 when the Oregon Treaty was signed with the United States. Lands south of the 49th parallel north were in this partition of the Pacific Northwest awarded to the United States. This placed Fort Vancouver and several other important HBC stations within American territory. Columbia District headquarters was shifted to Fort Victoria on Vancouver Island. An inland boat,

1140-452: The total generating capacity of the dam to around 2480 MW. In 2009, the plant generated 6,361 GWh of electricity. By 2018, after the expansion, then plant generated 7,817 GWh of electricity. The dam was built to accommodate a sixth unit, also sized around 500 MW; a contingency plan to build the sixth unit is possible but not scheduled as of December 2018. Dalles des Morts Dalles des Morts , also known as Death Rapids in English,

1178-419: The travel time as three months and ten days—almost 42 km (26 mi) per day on average. These boats carried newly hired employees west and retiring personnel east. They also carried status reports, lists of furs collected through trading and trapping, and orders for supplies from Chief Factor Dr. John McLoughlin , superintendent of Columbia Department operations, and the other fort managers along

Revelstoke Dam - Misplaced Pages Continue

1216-476: Was a famously violent stretch of the Columbia River upstream from Revelstoke, British Columbia , Canada, now submerged beneath the waters of Lake Revelstoke . The rapids acquired their name after a dark series of events in 1817, when a crew of North West Company voyageurs lost their canoes and food during a traverse of the rapids and were forced to attempt the overland journey to Spokane House , with only one survivor being rescued by local native people after

1254-501: Was far too heavy to carry, and it was necessary instead to cut a path through the brush, lay poplar rollers, and laboriously drag the boat overland. West of the Rocky Mountains the rivers were obstructed by falls and rapids, so boats had to be light enough to carry on portages. In 1811 David Thompson of the North West Company introduced the use of canoes on the Columbia River, made of split or sawn cedar planks. The NWC and

1292-512: Was found alive and he maintained that Dubois had attempted to kill him, but he had succeeded in overpowering and killing him in self defence. La Pierre's story was doubted, but he couldn't be convicted on the evidence." (from Adventures on the Columbia River by Ross Cox; London, 1831; vol 2, p.184-84) See also The Kootenays in Retrospect, vol 1: Columbia River Chronicles, Edward Affleck, editor, 1976. In 1838, another even greater tragedy befell

1330-534: Was known as the York Factory Express on its eastbound journey in the spring, and as the Columbia Express or Autumn Express on its westbound journey in the fall back on the same route. Supplies and trade goods for the Columbia District were brought from Britain to Fort Vancouver every year by ship around South America, not overland via the York Factory Express route. Management at Fort Vancouver tried to maintain one year's extra supplies on hand in case

1368-400: Was preferable to the canoes used by North West Company voyageurs as a cargo carrier, because of its larger size, greater capacity, and improved stability in rough water. The boat's heavy wood construction also gave it an advantage in travelling through rocks or ice; it was more resistant to tears and punctures. That advantage became a disadvantage, though, when portaging was necessary. The boat

1406-445: Was the main overland connection between HBC headquarters at York Factory and the principal depot of the Columbia Department , Fort Vancouver . It was named "express" because it was not used to transport furs and supplies, but to quickly move departmental requisitions, reports, and correspondence, as well as personnel—new hires inland, retirees outbound, and Company officers being transferred or going on furlough. The express brigade

1444-473: Was well known by many Northwesters, but after the merger they refused to share knowledge of it with the HBC. It wasn't until John Rowand beat George Simpson to Fort Assiniboine by nearly a month and Simpson threatened to shut down Fort Edmonton that Rowand let Simpson know about this route. This route was thereafter followed by the York Factory Express brigades. James Sinclair was appointed in 1841 by Duncan Finlayson to guide over twenty settler families from

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