Alexander Hunter Murray
HBC fur trader, artist, and founder of Fort Yukon.
Alexander Hunter Murray (born 1818 or 1819, died 20 April 1874) worked as a fur trader and artist for the Hudson’s Bay Company. He is best remembered for founding the trading post at Fort Yukon, and for his drawings and journal entries that recorded the lives of local First Nations peoples.
Records from Edinburgh’s General Register Office show four brothers registered in Crawfordjohn, Lanarkshire: Thomas Hunter Murray (25 October 1813), Alexander William Hunter Murray (22 October 1815), William Murray (13 April 1817), and Ebenezer Murray (21 May 1819). By 1841, Alexander, William, and Ebenezer had all reached Canada, but steady work proved scarce. Alexander joined the American Fur Company in 1842, then moved to the Hudson’s Bay Company in 1846. He married Anne Campbell, and the couple had eight children; their eldest, Helen, was born at Fort Yukon.
According to the Hudson’s Bay Company Archives in Winnipeg, Murray worked for the American Fur Company before being hired by the Hudson’s Bay Company in 1845. His employment record ends with “1864–1865 allowed furlough” and lists a range of roles. In 1847, he built the Fort Yukon trading post where the Yukon and Porcupine rivers meet, on Gwichʼin territory. Though the post lay within what was then Russian Alaska, the Hudson’s Bay Company operated there until the U.S. government forced them out in 1869, after the Alaska Purchase. Murray produced many sketches of trading posts and people, and wrote *Journal of the Yukon, 1847–48*, which offers a detailed look at the culture of local First Nations groups. On 4 April 1975, Canada Post issued an 8¢ stamp titled “Dance of the Kutcha-Kutchin” as part of its Indians of Canada, Subarctic series. The stamp, designed by Georges Beaupré, was based on a Murray drawing from 1851 held by Library and Archives Canada in Ottawa, and was printed by Canadian Bank Note Company, Limited with perforations 13.5.
- born
- 1818 or 1819
- died
- 20 April 1874
- field
- Fur trader, artist
- nationality
- British (Scottish-born, worked in Canada and Russian Alaska)
- known_for
- Establishing Fort Yukon; sketches and Journal of the Yukon, 1847–48
Lore & Background
According to Parish Registers in Edinburgh, four brothers were registered at Crawfordjohn, Lanarkshire: Thomas Hunter Murray (1813), Alexander William Hunter Murray (1815), William Murray (1817), and Ebenezer Murray (1819). Alexander, William, and Ebenezer were all in Canada by 1841 but found steady work difficult. Alex joined the American Fur Company in 1842 and the Hudson's Bay Company in 1846. He married Anne Campbell, and they had eight children, the eldest, Helen, being born at Fort Yukon.
Reader's Guide
Alexander Hunter Murray's significance lies in his dual role as a fur trader and documentarian. By establishing Fort Yukon in 1847, he extended Hudson's Bay Company operations into a region then claimed by Russia, a venture that lasted until the Alaska Purchase. His sketches and journal provide rare visual and written records of Gwichʼin culture and fur trade life in the mid-19th century. The enduring value of his work is evidenced by its use in a 1975 Canada Post stamp, 'Dance of the Kutcha-Kutchin,' based on his 1851 drawing. Murray's records remain a primary source for historians studying the subarctic fur trade and Indigenous peoples of the Yukon.
Did You Know?
- His eldest child, Helen, was born at Fort Yukon.
- He joined the American Fur Company in 1842 and the Hudson's Bay Company in 1846.
- A 1975 Canada Post stamp featured his drawing 'Dance of the Kutcha-Kutchin'.
- His employment record with the Hudson's Bay Company ends with '1864-1865 allowed furlough'.
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