Fort Pic

 (1789-1895) - A fortified Fur Trading Post established before 1789 near the mouth of the Pic River in present day Ontario, Canada. Initially established by an independent fur trader, Gabriel Cotté and partners. Operations taken over by the North West Company in 1799 and then by the Hudson's Bay Company in 1821 when the two companies merged. Named Fort Pic after after the location on the Pic River. Abandoned sometime after 1865.

Independent Fur Traders (1789-1798)
Established before 1789 by Gabriel Cotté and his partners John Grant and Maurice Blondeau. In 1795 Cotté was succeeded by Pierre St. Germain who had previously owned the Michipicoten Post. The post then consisted of two buildings surrounded by a 193' by 145' stockade. The buildings were a 136' x 12' warehouse and a 30' x 20' house, both built using horizontal cedar log walls and bark roofing.

The post collected furs from the Pic and Black Rivers basins. Fort Pic was located on Lake Superior at the southern end of a long canoe route stretching north to Fort Albany (3) on James Bay.

North West Company (1799-1821)
In 1799 Baptiste Perreault took over Fort Pic as chief factor for the North West Company. Cotté's original buildings were extended. A 20' by 15' shed, and a five room great house were added along with a 15' by 18' stable. Other structures including a powder magazine/cellar had been added by 1804. Under Perreault the number of buildings grew to nine and the stockade was expanded to accommodate the increased number.

Hudson's Bay Company (1821-1895)
After the consolidation of the North West Company into the Hudson's Bay Company in 1821, Alexander McTavish took over the post as chief factor for the combined company. He remained as factor until 1827.

The post remained stockaded at least until 1823 and some vestiges of a palisade remained as late as 1847.

Post 1894
HBC records for the post end in 1894. It was found by visitors in 1881 still to be in operation only four buildings remaining. Parts of the stockade were still visible into the 1940s. HBC use of the site seems to have ended before 1914. A HBC store was established in 1888 in the nearby White River community.

Current Status
Some archeological remains. Excavations in 1957, 1960 and 1964. Located at the mouth of the Pic River on the west bank. Now a part of the Pic River Indian Reserve of the Ojibways of the Pic River First Nation.

See Also:
 * Hudson's Bay Company
 * Hudson's Bay Company Forts
 * North West Company
 * North West Company Forts

Sources:
 * Gall, Patricia L., The Excavation of Fort Pic, Ontario, Ontario Archaeology, Vol 10-5, 1967, page 34-63, Pdf
 * HBC Records - Pic #B-162 (1827-1894)

Links:
 * North American Forts - Pic River Posts
 * Wikipedia - Fort Pic