Kootanae House

Kootanae House, also spelled Kootenae House, was a North West Company fur trading post built by Jaco Finlay under the direction of David Thompson near present-day Invermere, British Columbia in 1807. It was abandoned in 1812. In 1808 Thompson reckoned its location as 50°32′12″N 115°56′15″W / 50.53667°N 115.93750°W.^[1] The actual location is Kootenae House National Historic Site, located at 50°31′36″N 116°02′44″W / 50.526624°N 116.045440°WCoordinates: 50°31′36″N 116°02′44″W / 50.526624°N 116.045440°W^[2] (the discrepancy is due to inaccuracies in Thompson's measurements).

The site was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1934.^[3]

In July 2005, Parks Canada, in cooperation with several members of the Ktunaxa Nation conducted archaeological investigations at the site of Thompson's Kootanae House, near Invermere BC. Kootanae House was David Thompson's first post constructed in the Columbia Basin and his "jumping off point" for further explorations throughout the region.^[4] The Archaeology confirms that this site is the location of a North West Company trading posts and lays to rest some inconsistencies between the site and Thompson's description of the trading post.

See also

• List of National Historic Sites of Canada in British Columbia
• Kullyspell House
• Saleesh House
• Fort Kootenay
• Kootenay, British Columbia (Fisherville)

References

1. Nisbet, Jack (1994). Sources of the River: Tracking David Thompson Across Western North America. Sasquatch Books. pp. 108–109. ISBN 1-57061-522-5.
2. "Kootenae House National Historic Site of Canada". BC Geographical Names.
3. Kootenae House. Canadian Register of Historic Places. Retrieved 22 January 2012.
4. "Kootenae House National Historic Site of Canada". BC Geographical Names.