John McLeod (explorer)

John McLeod (1795 – after 1842) was a Scottish-born explorer of Canada, in his capacity as a fur trader with the North West Company and Hudson's Bay Company. He is remembered primarily for his explorations of several major rivers of the southwestern Northwest Territories, southern Yukon Territory, and northern British Columbia.

McLeod arrived in Montreal, headquarters of the North West Company, in 1816. From there, he was assigned to the Churchill River area as a clerk. Following the merger of the two fur trading companies in 1821, McLeod served at various posts in the Athabasca and Mackenzie River Districts of the Hudson's Bay Company. In 1823, McLeod was assigned as manager of the Fort Simpson fur trading post, located at the junction of the Liard and Mackenzie Rivers, where he would remain nine years as deputy to the Chief Trader. In 1823-24, McLeod completed explorations of nine mountain ranges adjacent to the South Nahanni River, during which he opened trading relations with the Kaska First Nation.

McLeod's most important expedition took place in the summer of 1831. Leaving Fort Simpson on June 28, 1831, McLeod and eight others became the first known Europeans to ascend the Liard River, a major tributary of the Mackenzie River. This expedition also included a partial ascent of the Dease River and ascent of Frances River to Frances Lake (which McLeod mistook for the main branch of the Liard). In sum, McLeod's expedition covered close to 1000 km, and established contact with five First Nations.

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