Map of Mackenzie’s 1789 and 1793 expeditions. Mackenzie’s Voyages 1803, p. 1
Map of Mackenzie’s 1789 and 1793 expeditions (detail) Mackenzie’s Voyages 1803, p. 1
A map of Mackenzie’s track from Fort Chipewan to the Pacific Ocean in 1793 (detail) Internet Archive
A Map of America
between Latitudes 40 and 70 North, and Longitudes 45 and 180 West
Exhibiting Mackenzie’s Track
From Montreal to Fort Chipewyan from thence
to the North Sea In 1789
and to the West Pacific Ocean in 1793
This map faces page 1 in the original version of Mackenzie’s Journals [1]
In 1793 Alexander Mackenzie [1764–1820] lead the first expedition of European descendants to cross the American continent north of Mexico.
He crossed the Continental Divide through a pass that remains unnamed, although a park has been created in its surroundings. The only name honouring Mackenzie in the Spiral Road region is Mount Sir Alexander, a mountain he never saw.
On the map of Mackenzie’s route across the Divide, the only original name that survives is Bad River, which appears next to his note, “Canoe Wreck’d.”
“Bad River” was superseded with the name “James Creek” by the Geographic Board of Canada in 1924; however, in 1976 to accommodate local usage, which dates to the earliest days of exploration in the northern Rocky Mountains, the name “Bad River (James Creek)” was established.
Athabasca River
Lake Athabasca
Bad River (James Creek)
Finlay River
Peace River
Tacoutche Tesse
Unjigah River
- 1. Mackenzie, Alexander [1764–1820]. Voyages from Montreal on the River St. Lawrence through the Continent of North America to the Frozen and Pacific Oceans in the Years 1789 and 1793 with a Preliminary Account of the Rise, Progress, and Present State of the Fur Trade of That Country. London: T. Cadell, Jun., and W. Davies, 1803. Internet Archive [accessed 10 March 2025]