Lord Selkirk returns for bicentennial bash

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This article was published 11/05/2012 (5107 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

LORD Selkirk is coming to visit Winnipeg for a week to cap celebrations for the settlement his ancestor founded in 1812.

The Scottish aristocrat, whose name is James Alexander Douglas Hamilton, and his wife are expected Sept. 2 during a Labour Day Scottish gathering at The Forks.

The Forks gathering kicks off a week of commemorative events.

The visit wraps up Sept. 9 with the couple’s departure.

“We are fortunate to have them here for such a long period,” said Phyllis Fraser, chairwoman of the bicentenary committee.

The visit by Lord and Lady Selkirk is not considered official, like a royal visit, although it’s expected they’ll meet with Manitoba’s Lt.-Gov. Philip Lee and perhaps even Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

“The year 2012 will mark the 200th anniversary of the 1812 arrival from Scotland of the Selkirk Settlers in Manitoba, a pivotal event in the history of our province and nation,” states an overview of the bicentenary’s plans.

Among the highlights is an event Lt.-Gov. Lee will probably host Sept. 5. It will give descendants of the original settlers a chance to meet the current Lord Selkirk.

Of the 50 founding families, descendants today number more than 15,000.

The Red River Settlement was the dream of the fifth Earl of Selkirk, who toured areas of the Scottish Highlands following the forced clearances of tenant farmers. Moved by their suffering, the young earl proposed new homes for the destitute in Canada.

He organized settlements in Ontario and Prince Edward Island but it is the Red River colony he’s best known for.

The earl’s short life was riddled with nearly as many hardships as his settlers. He never saw the success of his settlements.

He died young of tuberculosis a few years after a gruelling visit to the Red River, his family’s once-great fortune virtually wiped out.

The Scottish Heritage Council of Manitoba Inc. set up the organizing committee of provincial and city officials, together with historians and Selkirk descendants, which invited Selkirk to Canada and is planning the bicentenary. They call themselves the Bicentenary of the Red River Selkirk Settlement Committee 2012.

The current Lord Selkirk assumed his title as the 11th Earl of Selkirk in 1994 but gave it up almost immediately. As a Conservative MP from Edinburgh, his work and his heritage collided.

Peerage laws disqualify Lords from voting in the British House of Commons so to bolster his government’s narrow majority, the Earl gave up his title to keep his rights as an MP.

He’s since been given a new title, the Lord Selkirk of Douglas.

This year also marks another anniversary, the centenary of the province’s expansion north to Hudson Bay.

A century on and the north is still the key to the province’s prosperity, Premier Greg Selinger said Wednesday in a commemorative event at the legislature.

“Today is about honouring the aboriginal people, pioneers and communities who built this great province,” Selinger said.

Manitoba’s original boundaries were set on July 15, 1870. At that time, the province was a fraction of its current size and it was known as the “postage stamp province” because it was only a small square around Winnipeg.

Its boundaries were expanded twice: once in 1881 and a second, final expansion north on May 12, 1912.

alexandra.paul@freepress.mb.ca