Stewardship and management

York Factory is perched on the shore of the Hayes River near its confluence with the steely-grey waters of Northern Manitoba’s Hudson Bay. For 273 years, this was the Hudson’s Bay Company’s primary depot, a bustling fur trade post with hundreds of inhabitants, a doctor, church, cooperage and a nearby Cree community.

Today, only two ruins, a cemetery and two buildings remain including the enormous white Depot, remarkably intact and filled with artifacts unearthed by ongoing archaeology and recovered throughout the historic site. Parks Canada is monitoring the eroding Hayes River bank that threatens York Factory’s future.

Extremely remote, the site can only be reached by private boat or air charter. Staff is on site during July and August to provide information and insights into the post’s role as a far-flung international trading hub as well as its unique, long-term fur trading partnerships with generations of Indigenous peoples.