Later as inland chief, based at Cumberland House, Sask., he oversaw the expansion of the HBC up the Saskatchewan River and helped consolidate the inland trade against its Montreal competition.Ĭumberland House was the first inland HBC post. Entering the trade in 1760 as a poor 20-year-old labourer with little schooling, Tomison eventually became master at York Factory on the southwestern edge of Hudson Bay. William Tomison's career with the HBC, for example, spanned 40 years. It's been estimated that one-quarter of the Orcadians worked at least 20 years for the company, some even becoming outpost masters. William Flett was reputed to be a master canoe-builder, while Malcolm Ross was adept at shooting rapids in a canoe. James Gaddy and Magnus Twatt, for example, became conversant in Indigenous languages. The Orkney servants proved a versatile and adaptable lot, who quickly developed the skills demanded by their new fur trade lives, especially in the western interior. One scholar has even suggested that the HBC posts were "expatriate Orkney communities." Climbing the ranks The HBC consequently came to rely on Orkney men to fill its labour ranks, especially after it moved inland from its bayside posts in the 1770s.īy the end of the century, they made up 80 per cent of a workforce that numbered over 500 men. Indeed, there were striking parallels between the Orkney landscape and the Hudson Bay subarctic lowlands where company posts were first located. The Orcadians' ability to eke out a living from the harsh, maritime environment of their homeland – something they proudly ascribed to their Norse heritage – made them valued servants. (Library and Archives Canada, Rindisbacher, acc.1988-250-15)īut they also offered something more: a way for young, single, men to escape poverty and a dead-end future by signing on as servants for the HBC. “I can’t even take my mind to next offseason.Hudson's Bay Company ships arriving at York Factory. Will 2022 be Hudson’s last season? He has no idea. Running back James Conner said he gave Hudson a big hug and thanked him for returning.Ī healthy Hudson will make a big difference as the Cardinals try to build on their 11-win season from a season ago. Head coach Kliff Kingsbury is glad to have him. He just wanted more time in the offseason with his family and perhaps just didn’t feel ready to leave them even for minicamp.īetween that and getting his body to a place that was good enough for football, he probably planned on returning but just wanted to delay the part of the football grind until it was necessary to do in training camp.īut he is back and the team is thrilled. He would not comment as to whether or not he was fined for his unexcused absence from mandatory minicamp in June.īased on what he said throughout his comments, it seems like retirement wasn’t necessarily a serious thought. His wife had a baby so now he has two children at home, which he said was different. “I took the offseason off, spent a lot of time with my family, enjoyed that part of it, worked on my body, tried to get my body to a place where I feel good about it and came to a decision,” he said. He didn’t know if there “was an exact moment” when he decided he wanted to play another season. Those things, at my age, you at least start to think about them.” “You spend a lot of time away from your family and your loved ones. “Just like any other player or any other job, as you get older in your profession, it’s a thought,” he said. Thoughts of retirement did come up, although he said he “didn’t have a meter” to gauge how seriously he thought about it. “I spent time with my family, tried to heal up, recover and go from there,” he said. Hudson addressed the media for the first time since his return to the team on Friday and told how he spent the offseason. But it doesn’t sound like he really thought too much about retirement, even though the thought did come up. He took the entire offseason to decide whether or not he was coming back for another season. The Arizona Cardinals are glad to have center Rodney Hudson back.
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