The first French-Canadian explorer of the Yukon
Michel Laberge was born in Chateauguay, Quebec in 1837. In 1867 Michel was a naturalist and worked for the Overland Telegraph company. He came to the Yukon with a scientific group of men who were trying to see if there was a possibility of establishing a telegraphic network between Alaska and Russia. On this same trip, Laberge and Ketchum followed the Yukon River searching for natural samples to complete their collection of natural history of the region. They are considered the first White people to have explored the region between Nulato and Fort Yukon (Alaska).
On April 16, 1869, Laberge was in San Francisco, California and he joined an expedition with French-Canadians from Quebec whose destination was the Bering Strait. These men were François et Moise Mercier from St. Paul l’Ermite, Gravel from St. Martin, Napoléon Robert de Saint Césaire and two Americans, M. Smith and J. Bern, founders of The Pioneer American Fur Co. Two months later, they reached their destination, then went down the Yukon in a boat they had built themselves and which they named “La Canadienne”. From 1871 to 1875, Laberge worked for the Alaska Commercial Company, then he retired in his native village. The Lake Laberge situated along the Yukon River about 15 miles (25 km) north of Whitehorse was named in his honor..
Ref: EMPREINTE P. 6
Note: I believe that Michel Laberge was a close relative with Anna Laberge, an eminent nurse of the same region and a hospital there carries her name.
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