James Keith was born in Scotland. He came to North America with his brother George in 1799. He worked for the New North West Company (also known as XY Company) and stayed on after the company merged with North West Company in 1804. When the North West Company merged with the Hudson's Bay Company in 1821, Keith was promoted to chief factor. He worked at Fort Severn [ON] and then Fort Chipewyan [AB]. Recognized for his talents, Keith was posted to HBC headquarters at Lachine near Montreal where he worked from 1827-1835 and 1837-1843. He returned to Scotland in 1843 and officially retired in 1845. He died in Aberdeen, Scotland in 1851.
Fur trader and HBC administrator.