author
Viscount William Fitzwilliam Milton
1839–1877
Best known for crossing much of British North America on horseback and by canoe, this adventurous Victorian traveler turned a demanding expedition into one of the classic exploration narratives of 19th-century Canada. He also moved through politics and public life, though his journeys remain the most memorable part of his legacy.
1 Audiobook
The North-West Passage by land Being the narrative of an expedition from the Atlantic to the Pacific, undertaken with the view of exploring a route across the continent to British Columbia through British territory, by one of the northern passes in the Rocky Mountains
by Viscount William Fitzwilliam Milton, Walter B. (Walter Butler) Cheadle
About the author
Born in London on 27 July 1839, he was the eldest son of the 6th Earl Fitzwilliam and was educated at Eton and Trinity College, Cambridge. Despite recurring health problems, he became known as an energetic traveler, explorer, and writer.
His lasting fame comes from the long overland journey he made across what is now Canada with Walter B. Cheadle in the early 1860s. Their expedition, carried out largely on horseback and by canoe, led to the book The North-West Passage by Land, a vivid account of prairie travel, mountain crossings, and encounters along the route that helped shape British readers' ideas of the Canadian West.
He also served in public life as a Liberal politician and later married Laura Maria Theresa Beauclerk, with whom he had children. He died in Rouen, France, in January 1877, still relatively young, leaving behind a reputation built on curiosity, endurance, and one remarkable journey.