James Outram (13 October 1864 – 12 March 1925) was a British clergyman, who made many

first ascent In mountaineering, a first ascent (abbreviated to FA in guide books) is the first successful, documented attainment of the top of a mountain or the first to follow a particular climbing route. First mountain ascents are notable because they en ...

s in the

Canadian Rockies The Canadian Rockies (french: Rocheuses canadiennes) or Canadian Rocky Mountains, comprising both the Alberta Rockies and the British Columbian Rockies, is the Canadian segment of the North American Rocky Mountains. It is the easternmost part ...

in the early 1900s. Outram was born in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, England, the son of Sir Francis Boyd Outram, Bart. of India fame. He was educated at

Haileybury College Haileybury may refer to: Australia * Haileybury (Melbourne), a school in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia **Haileybury Rendall School, an offshoot in Berrimah, North Territory, Australia China * Haileybury International School, an international ...

and

Pembroke College, Cambridge Pembroke College (officially "The Master, Fellows and Scholars of the College or Hall of Valence-Mary") is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college is the third-oldest college of the university and has over 700 ...

, where he gained his degree of Master of Arts. He came to the Canadian Rockies in 1900, and devoted himself to Alpine pursuits for some years, making his headquarters in Calgary. He ascended the hitherto unclimbed Mount Assiniboine in 1901. He contested for first ascents the highest summits of the Rockies with

J. Norman Collie Professor John Norman Collie FRSE FRS (10 September 1859 – 1 November 1942), commonly referred to as J. Norman Collie, was an English scientist, mountaineer and explorer. Life and work He was born in Alderley Edge, Cheshire, the second of ...

, including the pursuit of the mythical giants

Hooker and Brown Hooker and Brown are two mythical mountains, once reputed to lie on the great Divide of the Canadian Rockies in Jasper National Park, bordering the Athabasca Pass, the old passage for the fur trade. These two peaks were reputed to be the highest mo ...

. His climbing accomplishments include: * 1900 - ascent of Cascade Mountain () * 1901 - first ascents (guided) of

Mount Assiniboine Mount Assiniboine, also known as Assiniboine Mountain, is a pyramidal peak mountain located on the Great Divide, on the British Columbia/Alberta border in Canada. At , it is the highest peak in the Southern Continental Ranges of the Canadian Ro ...

(3,618 m), Mount Vaux (3,310 m), Chancellor Peak (3,266 m), and Cathedral Mountain (3,189 m). * 1902 - first ascents guided by Christian Kaufmann of

Mount Bryce Mount Bryce is a mountain at the southwestern corner of the Columbia Icefield, in British Columbia, Canada, near the border with Alberta. It can be seen from the Icefields Parkway. The mountain was named in 1898 by J. Norman Collie Professor ...

(3507 m), Mount Columbia (3,747 m),

Mount Forbes Mount Forbes is the seventh tallest mountain in the Canadian Rockies and the tallest within the boundaries of Banff National Park. It is located in southwestern Alberta, southwest of the Saskatchewan River Crossing in Banff. The mountain was ...

(3,612 m), and Mount Wilson (3,260 m). Outram wrote a book about his adventures called ''In the Heart of the Canadian Rockies'', first published in 1905 and several magazine articles, all dealing with mountaineering. In 1920,

Mount Outram Mount Outram is a mountain summit located in the Howse River Valley of Banff National Park, in the Canadian Rockies of Alberta, Canada. Its nearest higher peak is Mount Forbes, to the southwest. Glacier Lake is situated to the north, and the ...

Banff National Park Banff National Park is Canada's oldest National Parks of Canada, national park, established in 1885 as Rocky Mountains Park. Located in Alberta's Rockies, Alberta's Rocky Mountains, west of Calgary, Banff encompasses of mountainous terrain, wi ...

was named in his honour. In 1921 he married a daughter of the late

Joseph Balfour Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...

. He had no children. He was a member of the Anglican Church, in the congregation of St. Stephens, Calgary. Outram was a dedicated Orangeman and a member of the Vermilion, Alberta, Loyal Orange Lodge Number 2078 in 1915. In 1916 he was elected the Worshipful Master of that lodge and in 1917 and 1918 he was elected the Worshipful Master for Victoria County, Alberta. In 1918 he was elected the Right Worshipful Grand Master of the Grand Orange Lodge of Alberta, and again re-elected in 1919 and 1920. He was also a member of the Vermilion lodge of the Ladies Orange Benevolent Association. Outram also belonged to another Protestant fraternal organization known as the Royal Black Knights of the Camp of Israel where he served as Grand Registrar of the Grand Black Chapter of Alberta for 1921–1925. He was a knight in the Mannville Royal Black Preceptory, Number 948. Outram died in

Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of the Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Greater Victoria area has a population of 397,237. Th ...

on 12 March 1925 after several months of illness.

References

External links

Outram, James

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
1864 births 1925 deaths English mountain climbers Alumni of Pembroke College, Cambridge {{climbing-bio-stub