John Ogilvie "Skook" Davidson ,
MM &
two bars (July 29, 1892 - 1972) was a soldier, land surveyor, packer, guide and rancher in far northern
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
, Canada. Known as "Skook" or "Skookum" Davidson because of his stature (big and strong), he is the namesake of
Mount Skook Davidson
Mount Skook Davidson, , is a mountain in the Kechika Ranges of the Cassiar Mountains in far northern British Columbia, Canada. It overlooks the "Diamond J Ranch", which was founded by John Ogilvie Davidson also known as "Skook" Davidson or "Skook ...
and the
Liard River
The Liard River of the North American boreal forest flows through Yukon, British Columbia and the Northwest Territories, Canada. Rising in the Saint Cyr Range of the Pelly Mountains in southeastern Yukon, it flows southeast through British Co ...
landing
Skooks Landing was so-named because it was where he would arrange to have supplies dropped for his
Diamond J Ranch
Diamond is a solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the chemically stable form of carbon at room temperature and pressure, bu ...
, which lay up the
Kechika River
The Kechika River is a tributary of the Liard River, about long, in northern British Columbia, Canada. The Kechika flows generally northwest through the northernmost section of the Rocky Mountain Trench before turning east to join the Liard, a ...
150 miles from there. He moved to
Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
in 1972 following a fire at the ranch. The location is near
Fireside, British Columbia
Fireside is an unincorporated locality on the Alaska Highway in far northern British Columbia, Canada, located at the junction of the Kechika and Liard Rivers. Muddy River Indian Reserve No. 1 is located nearby, as is an old steamer landing na ...
and near it is an old construction camp used by crews building the