to Fort Victoria to consult with Douglas. He then went by canoe to Fort Rupert and successfully persuaded the miners to go back to work. In 1849, Work settled his large family at Fort Victoria where his children could get an education. However, Fort Simpson remained his headquarters until 1851. In 1852, Work purchased 823 acres of farmland north of the Fort Victoria and built a fine home there. A year later, Governor James Douglas appointed Work to the Legislative Council of Vancouver Island. Work supported Douglas in the controversy surrounding the appointment of David Cameron as chief justice of Vancouver Island. He opposed the establishment of an assembly for the colony because there were "so few people to govern" and "nobody to pay taxes to cover expenses." Work also continued his duties as Chief Factor of the Hudson's Bay Company, acting as a trustee for its Fur Trade Branch which purchased land for settlers who could not afford the required minimum 20-acre lots at £1 per acre. For two month in 1861, Work was acting governor while Douglas was away on business. Work remained both a Chief Factor for the Hudson's Bay Company and a member of the Legislative Council until his death in December 1861. Family In 1825, Governor Simpson suggested that Work marry the daughter of a Cayuse Indian chief, to secure good relations with the Native Americans living in along the Columbia River. Work did not follow the governor's advice. Instead, he married Josette Legace, a mixed-blood woman from the Spokane tribe in 1826. Work's wife accompanied him on many of his trading expeditions. In addition, she and their younger children lived with him at Fort Simpson from 1836 until 1849, while their older children attended school at Fort Vancouver and then at the Methodist mission school on the Willamette River near what is now Salem, Oregon. After finishing their schooling in 1841, the older girls joined the family at Fort Simpson. In 1849, Work moved his family to Fort Victoria so the younger children could get an education. Work settled his family on an 823-acre farm north of the fort and built a large home there, which he called Hillside. By 1859, he owned over 1,800 acres, making him the largest private landowner on Vancouver Island. Because of his remote assignments and constant travel, Work and his wife were unable to have a formal wedding