
The North-West Mounted Police was formed in 1873. In 1874, the first 300 members gathered at Lower Fort Garry to begin the March West. They were divided into six troops from A to F, and to distinguish the troops, each one had horses of a different colour. The troops used these letters to identify their new posts on the prairies; eventually the posts became divisions and the smaller outposts were known as detachments. We continue to use the terms division and detachment today. For example, Salmon Arm Detachment is located in E Division (British Columbia).