Fur Trade History

Native American Trade refers to the trade between Europeans and their North American descendants and the Indigenous people of North America, it really began before the colonial period and continued through the nineteenth century. The products traded involved a vast variety of goods and varied by region and era. Canada was a major trader with the native people. In most of Canada the term “Native American Trade” is synonymous with the fur trade; fur for making beaver hats was by far the most valuable product of the trade, from the European point of view. Native Americans had the skills and tools for hunting and skinning the animals used for fur clothing and Canadian settlers had the needs and funding for it. This made for a thriving exchange between the two societies.

Over time, the power that Native women held with in their tribe has unfortunately digressed. During the age of exploration Native women have played key roles in the western fur trade. Native women assisted the fur traders by being liaison between the Europeans and Natives. This role was fundamental in strengthening trade increasing the economic stability of the post. They acted as guides for the European traders who often found themselves in dangerous and unfamiliar territory. Finally, they provided an intimate relationship for the European traders, and played a pragmatic role as a domesticated wife. However in order to fully understand the magnitude of the

Aboriginal women had occupied an essential position in the fur trade of the North American region from its birth during the 17th and 18th centuries. Even though this is true, the role of women, especially those of the Native American society, has been ignored a great deal in the entire history of fur trade. Contrary to the belief that the whole fur trade activity was only male-dominated, it very much depended upon Native women and their participation and labor in order to ensure survival as well as economic success. This paper will attempt to illuminate how Native women played the role as important producers when it comes to fur trade of the American Plains and, of course, the Canadian region. This paper will also deal with the two

The fur trade was a significant part of Canadian history. With the founding of the Hudson's Bay and Northwest Company during the1670's, the fur trade managed growth and development all the way into Western Canada until 1870. The fur trade was unique, for it was the only industry that was based on an exchange of goods between two very different groups of people (namely, the Indians and the Europeans). Although most people think of the fur trade as being a male dominated industry, Indian women also played very important roles in the industry's development. However, the women's experiences differed in relation to

Fur trade between the French and Indians began with the exchange of small items the Indians didn’t have, though it became an important trade source for all of Europe, especially by Samuel de Champlain

The First Nations’ inventions are beneficial for ameliorating Canada’s economic development. Some inventions of the Aboriginals include the canoe and snowshoes. Canoes were constructed out of various trees specifically Birchbark as it was an ideal material for its smooth, light, resilient, and waterproof essential qualities (Marsh, 2006). This was used extensively as a means of fishing, transportation as well as the fur trade. It was also used for providing the ongoing trade between Europeans and

The economic and cultural influences of the 19th century Hudson Bay Company had a significant impact on the diet and food practices of the Northern First Nations Peoples, which impact created a dependency on the government. From this dependency Northern Canada emerged as a welfare state. Prior to European contact, the First Nations exercised regular hunting and gathering practices, relying on game animals as a key meat source. These Peoples, such as the Barren Ground caribou hunters and the Ojibwa fishing villagers, were considered affluent as they had stable food resources which supplied a surplus to their needs (Coates 1989). Resource management strategies, such as hunting multiple species, had been established and were practiced by the hunters to avoid food shortages or scarcities (Coates 1989). Most tribes which based their food supply on a primary large animal – such as the barren ground caribou – would also hunt secondary prey sources, like the beaver (Coates 1989). However, modifications were made to these management strategies as the First Nations responded to the demands created by the open market of the 19th century Hudson Bay Company. The Peoples developed as commercial

As Martha Ballard writes in her diary, "A womans work is never Done as the Song says and Happy is shee [sp] whose strength holds out to the end of the rais [race]." Women, like Ballard, contributed useful and skilled labor, though it was often derided, mocked, or overlooked. However, the work of women varied greatly, due to location, social class, race, time-period, and more. This essay will focus on two very different groups of women, early female settlers of the Chesapeake area during the seventeenth century and the Native American women of the Iroquois Confederacy, spread across northeastern New York and Ontario during the same time period. Through the analysis, the necessity of the study of women 's work will become evident; it aids historians in understanding women 's past: including gender perceptions, the myriad of experiences faced by different women, and the changes over that occurred over time.

As different as the ladies who possessed North America from 1600 to 1750 were, their lives shared a few shared characteristics. All ladies worked inside a genuinely inflexible sexual division of work, in spite of the fact that the real errands doled out to them shifted from culture to culture. Most ladies' parts included childbearing, childrearing, and nourishment get ready. Inside their conditions, ladies tended to frame solid securities with other ladies in comparative conditions the corn processors of the Pueblos, the grower of the Iroquois, the female dealing systems of New Englanders, and the strong groups of slave ladies are among the most evident cases. With a few exemptions, ladies shared a prohibition from direct political cooperation.

The fur traders were shocked by the nature of the Native women. They were used to fragile, dormant women while the Aboriginal women were tough and carried a lot of qualities they

Long before European fur traders established their commerce on the North American continent, the fur trade had a long lucrative history that impacted native Americans and their modes of life. As a desirable and profitable good, fur was sought to “be the most valuable single item of trade.” Soon, a competitive market trade ground for fur emerged and the fur trade changed how Indian tribes adapted from their previous habitats: they were the primary manufacturers. Eric Wolf then discusses the consequences of the fur trade for different groups of Native American tribes both on the concepts of dependency and on the levels of how social economic relationships are changed. To support his claims, I will compare and contrast the experiences of the Abenaki

The industrial revolution swept through Europe and North America during the 19th century, affecting the class structure, economy, government, and even the religious practices of everyone who lived in or did commerce with these new "industrialized nations." It made the modern age possible, but it was not without its "growing pains." The position of women before the industrial revolution was often equivalent to chattel, and then as now, they were expected to take naturally to housework and child rearing. The history of working women in the Industrial Revolution is rife with accounts of abuse and tragedy, but overall it improved their position in capitalist societies. Below, I will explain the

The experience of the Firs Nation’s during the fur trade would have been a new and novel situation for all First Nation’s. York and Hudson Bay Company led a competition between anyone living in Canada at the time but it became very competitive for the First Nation tribes. There was increasing fur and goods in 1730, but shortly after there was a sharp decline in goods until 1750 because of the competition was so hard. Indian tribes competed with one another for control of the trading posts. Problem was, there was a distance between the tribes that made trading more difficult, the Mountain Indians travelled 37 days downstream and took months to return. Assiniboine and Cree bands were taking over control of their inland trading of York factory

Inventing the trade of furs among the British and the French, the Native Americans initiated the Fur Trade. English fishermen and the French were the first to trade for furs from the Native Americans. In exchange, Native American recieved European-manufactured goods. This trade became so profitable, that fishermen would abandon fishing to go to North America just to trade furs. Allied with the Iroquois, the British were thought to have an advantage with the Native Americans.

It is clear from the abstract of the article that Native women played an important role in evolving the fur trade as well as women’s involvement expanded. The author beings by setting a frame of reference, referring to Richard White’s interpretation of the evolution of fur trade, which he labeled the “middle ground”. Which provided a good basis for Sleeper-Smith to integrate her stance of how the native women influenced the evolution of fur trade in their role as cultural mediators. The term “cultural mediators” is seldom used, despite it being mentioned as part of the abstract. However, “mediators” on its own is used throughout the article to describe to role and influence of native women. In regards to the use of “cultural mediators” at the