Native Americans And Trading : Native American Trade

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

According to Peggy Baker, of the Pilgrim Hall Museum, the fur trade between the Pilgrims and the Native Americans began sometime around 1625. The Pilgrims were in enormous debt with investors in Europe and needed money to repay this debt. They knew that one of the best ways to make the money was through fur trade and they knew the best furs to trade were beaver furs. However, the beavers were in Maine with the American Indians. Hence, the Pilgrims began the fur trade with the Native Americans. The Native Americans would hunt the beaver and trade the fur with Europeans for goods such as grain, cooking pots, tools, clothing, and blankets. As the fur trade continued throughout America, the impact on the Native Americans began.

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

With the introduction of new resources found desirable in the new environment by the colonists and new products imported from Europe, Native Americans were launched into a brand new world of commerce to keep up with the quick pace of the developments. The Europeans valued the fur of buffaloes while Native Americans soon “became dependent on the manufactured goods the fur trade brought them, and hunted to the meet the demands...rather than the needs of their families” (Page 15). Moreover, Native Americans previously used animals in religious rituals, but after European contact, animals became “regarded as a form of property” and “crucial components of Navajo and Pueblo economy” (Page 13). Accordingly, Native Americans engaged in trade with Europeans way more than they had with each other before the arrival, boosting the rate of economic activity in the New World. Adding on, many colonists emigrated to America in order to gain economic freedom which came with owning property. However, “Indian peoples generally regarded land as something to be shared and utilized...They soon learned that

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

Native Americans easily engaged in trade with Europeans. They wished to include new glass and metal items in their society. European and Native Americans viewed trade as a means for economic development. Native Americans viewed trade, also, as a way for communicating with individuals and maintaining interdependence. This is evident in the elaborate gift giving celebrations that occurred before exchanging of goods occurred. For Europeans, however, these social and spiritual functions of trade were limited a great deal more.

The British were interested in the production and circulation of fur as a commodity in the world market and were in need of labor. The Indians were the only available source of skilled labor, so they became part of the production process.

Throughout the course of history there have been numerous accounts regarding Native American and European interaction. From first contact to Indian removal, the interaction was somewhat of a roller coaster ride, leading from times of peace to mini wars and rebellions staged by the Native American tribes. The first part of this essay will briefly discuss the pre-Columbian Indian civilizations in North America and provide simple awareness of their cultures, while the second part of this essay will explore all major Native American contact leading up to, and through, the American Revolution while emphasizing the impact of Spanish, French, and English explorers and colonies on Native American culture and vice versa. The third, and final, part of this essay will explore Native American interaction after the American Revolution with emphasis on westward expansion and the Jacksonian Era leading into Indian removal. Furthermore, this essay will attempt to provide insight into aspects of Native American/European interaction that are often ignored such as: gender relations between European men and Native American women, slavery and captivity of native peoples, trade between Native Americans and European colonists, and the effects of religion on Native American tribes.

Coming from an economic standpoint, the Europeans and Indians were such total opposites, it often led to misunderstanding. Indians had very large trading routes well before the time of European colonization. Their experience in trade only made it easier to exchange goods with the Europeans. For Indians, trading was a way to acquire goods they wanted, but also a way to share the wealth of their land with other tribes that didn't have the same items to trade as they did. To the

European came to the new world of North America and they brought out advanced technology and culture to American continent. Over time, their lives changed as they adapted to different environments and they brought tremendous changed to American Indian tribes. New trade goods became another big change that European explorers and colonists brought to American Indians. Indians was trying to use these product that the explorers provided in their daily lives. Soon, American Indian men put away their bows and arrows for European firearms and lead shot. The desire to get European goods changed ancient trading patterns and American Indians began depended on European items for daily needs. The new goods brought from European totally changed Native American

“Navajo trading has been a crucial component of that tribe's localized economy for generations and has been the subject of much scholarship over the years (Kiser, 2012).” Trading is what has really distinguished the Navajo from other cultures. They traded with the Spanish at first and then on to other tribes. They were first introduced to a horse from being able to establish trade with the Spanish in the 1620’s. Many other native cultures went

For the most part, the French spent many years in trying to establish a colony in North America and they were unsuccessful because of various reason. In the meantime, this created to opportunity for the Spanish t to establish a relationship with the Native Americans. As stated in text, “French fishermen continued to visit the Grand Banks regularly and began to trade with the Native Americans for beaver skins” (Reich, 2011, p. 37). The beaver skins were very popular in Europe and in 1600s Samuel de Champlain founded the fur trading post at Port Royal and in Quebec (Reich, 2011, p. 37). The French valued their relationship with the Native Americans for various reasons and I will discuss some in depth. First, most of the Indian tribes were at

While horses and guns revolutionized warfare, trading for everyday goods greatly improved the life for the Native Americans. These items included new pots, beads, scissors, and hatchets. For example, the introduction of the scissors allowed the women to cut cloth more easily and precisely than before. Overall, everyday activities such as cooking and weaving were made much easier because of trade for European goods. The Native Americans frequently

The fur trading industry played a major role in the development of the United States and Canada for more than 300 years. The fur trade began in the 1500's as an exchange between Indians and Europeans. The Indians traded furs for such goods as tools and weapons. Beaver fur, which was used in Europe to make felt hats, became the most valuable of these furs. The fur trade prospered until the mid-1800, when fur-bearing animals became scarce and silk hats became more popular than felt hats made with beaver. Traders and trappers explored much of North America in search of fur. They built trading posts in the wilderness, and settlements grew up around many of these posts. Some of these settlements later became such major cities as Detroit, New Orleans, and St. Louis in the United States; and Edmonton, Montreal, Quebec, and Winnipeg in Canada.