The Trade Of The Fur Trade

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 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.

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

Another European group that experienced the Indian way of life was the French fur traders. They took hundreds of young men into the "pays d'en haut" for months, even years at a time (Axtell, Invasion 303). In order for them to be successful trading partners with the Indians, the fur traders adopted many aspects of native culture (303). To learn about the Indian culture, the fur traders wore Indian clothing such as, breechclouts, leggings, and moccasins. They learned to speak local dialects, eat native food, follow council protocol, and forged alliances with headmen (Axtell, European 277). These adaptations of the fur traders helped them to be accepted into the Indian culture.

In "Red" Labor: Iroquois Participation in the Atlantic Economy Gail D.MacLeitch explains “Cultural practices centered on gift giving and communal ownership prevented extremes of wealth from developing” (6). However by the seventeenth century, contact with colonists attracted the Iroquois to paid labor. Deciding to become part of the transatlantic fur trade the Iroquois received items such as cloth, guns, house wares, alcohol, and jewelry from the French and British in exchange for the furs of beavers (which were hunted to near extinction.) The goods that were received were then incorporated into the Iroquois way of life, including religious practices. By the eighteenth century Iroquois had ceased to create their own goods and became completely reliant on foreign trade (MacLeitch

Fur Trade in Canada, formed the backbone of the object in the original settlement of that colony. The Fur Trade represented travel, adventure, and employment for hundreds of young men (little book page 10). The First Nations and Europeans recognized one another as supreme nations and created

Big question - The fur trading ended when the prices went up and Many Native communities were plunged into long-term poverty and consequently lost much of the political influence they once had. Why did they stop fur trading? - Fur trading stopped because of the collapse in the prices company. This happened because of the high poverty and consequently which made them lose most of the political influence they once had. How did fur trading end?

During the time the Spanish built a military post at St. Augustine while also wiping the French interlopers, there were fishing fleet activity involving the English and French, in Cape Cod. There, were also local Native Americans who decided to trade with the English and French, fur, in return for manufactured goods such as guns, cloth, and metal utensils. With this, trading became more well-known and accessible to the other English and French, thus becoming a daily activity for the Europeans and the Native Americans. However, as time passed, more animals with fur began to diminish, thus enacting the competition of fur against the English and French. Unlike the French who took up many of Canada’s land (home of many fur-bearing animals) and traded with the Natives there, the English trading took place in Newfoundland and on the Atlantic coast south of the French settlements. However, with the diminishing of fur-bearing animals, the French began to move further west in search of it. This then gave the French an advantage of exploring more of Canada and North America, while also building relationships with more Native

The Indians traded furs and skins with the Europeans. The furs and skins were mainly from raccoons, deer, and muskrats. The Europeans in exchange, gave the Indians manufactured goods, such as textiles, knives, kitchenware, etc. The Europeans wanted furs and skins from the Indians because the Europeans did not have any large animal to get

Fighting to compete with Spain, Europe knew that to tap into the profit of America they needed to colonize. To be far enough away from the Spanish the French decided to make a settlement more northern based. Failing at the St. Lawrence River one settlement did form in the gulf of St. Lawrence. Their they found two profitable trade commodities; fur and fish. This trade put both Indians and Europeans with mutual dependency for each others trade. Around Newfoundland there were around 400 vessels fishing and hunting seals and whales. To resupply and process their catch they established camps on shore and in coves. At these camps there were Indian hunters wearing attractive furs. This caught the eye of traders knowing that furs could provide a profitable

Trading furs had become so profitable that farmers and fishermen would up and quit their jobs to make voyages over to America just to trap and trade furs. Many of these Europeans made these voyages even before some of the great explorers such as Cartier, Giovanni Caboto (John Cabot), Henry Hudson, Giovanni da Verrazzano, and even Christopher Columbus made their famous voyages (Carlos 3). Many Europeans docked their ships at Tadoussac near the confluence of the St. Lawrence and Saguenay Rivers and traded with the native Indians. Although there was lots of commerce in North America the Europeans never had any settlements, they simply traded with the native population and went back to Europe. This all changed according to Ann Carlos when Samuel