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The Fur Trade - 2014

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351 views

The Fur Trade - 2014

Uploaded by

api-193600542
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The Fur Trade

Chapter 4 of Horizons
I. The Fur Trade and Western
Exploration
A. Background
1. European Exploration &
Settlement Results from the
Fur Trade
2. The founding of New France
3. Westward expansion of trade
along St. Lawrence River
4. French were in Great Lakes
Region
5. 1670, Hudsons Bay Company
is established (an English
Company)
6. Eventually there would be a
French & English competition
for fur

II. Division of Lands
A. The Hudsons Bay Company Charter
gave exclusive rights to trade in the
region known as Ruperts Land
(an area from which all rivers drain into the
Hudsons Bay) - This is known as a
monopoly
1. 1690, fur trader Henry Kelsey was the
first European to visit the Canadian
Plains
a. he reported on the rich supplies of furs
found there
b. first reported on the bison; although,
HBC didnt believe him about these
beasts!
2. HBC decided not to push further inland
but instead have the First Nations
people bring the furs to their posts on
the shores of the Hudsons Bay.

III. Division of Lands Continued
B. The French were first to move west from
the Great Lakes
1. Headed throughout Western Ontario
& Southern Manitoba
2. In that journey they realized that the
many rivers & lakes of the Canadian
Shield were excellent routes to ship
furs.
3. They established a network of
trading forts
4. Each year French traders from
Montreal would travel west by
canoe, stopping at each trading
station to get supplies & meet with
Native people from nearby villages.
5. The First Nations people decided to
trade instead with the French instead
of make the long journey to the
Hudsons Bay to trade with the
English
IV. The Hudsons Bay Company
expands out of Ruperts Land
A. 1750s, HBC began
sending traders into
western Canada
1. they had realized the
mistake of
a. not going further inland for
furs
b. making the FN travel so
far
B. A Great Rivalry Would
Begin!

V. The Great Rivalry

A. The Hudsons Bay Company (as youve already heard of)
B. The North West Company (formed in 1784)
1. was a partnership of independent fur traders based in
Montreal
a. made up of:
i. English, United Empire Loyalists & Scots who
moved to Montreal after the conquest of New
France

VS.
V. Great Rivalry Continued
2. Two types of partnerships in NWC
a. group 1: Montreal based group
i. Sold furs and provided supplies & goods to be
traded for furs
b. group 2: were called hivernant (wintering partners)
i. stayed in the west
ii. lived in the forest, traveled the waterways,
traded with First Nations people for fur
iii. famous men included: David Thompson &
Alexander Mackenzie (used to be HBC
employees but were frustrated with its lack of
expansion to the West)

VI. Why the NWC was so successful
A. Treated the workers like partners
1. workers then had a strong incentive to seek out new &
better supplies of furs
2. each partner had a share in the profits at the end of the
trading season

B. Had the advantage of knowing the lands & the native
peoples of Western Canada
1. men lived there for much of their lives
2. became expert woodsmen & canoeists
3. joined by other men who were considered voyageurs
4. many of these men married First Nations women
*** their children were the first Metis
5. could speak French & Native languages
6. Metis become an important part in the fur trade

VI. Why the NWC was so successful


A. HBC was owned and run by business
people in London whod never been to
Canada
1. HBC traders were seen as employees
who were paid a salary for their work

B. HBC discouraged exploration & made fur
traders come to them

VII. Eventually the HBC changes their policy
due to falling profits
A. Began expanding west
B. Set up trading post upstream from the NWCs posts so that
FN people would encounter an HBC post before an NWC post
A. HBC also had a geographic advantage
1. the route from the Saskatchewan River to Hudsons bay was shorter and
easier to travel than the one the NWC had to use to get furs to Montreal
2. NWC had to canoe through the Great lakes & St. Lawrence before
loading ships to Europe
VIII. The Fur Trade & the First Nations
Peoples
A. The Hudsons Bay Company & the First Nations
Peoples
1. traded furs of a particular quality for blankets, tools
etcb
2. forbade the trading of alcohol to the Natives
3. eventually took on the same practices as the NWC in
order to compete effectively
B. The North West Company & the First Nations People
1. did not have a standard of trade
2. could trade brandy or rum for furs
C. First Nations - Life Changes
1. abandoned traditional hunting
practices & spent all their time
getting furs to trade
2. wanted to take advantage of the
payment from both companies
3. became dependent on the fur
trade for survival
4. when fashion changed in Europe
&/or the price of furs dropped,
they suffered greatly
a. less food, less ammunition
b. abandoned traditional food
storing practices
D. Alcohol disrupted First Nations
life & further increased their
dependence on traders
1. Alcohol dependence
2. Victim to European disease

Video: Start at
26 mins
Class Assignment:
A. Read p. 126-135 of your Horizons textbook
B. Complete the worksheet: Compare and
Contrast HBC and NWC

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