The Fur Trade

THE FUR TRADE ON THE PLAINS The fur trade was in full swing by 1750. There were growing rivalries between fur trading companies. The most popular companies were: La Compaigne Du Nord, The Hudson Bay Company, and The North West Company. Because of the rivalries Aboriginal groups were forced to choose sides. In some cases Aboriginal groups acted as the middlemen for both the French and British.

LIFE IN THE NORTHWEST Marriage and family life were important to the early European men in the Northwest because they were lonely and because marriage tended to create social and economic bonds with First Nations. Trading loyalties when Europeans married First Nations. All members of the nation would be expected to trade with their kin.

European traders also married to survive European traders also married to survive. It was next to impossible to last in the Northwest without First Nations women because they did most of the work necessary to ensure survival. The women did: Dried meat from the hunt. Gathered berries Dug roots Cared for garden plots Dried and smoked fish Tanned hides Made clothing Cooked Collected firewood Cared for the children

When the Hudson’s Bay Company and the North West Company merged in 1821, the roles of the First Nations men changed. Some areas of the Northwest trapped out, so middlemen were no longer needed. Some First Nations men began joining the Blackfoot in hunting buffalo to supply Europeans. Because the buffalo were becoming scarce, conflict resulted as First Nations trespassed on one another’s hunting grounds. In the end, the loss of the buffalo and the fur trade drove First Nations to sign the numbered treaties and retreat to reserves.

Things also changed for First Nations women Things also changed for First Nations women. Most traders hadn’t actually settled in the Northwest, so when their terms of employment were up, or when furs and buffalo became too scarce to make hunting and trapping worthwhile, the traders often returned to Europe without their wives. Europeans would not have accepted Aboriginal Peoples because of the cultural difference.

There were few options open to the First Nations women who were left behind. The trading companies didn’t want to be responsible for the women and their families. By 1835, the Hudson Bay Company had ordered its employees to provide for their wives and children when they left the pay of the company. However, this did not always happen and many abandoned families had to depend on the goodwill of the company or on their relatives. Some traders did remain in the Northwest with their families but they were few.