Did you know?

 The fur trade followed the seasons. Trapping and hunting were carried on in the winter because the fur is thickest and in the best (or prime) condition.

 There were many different kinds of traps  Snares would trap the animal in a wire noose  Baited traps, which would attract the animal with food or another substance.  Deadfall traps dropped a heavy weight onto the animal to kill it, was commonly used by First Nations people for beavers.  Traps had to be checked often to ensure that other animals would not eat the captured prey.

 Once skin was removed from the animal, they had to be prepared.  In North America, Aboriginal women usually did the work. They either stretched the furs out on a frame or pegged them to the ground.  Steps: 1. The inside of the skin had to be scraped clean of meat and fat 2. Then it was smeared with a mixture such as cooked brains or liver. 3. After one to three days, the skin was washed and rubbed with a tight rope until it was dry and soft.

There are two types of fur: The first layer on the outside is rough and is called guard hair. It protects the inner (ground) layer and is waterproof. The ground layer is soft and feels like velvet. Aboriginal women pulled the long guard hairs out of the pelt, leaving only the softer ground hair behind.

 Fur traders preferred furs that Aboriginal people had worn. This was because while they were wearing them the guard hairs fell out, leaving only the valuable ground hair behind.

Beaver Pelt Stretching Frame

 In the spring, skins were sent to manufacturers, usually in Europe.  There, they had the fur removed and sorted into course (thick) hair and fine hair.  The coarse hairs were used to make the inner layers of the hat and covered with varnish to make them waterproof. The fine hair was used to coat the outer layer.  The skins were used in making items such as gloves, suitcases and glue. Other kinds of furs, such as mink, were fashioned into other items of clothing, such as coats.  By August or September, they had been made into clothing and were ready for sale when winter arrived.

 Making hats was a dangerous job  To make the felt, the hatters used a "carroting" mixture that had mercury in it  While they worked they could not help breathe in its fumes, which were poisonous.  The fumes damaged their brains and caused some of them to go insane  This is where the saying "mad as a hatter" comes from.

 Life in the fur trade could be hard work. Not only did fur traders have to travel far in a short period of time, they also had to cope with insects, bad weather, and sometimes boring food.

 Voyageurs gathered in Montreal and formed the spring brigades.  From there they had just eight weeks to get from Montreal to the distant fur posts.  To do this they had to paddle more than 12 hours a day, taking a rest every hour.  At night they would sleep on the shore, under their canoes or under the stars.  It was easier for men traveling to HBC posts because most of their voyage was downriver and required less portaging.

Being a fur trader was a tough life  Insects could be a plague in summer.  Local First Nations insect repellants included everything from bloodroot and bay leaves to animal fat and fish oil.  They did not have the choice of food that people in Canada have today.  In the wilderness the traders hunted ate what they could catch, as well as berries and other foods.  As they could not always rely on a steady supply of wild animals to hunt some foods were brought along.  Pemmmican made from dried and pounded buffalo meat and fat, was one such food.

Together with you partner make a list of everything you think a young ambitious fur trader would need when they set out from France or Britain to trade fur. Remember that much of their trapping and trading was done in the cold winter months. Also remember, that this was before the days of high tech weather and camping gear.