The Northwest to 1870PART 1

Competition in the Fur Trade(pp 125 - 138 of Horizons)

J Marshall, 2014

Timeline:• _______HBC created• _______NW Co created• _______Selkirk Settlement founded• _______Pemmican Proclamation• _______Selkirk’s treaty with the Cree• _______HBC/NW Co merge• _______Govt of Canada gets Ruperts Land• _______Red River troubles

1700 18001900

1670

1783

1812

1814

1817

1821

1869

1869

Drainage Basin

Hinterland: back country that provides resourcesHeartland: settled regions that use resources to create goods

The Hudson’s Bay Company

TermsFactorClerkFactory“Stay at the Bay”Made beaverTrade Goods

BCH• The Factor was like a god – the Governor was

even worse!• Marriages were not encouraged• Traded with various First Nations groups• Strict trade standards – everything translated

into “made beaver”• Strict timelines (H Bay open July – Mid-Sept

only• All in-country workers were salaried• Forced inland as resources shrank

The Northwest CompanyMontreal, 1783

TermsMontreal PartnersHivernants/Wintering PartnersVoyageursPortageCanots du nord (7m/6 crew)Canots du maitre (11m/12 crew)Pieces (40kg)

NW Co• New France fell 1763; 1783

NW Co established (about a century after the HBC)

• Initially outside HBC territory/then in competition

• Hivernants went to hinterland to establish trade and would negotiate prices

• Hivernants were partners, not salaried employees

• Canoe brigades moved pieces from Ft William to Lachine

York

Boa

t

Cano

e

jmarshallchat.blogspot.comto access the websites on York boats and canoes

York Boat Canoe

Pros

Cons

NW Co: Advantages

Trappers accessed NW Co posts easier Hierarchy was less rigid than HBC Montreal partners managed overseas

business Hivernants could stay in the bush Hivernants had a vested interest in profits Explorers found new routes/mapped Trade prices were more flexible than HBC Willing to trade alcoholIN WHAT ORDER WOULD YOU RANK THE IMPORTANCE OF EACH?

HBC Problem Solving:• Create a plan to win the fur trade competition

with the NW Co.• Think about the pros and cons of your

decisions.• Consider the short term and longer term

effects of your choices.

Canoe: click to access website

http://www.hbcheritage.ca/content/canoe/dash/full

end