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Fur Trade Room

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Room 4People of Trade

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Alcohol Trade

One item traded with the Native Americans in large quantities was alcohol. This one substance had a tremendous affect on Native American culture. Used in negotiations, it is theorized that the Europeans introduced alcohol to cloud Native American thought and reasoning. It was more likely that intoxicated Native Americans could be cheated during trades. This often left trading Indian communities in a state of poverty. In the early 1800s, attempts were made to limit the trade of alcohol with the Native Americans, but were for the most part unsuccessful.

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Image acquired at:

http://www.artzooks.com/photos-images/beer-barrel.html

Wampum Belt

A Wampum belt is made of rows of beads woven together. The beads were made out of shells that had holes drilled in them so they could be strung together. The beads were traded among the Native American tribes. They were used in religious and ritual ceremonies. In addition, they represented validated treaties and were used in their oral traditions. One tribe may have received a Wampum belt from another tribe as a message because the color of the beads had different meanings. After meeting the Europeans, the Native Americans expanded their bead trade. Eventually, the Wampum beads represented a form of money, because they could be used in exchange for other types of goods.

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Image acquired at:

http://www.nativetech.org/wampum/wamppics.htm

Native American Copper

Native Americans were trading copper long before they met the Europeans. Copper was used as utensils, tools, arrow points, pipes, and in jewelry. The tribes living near large copper deposits were very familiar with mining and working with the copper. As the Native Americans came into contact with the Europeans, copper became a valuable commodity when trading for items made of iron and steel.

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Image acquired at:

http://anthro.amnh.org/anthropology/databases/north_public/north_public.htm

Weapons Trade

The first European explorers introduced firearms to the Native Americans. While exchange was limited in the beginning, demand rapidly increased with the introduction of flintlock in the early 1600s. By the end of the 1600s, European companies were trading weapons with the Native Americans on a large scale. Initially, the traded weapons were not guaranteed to fire, as many of them exploded in the hands of their users. However, as with other manufactured items, rigid quality requirements were placed on the trading companies. Native Americans fashioned gun cases as a way of displaying their weapon. Return to Room

Image acquired at:

http://anthro.amnh.org/anthropology/databases/north_public/north_public.htm

Beaver Pelt Trade

Native Americans traded beaver pelts before the Europeans arrived, but in limited quantities. With the arrival of the Europeans, pelt trade expanded to the point of near extinction of beavers. In the mid 1600s, thousands of pelts were traded with the Europeans in exchange for guns, alcohol, blankets, cloth, beads, and food. The European demand for beaver pelts was high. Not only did they want the pelts to make warm clothes, but they also represented a symbol of status. The over-hunting of beaver also affected the natural eco-system.

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Image acquired at:

http://www.sd4history.com/Unit4/changelandlesson1.htm

Land Rights

The Native Americans and the Europeans viewed land rights differently. It was the philosophy of the Europeans that any land discovered became property of the sovereign monarch. It could be parsed out as they saw fit. They, therefore, would claim land ownership. On the other hand, the Indians viewed land rights differently. Even though the Europeans thought the Indians had no formal interest in the land, the Indians had a sophisticated trade economy which included land use. They had intertribal treaties, rules for land rights, and dispute resolution methods. When entering trade negotiations with the Europeans, the Indians thought they were entering into similar land use agreements. The notion of land ownership was foreign and resulted in Indians giving up their land and being forcibly relocated. Return to Room

Image acquired at:

http://www.maxdstandley.com/giclees/i/the_trail_of_tears.jpg

Map Making

Due mostly as a result of the fur trade, Native Americans were employed or forced to scout areas and make maps for the Europeans. The Native Americans already had extensive trade trails and well established routes across the country. The Europeans used the knowledge of the Native Americans to map out open land for future migration and trade routes. Many of the Indian trails became horse paths, then wagon trails, caravan roads, and eventually highways.

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Image acquired at:

http://www.mtmen.org/mtman/html/bville/bvillmap2.jpg

Deerskin Trade

Another important trading relationship between the Native Americans and Europeans was with deerskin trade. Deerskins were exported to Europe as it was an important source for the leather industry. As with the fur trade, competition was fierce. Alliances were formed and broken between tribes over hunting grounds, between the Europeans and Native Americans over trade negotiations, and between the Europeans over exporting rights. By the end of the 1600s, over 100,000 pounds of deerskin were being exported annually. As trade relations continued between Native Americans and Europe, the Native Americans became more dependent upon the European goods. Return to Room

Image acquired at:

www.historycooperative.org

Cooking Tools and Other Things

Europeans not only traded weapons and alcohol, but a variety of household items. In exchange for furs and pelts, European merchants traded kettles, spoons, fish hooks, combs, scissors, mirrors, needles and thread, clothing, and blankets. The Native Americans readily accepted the trade items as they made some aspects of their lives easier and more comfortable. They could incorporate some the European items directly into their traditional culture. Over time, some of the Native American tribes had more European goods in their household than some of the Europeans themselves. While this trade seemed beneficial for all parties, it eventually led to Native Americans becoming dependent on Europeans goods of trade. Return to Room

Image acquired at:

http://kikipotamus.files.wordpress.com/2007/04/steaming-kettle.jpg

Corn

One of the main crops for Native Americans was corn. Over the years, they developed special cultivation techniques to produce the best corn for human consumption. They could grow corn in almost any type of environment. The Native Americans would dry and grind corn to be stored for later consumption. Corn crops varied from different tribes, so it was often used in trade. When the Europeans arrived, corn became a necessary commodity for them. They were eager to trade for corn or corn products.

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Image acquired at:

http://www.inmagine.com/searchterms/indian_corn-5.html

Herbs and Medicines

Prior to the arrival of the Europeans, the Native Americans had extensive knowledge of local herb medicines and treatments. This included knowing which plants to use, how to dry or prepare them, and how to store and mix them for particular ailments. The Indians knew where the plants grew or which tribe to trade with if the plant did not grow locally. After the arrival of the Europeans, the Native American medicines were not a high value commodity in the trade circuit. However, knowledge and techniques were exchanged. Even though European doctors viewed Native American healing with a critical eye, many of the herb ingredients found a place in European treatments. Return to Room

Image acquired at:

http://anthro.amnh.org/anthropology/databases/north_public/north_public.htm

Horse Trade

The Plains Indian horses were introduced to North America by the Spanish Conquistadors in the 16th century. They brought a mixture of breeds and varied in size and color. The introduction of horses allowed for greater mobility and were a sought after commodity by many tribes. When trade was limited, horse stealing raids occurred. Horse trade was one of the few items that did not leave the Indians dependent on the Europeans. In fact, some tribes were able to breed the horses to improve their economic situation. Unlike other items of trade, the horse did not belong to the whole tribe. It was the property of individuals, which led to increased status within the tribe.

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Image acquired at:

http://www.thefurtrapper.com/indian_horse.htm

Native American Women

Before coming into contact with the Europeans, Native American tribes were matriarchal. While division of labor was equal, the women were in charge of land tenure and use. Inheritance and family clans were through the mother and the women handled the trade transactions and distribution of goods. They had a great deal of power and authority over their lives. Women were responsible for taking care of the family, caring for the sick and injured, and maintaining the spirituality of the tribe. It was often the women who met with other tribes to negotiate treaties or to make trade agreements.

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Image acquired at:

http://anthro.amnh.org/anthropology/databases/north_public/north_public.htm

European Trade

Trade relations with the Native Americans varied depending on which county the Europeans originated from.

Spain: The Spanish explored new lands in search of precious metals to increase Spain’s financial status. Successful conquistadors from Mexico found the new land to be different. Under the guise of religion, Spain established missions for political economical purposes. They used Native Americans to work in the missions and were paid in inexpensive trade goods.

France: The French, like the Spanish, originally explored new lands looking for precious metals. When the French arrived in North America, they found few precious metals, but found something more valuable; fur. Unlike the English, the French were not initially interested in establishing permanent colonies. They simply wanted to trade for fur from the Native Americans and export it back to their homeland.

England: While England eventually got involved in the fur trade, they originally came to America for different reasons. They were looking to establish permanent colonies. With the arrival of the English in Jamestown, the Native Americans were cautious at first. In time, an offering of informal trade began. The Native Americans offered food and land use to the English. Relationships became strained when the English interpreted land use as land ownership. Return to Room

Image acquired at:

http://www.gracegalleries.com/images/Repros/REPRO29.jpg

Tribal Men

Traditionally, Native American tribes were matriarchal. Any power the men had was given to them by the women and could be taken away by the women. However, with the arrival of the Europeans, this changed. Europe was a patriarchal society, where men were in charge. They assumed that the Native American society would be the same. In meetings with the Indians, the Europeans wanted to deal with the men. Trade negotiations, treaties, land rights, and diplomatic relations went through the men. This led to a change within the Native American culture and a power shift from the women to the men.

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Image acquired at:

http://nativeamericans.com/NativeAmericanImages4.htm

Intertribal Trade

Long before the arrival of the Europeans, the Native Americans had an elaborate system of trade that networked throughout the country. Not only did the hunting tribes trade with the farming tribes, but specialty items that originated hundreds of miles away could be traded. Examples include copper from Lake Superior, pipestone from Minnesota, turquoise from New Mexico, and marine shells from coastal tribes. Native Americans exchanged different varieties of corn, feathers, and hides. As Native American tribes began trading with the Europeans, some of the new products would reach tribes years before the people would even meet.

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Image acquired at:

http://kyusa.addr.com/Cherokee/

Jennifer Bonilla

Hi, I am a third grade teacher at Hollingsworth Elementary. I have been teaching and working in Las Vegas for six years. This picture is from the Alaskan cruise that I took this summer. I visited a dog sled training camp and this is one of four puppies that an Iditarod racer had recently birthed.

If you have any questions about my museum, please e-mail me at jbonilla@interact.ccsd.net

Return to RoomNote: Virtual museums were first introduced by educators at Keith Valley Middle School in Horsham, Pennsylvania. This template was designed by Dr. Christy Keeler based on one of the sample virtual museums provided by the Keith Valley staff at ISTE’s NECC 2005. Contact Dr. Keeler for more information on using this template.