Term
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Definition
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Term
| What did the First Nations peoples have that the Europeans wanted? |
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Definition
| FUR!!!! (Fox, marten, otter, bear, lynx, muskrat, wolf and beaver) |
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Term
| Why were furs so popular in Europe? |
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Definition
| They were being used in clothing (trims on coats), and beavers, especially were used in beaver felt hats. |
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Term
| Who were the three key players in the French fur trade? |
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Definition
1. First Nations (men hunted and women skinned the animals)
2. Merchants - merchants financed and organized the trade - they purchased goods in Europe and shipped them to Canada. They then shipped the purchased furs to Europe.
3. Coureurs de bois and voyagers - these adventurers journeyed into the wilderness to trade for furs with the First Nations peoples. |
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Term
| How did the First Nations peoples help the Europeans in the Fur Trade? |
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Definition
1. showed them how to find food
2. Taught them how to make medicines and cure diseases (e.g. scurvy)
3. provided advise on how to dress for the cold weather
4. Provided transportation in the form of canoes, snowshoes, toboggans
5. Shared knowledge of the region
6. Translated trade deals with different groups
7. Helped them negotiated
8. Provided a workforce to cook, sew, prepare pemmican etc. |
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Term
| What role did First Nations (and Metis) women play in the fur trade? |
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Definition
1. Prepared furs - scraped the flesh and worked it until it was soft
2. Worked in the forts - made clothing (moccassins, pants etc), wove fishing nets, gathered fire wood, caught small animals and collected nuts and berries and tea leaves.
3. Worked "on the road" - helped paddle the canoes and worked in the camps in the wilderness
4. Shared language and geography skills - many women knew more than one language and so they were good interpreters |
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Term
| How did the French King control the fur trade? |
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Definition
| He appointed officials to carry out his plans. He used the profits from the fur trade to benefit the colony. |
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Term
| Who was Jean Baptitse Colbert? |
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Definition
- In 1663 he was put in charge of planning the North American colony
- He wanted the colony to be part of the mercantile system (where colonists would receive goods from France, and New France would send to France their furs, timber and so on).
- Colbert would not allow traders to build trading posts in the interior (he felt it would lead to problems with First Nations)
- therefore he had to depend on the Wendat to bring furs from many First Nations to MONTREAL |
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Term
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Definition
- was put in charge of the colony of New France after 1665
- supported local industries
- under Talon, the number of French colonists doubled as he used government money to attract new colonists |
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Term
| Who was Governor Frontenac |
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Definition
- a french nobleman
- became governor of New France in 1672
- the colony he was to run had many problems - the Wendat (who were supposed to be bringing furs to Montreal from the First Nations) had been killed due to smallpox. Another group, the Odawa tried to take over, but still couldn't do the job well
- Frontenac had to create a new plan that sent coureurs de bois into the interior and expand the system of trading posts deep in the interior |
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Term
| What was the GREAT PEACE OF MONTREAL? |
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Definition
- there had been much fighting between the French and the Haudenosaunee for 60 years
- tired of constant war,in 1701, New France and the Frist Nations were ready to discuss peace.
- 40 different First Nations communities with 1300 delegates came together in Montreal
- at the end, it was agreed that the First Nations would no longer battle each other or the French and the French would no longer attack Haudenosaunee villages
- trappers and traders would now be able to travel safely
- peace lasted about 50 years |
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Term
| Why did the coureur de bois have to travel further north and west? |
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Definition
| The beaver population had begun to dwindle (run out) because of over trapping, so the trappers had to go further into North America to find the furs. |
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Term
| What were some of the benefits of the growing profits of the fur trade? |
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Definition
- the increased profits allowed investing in other parts of the economy such as:
- mills
- ship building yard
- textile industries
- fishing industry |
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Term
| What was the main transportation route for the French voyageurs? |
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Definition
They used the waterways as they were fast and convenient
- as France controlled the St. Lawrence River and the Great Lakes, they could paddle "quickly" through rivers and lakes to transport goods as far west as the Rocky Mountains |
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Term
| What does it mean to portage? |
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Definition
| to carry a canoe overland between two waterways |
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Term
| What were the best canoes built out of? |
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Definition
| Birchbark as they were lightweight so they could move through the water quickly and easy to carry when necessary. |
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Term
| Who was Pierre de la Verendrye? |
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Definition
- Pierre la Verendrye took charge of the French trading post near Lake Superior in 1715
- in 1732, la Verendrye travelled west to Lake Winnipeg and found the Saskatchewan River
- this Saskatchewan River soon became the most important river for the east-west fur trade
- though he found many routes and explored (and opened up) much of western canada, he still felt a failure as he never found the "Western Sea" (the Pacific Ocean) |
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Term
| What was different between the English Fur Trade and the French Fur Trade? |
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Definition
- the English were NOT interested in creating a colony in Canada
- they had ONE GOAL - to make money
- this created tension between the fur traders, the First Nations and the English |
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Term
| Why did the English build their forts along the shores of the Hudsons Bay? |
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Definition
1. It was close to the fur supply of the northern forests (northern fur was considered better as animals had to grow thicker furs to survive during the winter)
2. Many rivers flow into Hudsons Bay - and these river supply good transportation routes for trappers
3. Large supply ships could deliver heavy supplies directly to the forts - instead of having to unload in Montreal and then canoe supplies to the forts like the French had to do |
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Term
| Who were the Nor'Westers? |
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Definition
- a group of traders from Montreal formed teh North West Company (known as Nor'Westers)
- they extended the fur trade farther than it had been in the days of New France
- goal was to make $$$$ not build a colony
- traders ran a smart business, while trying to build a good relationship with the First Nations people |
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Term
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Definition
| - Francophone citizens of North America |
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Term
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Definition
- children of European fathers and First Nations mothers
- many knew more than one language so they acted as interpreters
- many became the chief suppliers of buffalo meat to western trading posts |
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Term
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Definition
- an American from Connecticut
- in 1778 he built a small trading post on the Athabaska River
- this was the first trading post in what we now call Alberta |
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Term
| What was the first major trading centre in Alberta |
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Definition
- Fort Chipeweyan
- it became a major trading centre
- it was the first European community in Alberta
- was called the 'Emporium of the North" because it was so big |
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Term
| Who was Marie-Anne Gaboury (1780-1875) |
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Definition
- she was the first non-Aboriginal woman to live in Western Canada
- married a voyager who she travelled with into fur country in Manitoba and then onto Fort Edmonton
- she is the grandmother of Louis Riel |
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Term
| Who was Alexander Mackenzie? |
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Definition
- he was a Nor'Wester who came to Canada from Scotland
- in 1789, he tried to find the Pacific Ocean - so he could find a route to China, but instead the river lead to the Artic Ocean - He considered this a failure
- a few years later he tried again, and he found a way to the Pacific Ocean by travelling over the Peace River
- he was the first European to cross the continent from the East coast to the Pacific Ocean |
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Term
| What were some of the negative impacts of European contact with First Nations? |
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Definition
1. Changed their traditional way of life
- they now worked for the fur trade
- they moved from their traditional homes to follow the fur trade
- they became dependent on European goods
- in the West, the buffalo, which supplied many of the needs of the First Nations, was hunted almost to extinction, creating great hardship
- the First Nations lost much of their heritage language
2. Disease
- the Europeans introduced germs and diseases which the First Nations could not combat and hundreds of thousands died in epdemics |
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Term
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Definition
- a fort near present day Lethbridge
- trading furs for whiskey/alcohol was not allowed in the states, so many traders came to Fort Whoop-up to trade furs for alcohol
- there was no police force at Whoop-up, so people did what they wanted, and it was very violent and dangerous
- the "whiskey" that was traded for furs was terrible stuff and many who drank it became so sick they died
- the area became very violent and lawless, as many people had addictions and were being poisoned by this "whiskey" |
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