Fur, Fortune, and Empire: The Epic History of the Fur Trade in America

Fur, Fortune, and Empire: The Epic History of the Fur Trade in America PDF Author: Eric Jay Dolin
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
ISBN: 0393079244
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 494

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Book Description
A Seattle Times selection for one of Best Non-Fiction Books of 2010 Winner of the New England Historial Association's 2010 James P. Hanlan Award Winner of the Outdoor Writers Association of America 2011 Excellence in Craft Award, Book Division, First Place "A compelling and well-annotated tale of greed, slaughter and geopolitics." —Los Angeles Times As Henry Hudson sailed up the broad river that would one day bear his name, he grew concerned that his Dutch patrons would be disappointed in his failure to find the fabled route to the Orient. What became immediately apparent, however, from the Indians clad in deer skins and "good furs" was that Hudson had discovered something just as tantalizing. The news of Hudson's 1609 voyage to America ignited a fierce competition to lay claim to this uncharted continent, teeming with untapped natural resources. The result was the creation of an American fur trade, which fostered economic rivalries and fueled wars among the European powers, and later between the United States and Great Britain, as North America became a battleground for colonization and imperial aspirations. In Fur, Fortune, and Empire, best-selling author Eric Jay Dolin chronicles the rise and fall of the fur trade of old, when the rallying cry was "get the furs while they last." Beavers, sea otters, and buffalos were slaughtered, used for their precious pelts that were tailored into extravagant hats, coats, and sleigh blankets. To read Fur, Fortune, and Empire then is to understand how North America was explored, exploited, and settled, while its native Indians were alternately enriched and exploited by the trade. As Dolin demonstrates, fur, both an economic elixir and an agent of destruction, became inextricably linked to many key events in American history, including the French and Indian War, the American Revolution, and the War of 1812, as well as to the relentless pull of Manifest Destiny and the opening of the West. This work provides an international cast beyond the scope of any Hollywood epic, including Thomas Morton, the rabble-rouser who infuriated the Pilgrims by trading guns with the Indians; British explorer Captain James Cook, whose discovery in the Pacific Northwest helped launch America's China trade; Thomas Jefferson who dreamed of expanding the fur trade beyond the Mississippi; America's first multimillionaire John Jacob Astor, who built a fortune on a foundation of fur; and intrepid mountain men such as Kit Carson and Jedediah Smith, who sliced their way through an awe inspiring and unforgiving landscape, leaving behind a mythic legacy still resonates today. Concluding with the virtual extinction of the buffalo in the late 1800s, Fur, Fortune, and Empire is an epic history that brings to vivid life three hundred years of the American experience, conclusively demonstrating that the fur trade played a seminal role in creating the nation we are today.

Fur, Fortune, and Empire: The Epic History of the Fur Trade in America

Fur, Fortune, and Empire: The Epic History of the Fur Trade in America PDF Author: Eric Jay Dolin
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
ISBN: 0393079244
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 494

Get Book Here

Book Description
A Seattle Times selection for one of Best Non-Fiction Books of 2010 Winner of the New England Historial Association's 2010 James P. Hanlan Award Winner of the Outdoor Writers Association of America 2011 Excellence in Craft Award, Book Division, First Place "A compelling and well-annotated tale of greed, slaughter and geopolitics." —Los Angeles Times As Henry Hudson sailed up the broad river that would one day bear his name, he grew concerned that his Dutch patrons would be disappointed in his failure to find the fabled route to the Orient. What became immediately apparent, however, from the Indians clad in deer skins and "good furs" was that Hudson had discovered something just as tantalizing. The news of Hudson's 1609 voyage to America ignited a fierce competition to lay claim to this uncharted continent, teeming with untapped natural resources. The result was the creation of an American fur trade, which fostered economic rivalries and fueled wars among the European powers, and later between the United States and Great Britain, as North America became a battleground for colonization and imperial aspirations. In Fur, Fortune, and Empire, best-selling author Eric Jay Dolin chronicles the rise and fall of the fur trade of old, when the rallying cry was "get the furs while they last." Beavers, sea otters, and buffalos were slaughtered, used for their precious pelts that were tailored into extravagant hats, coats, and sleigh blankets. To read Fur, Fortune, and Empire then is to understand how North America was explored, exploited, and settled, while its native Indians were alternately enriched and exploited by the trade. As Dolin demonstrates, fur, both an economic elixir and an agent of destruction, became inextricably linked to many key events in American history, including the French and Indian War, the American Revolution, and the War of 1812, as well as to the relentless pull of Manifest Destiny and the opening of the West. This work provides an international cast beyond the scope of any Hollywood epic, including Thomas Morton, the rabble-rouser who infuriated the Pilgrims by trading guns with the Indians; British explorer Captain James Cook, whose discovery in the Pacific Northwest helped launch America's China trade; Thomas Jefferson who dreamed of expanding the fur trade beyond the Mississippi; America's first multimillionaire John Jacob Astor, who built a fortune on a foundation of fur; and intrepid mountain men such as Kit Carson and Jedediah Smith, who sliced their way through an awe inspiring and unforgiving landscape, leaving behind a mythic legacy still resonates today. Concluding with the virtual extinction of the buffalo in the late 1800s, Fur, Fortune, and Empire is an epic history that brings to vivid life three hundred years of the American experience, conclusively demonstrating that the fur trade played a seminal role in creating the nation we are today.

The Fur Traders and Fur Bearing Animals

The Fur Traders and Fur Bearing Animals PDF Author: Marcus Petersen
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Fur trade
Languages : en
Pages : 396

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Book Description


Fur Traders and Trappers of the Old West

Fur Traders and Trappers of the Old West PDF Author: Merrill J. Mattes
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Fur trade
Languages : en
Pages : 15

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Book Description


The Fur Trade in Canada

The Fur Trade in Canada PDF Author: Harold Adams Innis
Publisher: University of Toronto Press
ISBN: 9780802081964
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 504

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Book Description
A classic work of Canadian historical scholarship, first published in 1930. In his new introduction, A.J. Ray states that this book is argueably the most definitive economic history and geography of Canada ever produced.

The Fur Trade in Colorado

The Fur Trade in Colorado PDF Author: William B. Butler
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781937851026
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 232

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Book Description
Provides a vivid look into the life of the trapper and trader, the dangers they faced, and the fortunes that a few lucky ones were able to amass. Butler uses his role as an archaeologist to present floor plans of many of the posts and unknown drawings that are just now coming to light. Attention has also been given to the five of twenty-four trading posts that have been reconstructed. Rendezvous in Colorado are also covered, as well as shipping methods used to get the furs to various markets"--P. [4] of cover.

Chardon's Journal at Fort Clark, 1834-1839

Chardon's Journal at Fort Clark, 1834-1839 PDF Author: Francis A. Chardon
Publisher: U of Nebraska Press
ISBN: 9780803263758
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 544

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Book Description
Thirty years after Meriwether Lewis and William Clark passed through the Mandan villages in present-day North Dakota, the Upper Missouri River region was being plied by fur traders. In 1834 Francis A. Chardon, a Philadelphian of French extraction, took charge of Fort Clark, a main post of the American Fur Company on the Upper Missouri. The journal that Chardon began that year offers a rare glimpse of daily life among the Mandan Indians, including the Arikaras, Yanktons, and Gros Ventres. In particular, it is a valuable and graphic record of the smallpox scourge that nearly destroyed the Mandans in 1837. Chardon describes much of historical interest, including such figures as the interpreter Charbonneau, Sacajawea's husband, and the fantastic James Dickson, "Liberator of all the Indians." By the time his account ends in 1839, the fur trade is already in decline. Chardon's journal was long lost, rediscovered, and finally edited and published in 1932 by Annie Heloise Abel, a distinguished scholar whose works, all available as Bison Books, included The American Indian As Slaveholder and Secessionist; The American Indian in the Civil War, 1862-1865; and The American Indian and the End of the Confederacy, 1863-1866. Her historical introduction provides background on the fur trade and on Chardon's life before and after his tenure at Fort Clark. William R. Swagerty is a history professor at the University of Idaho.

Trapping 101

Trapping 101 PDF Author: Philip Massaro
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1510716343
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 391

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Book Description
Tips, tactics, and techniques for all skill levels. The ancient art of trapping goes back centuries, almost to the beginning of civilization. Native Americans used the pit trap, deadfalls, and snares, the Chinese documented the use of nets and pits in the fourth century BCE, and virtually every civilization can exhibit some example of the use of a trap in one form or another to procure meat, hides, or fur. The fur trade across Europe was dominated by the Russians, which provided furs to the greater part of Western Europe and Asia during the Middle Ages, which prompted the exploration of Siberia and its game rich forests. In North America, trapping was one of the primary reasons why settlers pushed West, taking advantage of the bountiful game across the continent. Fur was used not only for coats, hats, and mittens, it was used as a form of barter. The taking of a fur-bearing animal was and is a big accomplishment, as fooling a crafty animal on its home territory is no easy feat. In Trapping 101, veteran trapper Phil Massaro reveals all the secrets of the trade, from knowing where to set traps, to understanding and using various types of traps, to properly using scents. Tips and tactics for taking beavers, muskrats, weasels, raccoons, skunks, otters, and more are all covered. While there is a wealth of information in here for beginners, information that will help them pick up trapping with relative ease, there are many subtle tips and tricks that even a veteran trapper will appreciate. Times have, of course, changed since the days of the voyageurs and rendezvouses. There are many more people in this modern world, many more dwellings, many more towns and cities. But there is a place for trapping in all this, just as there are places for hunting and fishing. A knowledgeable trapper, following game rules and respecting the animals he is trying to trap, fits right into the grand scheme of Mother Nature existing in harmony with humankind. This book will help you achieve that.

Pioneer Days in the Early Southwest

Pioneer Days in the Early Southwest PDF Author: Grant Foreman
Publisher: Legare Street Press
ISBN: 9781017041880
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Trading Beyond the Mountains

Trading Beyond the Mountains PDF Author: Richard S. Mackie
Publisher: UBC Press
ISBN: 0774842466
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 447

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Book Description
During the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, the North West and Hudson�s Bay companies extended their operations beyond the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific Ocean. There they encountered a mild and forgiving climate and abundant natural resources and, with the aid of Native traders, branched out into farming, fishing, logging, and mining. Following its merger with the North West Company in 1821, the Hudson�s Bay Company set up its headquarters at Fort Vancouver on the lower Columbia River. From there, the company dominated much of the non-Native economy, sending out goods to markets in Hawaii, Sitka, and San Francisco. Trading Beyond the Mountains looks at the years of exploration between 1793 and 1843 leading to the commercial development of the Pacific coast and the Cordilleran interior of western North America. Mackie examines the first stages of economic diversification in this fur trade region and its transformation into a dynamic and distinctive regional economy. He also documents the Hudson�s Bay Company�s employment of Native slaves and labourers in the North West coast region.

The Mountain Men

The Mountain Men PDF Author: George Laycock
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1493083651
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 257

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Book Description
To know how the West was really won, start with the exploits of these unsung mountain men who, like the legendary Jeremiah Johnson, were real buckskin survivalists. Preceded only by Lewis and Clark, beaver fur trappers roamed the river valleys and mountain ranges of the West, living on fish and game, fighting or trading with the Native Americans, and forever heading toward the untamed wilderness. In this story of rough, heroic men and their worlds, Laycock weaves historical facts and practical instruction with profiles of individual trappers, including harrowing escapes, feats of supreme courage and endurance, and sometimes violent encounters with grizzly bears and Native Americans.