Artefact 5: Map of Fur Trade

Citation: The Royal Canadian Geographical Society/Canadian Geographic. (2018). Indigenous peoples atlas of Canada: Fur Trade. https://indigenouspeoplesatlasofcanada.ca/article/fur-trade/

This is a picture of a map detailing the economic activity of the Metis people during the fur trade in 1866. The Indigenous peoples were an important part of the fur trade. It created relationships between Indigenous peoples and European settlers. The demand for pelts from animals like the beaver to make hats grew. In the beginning of the fur trade, it was the Indigenous peoples who did most of trapping the animals. The Metis were the skilled hunters and trappers. The fur trade brought wealth and helped grow Canada’s economy. It pushed exploration and mapping of Canada’s vast lands. Also it created trade routes and transportation networks, including the Hudson's Bay Company's many trading posts. The Metis paddled large fur trade canoes from Montreal to Fort William, then to what are now northern Alberta and the southern Northwest Territories. After 1821, the majority of boatmen and voyageurs working in the fur trade were Metis. The Metis was relied on heavily in the fur trade, contributing to Canada's economic growth, exploration, and development of trade routes and transportation networks.

Bibliography: The Royal Canadian Geographical Society/Canadian Geographic. (2018). Indigenous peoples atlas of Canada: Fur Trade. https://indigenouspeoplesatlasofcanada.ca/article/fur-trade/