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The Canadian Fur Trade

The fur trade was one of the first industries in North America, attracting settlers from both England and France. The trade began in the 1500s when Native Americans traded fur, which was used in clothing and in the making of hats, for goods such as weapons and tools. Beaver fur became the most valuable fur when hats made from it became very popular in Europe.

On May 6, 1760, the Hudson’s Bay Company was formed by a group of English merchants. This company soon had the sole trading rights for furs in the Hudson Bay region. Over time, the company grew larger and more powerful, expanding across Canada and making and enforcing laws for the area under its jurisdiction. The influence of the Hudson’s Bay Company began to wane when silk hats replaced beaver hats in popularity and when Canada became a country in 1867. The company still exists today.

Reading

Exploration, the Fur Trade and Hudson's Bay Company

Five-Part Adventurer Series (requires PDF)

Standard of Trade (What a beaver pelt could buy)

The Hudson's Bay Company Point Blanket

Map and Timeline

Hudson’s Bay Company Territory 1764-1820

Hudson's Bay Company Interactive Timeline

Fun and Activities

Illustration of Hats Made from Beaver

Crossword Puzzle

Coloring Pages

Recommended Resource

The Nor'Westers: The Fight for the Fur Trade

An award winner in Canada in 1954 and published now for the first time in the U.S., this history title holds up well and is still one of the only young adult resources detailing the rise and decline of Canada's fur trading empire of the nineteenth century. With an easy, conversational style, Campbell introduces many key figures in the rivalry between the North West Fur Trading Company and the Hudson's Bay Company, and she builds a compelling story of the infighting, treachery, and betrayal that turned one of the most lucrative businesses in North America into a financial and personal disaster.

A separate chapter highlights the pivotal role played by Native American women, not only as wives or lovers of some head fur traders, but also as messengers of essential wilderness survival knowledge. A full-page black-and-white illustration opens each chapter, there's a useful map showing fur-trading routes, and the index will help readers keep track of the vast and varied cast of historical figures, who will be unfamiliar to most American teens. (American Library Association Review)

Author: Marjorie Wilkins Campbell

Amazon price: $14.95

Read more about the book on Amazon