Customer Reviews

Indians in the Fur Trade: Their Roles as Trappers, Hunters, and Middlemen in the Lands Southwest of Hudson Bay, 1660-1870

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There are probably only about three people in the world interested in this subject: you, me, and the author. That being said this is a jewel of a book in the genre of academic histories. Not the least of its virtues is that the author has included the astonishing total of 46 maps and charts to help the reader along. Given the usual sparse and inadequate maps of low-budget academic books this is much-appreciated.

The focus of the book is the trade relations between the Cree and Assiniboine Indians of Manitoba and Saskatchewan with French and English traders. In describing the trade the author drops in numerous pearls of wisdom about wildlife and ecology of the Canadian plains, Indian hunting strategies, inter-tribal relations, epidemics, and even details about the trade items most popular with the Indians and their prices in beaver pelts. One of the most interesting sections of the book concerns the role of firearms versus bows and arrows in Indian hunting and warfare. Another little gem concerns the Indian dislike of eating "red deer" meat. It took me a while to figure out that the Canadian author was talking about what we would call "elk" in the US.

This is a sound and scholarly history that delves deeply into the files of the Hudson Bay Company and other trading companies to paint what seems to be an authentic picture of Indian life on the Canadian plains in the early days of White/Indian contact. Highly recommended!

Smallchief