The first company to set up a trading post on the Pacific Northwest coast was the Pacific Fur Company. John Jacob Astor, a wealthy New York fur merchant, decided to organize the Pacific Fur Company to open up the unexplored territory west of the Rocky Mountains. Astor's fur enterprises were well established east of the Rockies. He hoped to gain control over the entire American fur trade.
In September, 1810, two parties, representing Astor's Pacific Fur Company, set out to establish the first trading post on the Columbia River. One party sailed from New York aboard the Tonquin, under the command of Captain Jonathan Thorn. The other party set out from St. Louis on an overland expedition to the mouth of the Columbia. That party was under the leadership of Wilson Price Hunt, one of the partners of the Pacific Fur Company. Both the overland and the overseas parties expected to arrive at the Pacific Coast about the same time.
In addition to the two parties, Astor dispatched one of his many ships, the Beaver, with a load of supplies and some additional workers for the company post. The overland party, the Tonquin, and the Beaver were the core of Astor's Pacific Coast venture.
Captain Thorn of the Tonquin was an unreasonable and cantankerous man. When the Tonquin reached the mouth of the Columbia, on March 22, 1811, the crew could not locate the channel across the treacherous bar because of stormy weather. Instead of waiting for more favorable weather, Thorn insisted upon sending a small boat ahead to find the passage. The boat and the crew of five were promptly swallowed by the crashing breakers. Before the Tonquin finally crossed the bar a few days later, another small boat and its crew of three also disappeared.
The crew was not satisfied with the site selected for a post and wanted to search for a better one. Before they could pursue this, Thorn departed for Vancouver Island to trade with the Indians, without even taking time to unload all of the supplies. At Vancouver Island, he so antagonized the Indians that they attacked the ship and killed everyone on board, including Thorn. The Tonquin was blown up and destroyed. The loss of the ship left the crew with no means of carrying on their coastal trade and also resulted in the lost of the much needed supplies that were still on board.
The cost of shipping by rail was one-tenth of that at only $0.015/ton. At this rate farmers made money and could ship all the way to Minneapolis, where the value was up to $1.50/bushel. In 1893, the Soo Line began building a railroad across the hinterlands of Wisconsin and Minnesota so they could ship grain and l...
Farmers who lived west of the Appalachian Mountains shipped all their surplus produce by boat down rivers that flowed into the Gulf of Mexico. In a treaty of 1795, Spain agreed to give Americans the "right of deposit" at New Orleans. This right allowed Americans to store in New Orleans, duty-free, goods shipped for export. Arks and flatboats transported a great variety of products, including flour, tobacco, pork bacon, lard, feathers, cider, butter, cheese, hemp, p...
Lewis and Clark were viewing trade as a long-term venture, while the Indians wanted an immediate exchange or merchandise.
In 1808 Simon Fraser, employed by the Northwest Company, made his way across the Rockies and came down what is known now as the Fraser River to the Columbia. The next to come along was David Thompson, who was also employed by the Northwest Company. He too crossed the Rockies and made his way to the Pacific Ocean by way of the Columbia River. He reached the ocean in 1811 and found an American fur-trading company. This was the Pacific Fur Trading Company. It was the first permanent Euro-American settlement at Astoria.
In 1850, the side wheeler “Columbia”, which commenced regular services between Astoria and Portland in 1850, was the first steamship to ply Columbia as a common carrier. Half a dozen steamships soon joined her on interior waters, and their numbers greatly increased after the gold discoveries of the 1860s (Schwantes, 181).
Lewis and Clark's expedition officially began on May 21, 1804 when they and the 33 other men making up the Corps of Discovery departed from their camp near St. Louis, Missouri. The first portion of the expedition followed the route of the Missouri River during which, they passed through places such as present-day Kansas City, Missouri and Omaha, Nebraska.
We see initial leadership within Shackleton in his ability to make decisions. With a voyage like this, the decisions made would determine the likelihood of success. From the purchase ...
To take on the first harsh winter, a fort was built in present day Bismarck, North Dakota. “At this time Sacagawea, a Shoshone women, joined the expedition as a guide and translator. In 1805, the group followed the Missouri westward to its headwaters and then crossed the Rocky Mountains and proceeded along the Salmon, Snake, and Columbia rivers to the Pacific Ocean” (Houghton 653). The Corps of Discovery had found what they were looking for on November 7, 1805, th...
Slaves and slave trade has been an important part of history for a very long time. In the years of the British thirteen colonies in North America, slaves and slave trade was a very important part of its development. It even carried on to almost 200 years of the United States history. The slave trade of the thirteen colonies was an important part of the colonies as well as Europe and Africa. In order to supply the thirteen colonies efficiently through trade, Europe developed the method of triangular trade. It is referred to as triangular trade because it consists of trade with Africa, the thirteen colonies, and England. These three areas are commonly called the trades “three legs.”
With the East and the West being brought together by the railroad, goods were able to go to m...
Trade was important to the Maritimes. Up to 1846 Britain had provided the British North American colonies with a market for their goods, but then began a policy of free trade. Because there were no tariffs placed on any country the colonies lost a sure market for their goods. Many colonists were concerned that some might consider union with the United States and the British North American colonies was brisk with large amounts of lumber and grain being imported by the U.S. When the Americans ended the Reciprocity Treaty in 1865, many Maritimers became uneasy about the economic future. It became apparent that in order to develop thriving trade; new economic links would have to be developed. 3
Aboriginal women had occupied an essential position in the fur trade of the North American region from its birth during the 17th and 18th centuries. Even though this is true, the role of women, especially those of the Native American society, has been ignored a great deal in the entire history of fur trade. Contrary to the belief that the whole fur trade activity was only male-dominated, it very much depended upon Native women and their participation and labor in order to ensure survival as well as economic success. This paper will attempt to illuminate how Native women played the role as important producers when it comes to fur trade of the American Plains and, of course, the Canadian region. This paper will also deal with the two important company's namely the North West and Hudson's Bay Company and tell how each functioned during the time of fur trade. The term “fur traders” is the term often used to described anyone who was interested in the traffic of furs. The traditional picture has been that of a male in buckskin shirt and a raccoon cap, dispensing alcohol and trinkets to gullible savages, in turn for the quality furs worth 10 times their value.
this historic event. Little did they know, it would be a voyage that would end in great tragedy and
James Cook made a conscious effort to search North America’s west coast. After exploring the west coast James cook wanted to then search the Coast northward. Before James Cook could explore they would have to wait out the bad weather. On the date of 29th March to the date of 26th April, 1778. James Cook and the HMS Discovery stayed in the town of Yuquot, this was on Vancouver Island. This was in Canada.
Thousands of Americans started selling off their land in the Midwest and using the money to buy things such as ox and wagons to travel west. They also bought things such as cows, horses, chickens, and pigs to use as food and labor. Americans had to be careful with what they chose to bring of their journey to Oregon since they could only carry so much in a covered wagon. Mainly people chose to bring the necessities and brought few keepsakes with them on their journey.