Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
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Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
FUR TRADE
FUR TRADE.
In 1608, the French explorer Samuel de Champlain established a trading post on the site of the present-day city Quebec. The city became fur-trading center. The French expanded their trading activities along the St. Lawrence River and around the Great Lakes. Eventually the French had over three hundred forts in the upper Midwest with the majority of forts for the fur trade - not for the military. (1) These "forts" were collections of houses and sheds defended by a thick walled blockhouse or a palisade around the main buildings. They usually lasted for only several years. The trader moved on. Most of these sites were not mapped and almost none have been found archaeologically. (2) They eventually controlled most of the early fur trade in what became Canada. The French traders obtained furs from the Huron and, later, from the Ottawa. These tribes were not trappers, but they acquired the furs from other natives. The French also developed the fur trade along the Mississippi River. (3)
The dream of the founders of New France in America to establish "a chain of well-garrisoned forts along the St. Lawrence River to the Ohio and thence down to the Gulf of Mexico" was part of their plan "to retain the trade monopoly in the furs and minerals of the West" and thus "check the encroachments of their aggressive neighbors and enemies" the British and the Spanish. (4) In 1634 Jean Nicolet traveled through the Great Lakes to Green Bay on what is now Lake Michigan. He claimed all the land in this area for France. (5)
By the 1630s furs were regularly leaving New France for Europe. The demand for beaver fur was so great that the animals had been hunted nearly to extinction in European countries. (6) North American beaver (castor canadensis) was imported through agents in the English, French and Dutch colonies. Although many of the pelts were shipped to Russia for initial processing, the growth of the beaver market in England and France led to the development of local technologies for transforming the furs to felt. (7) These furs were mainly supplied by Indian traders, especially the Huron and Ottawa tribes. In Wisconsin the Winnebago tribes blocked the fur trade routes. They were attacked and defeated by the Ottawa and Huron. (8)
About 1690 Nicholas PERROT erected two or three forts or trading posts along the Mississippi River above the mouth of the Wisconsin River. Natives exchanged pelts for trinkets. Later Perrot built a "fort" opposite the LEAD mines - probably "near the site of Dunleith on the Illinois side" of the river - thus bringing his wares within easy reach of the customers. (9)
Other Frenchmen engaged in considerable trade with the Indians. Posts were established at various places in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois. The French dream of an American empire came to an end, however, with the English victory in the French and Indian War. French land holdings were transferred to Spain in 1762 so that they would not be lost to the English. (10) During the period of Spanish control a bitter contest was waged with the English over the Indian trade. The Spaniards complained that the Sioux and the Ioways were unfaithful, giving to the English the fruits of their hunting, but the liberal presents of the British were not able to win over the Sauk and Fox tribes. (11)
In 1794 the Spanish Governor gave Andrew Todd, "a young and robust Irishman", the right to the exclusive trade of the Upper Mississippi. "Don Andreas", as he came to be called, appears to have been successful in the undertaking -sending vast stores of goods up from New Orleans and bringing back furs. Two years later James Mackay in the employ of the Spanish Commercial Company of St. Louis reported that the "traders of the River Monigona (Des Moines) have sent twelve horses laden with goods to trade with the Panis (Pawnees) and the Layos (Loups) on the Chato (Platte) River." He adds furthermore that he "would be glad to be able to deal them a blow on their return." The struggle against British aggression seemed to be still in progress. (12)
That same year, 1796, Julien DUBUQUE made claim to lead mines. Todd, however, retained his monopoly of the Indian trade, insisting that the Spanish government absolutely prohibit Dubuque from trading with the natives. (13) With the death of Todd in 1796, the monopoly seems to have ended for the grant made in 1799 to Louis Tesson near the present town of Montrose in Lee County and the one in 1800 to Basil Giard at what is now McGregor in Clayton County contained no such restrictions. These three men, Dubuque, Tesson, and Giard, were probably the first fur traders who actually lived in Iowa; although other and earlier transient traders made frequent excursions into this region. (14) One of these was undoubtedly Jean Marie CARDINAL.
Despite his success in MINING, Dubuque persisted in continuing and even trying to expand his business in the fur trade which he conducted with merchants at Michilimackinac and Montreal. The problem was that the Napoleonic wars limited the market for furs in Europe and profits in this sector had become slim. He fell into financial debt.(15) The general direction of the fur trade was east to west and back again rather than north to south as the Mississippi flows. However, some furs did make their way down the Mississippi to Louisiana. Mostly these were “black market” furs sent down the Mississippi to avoid sharing the profits with the licensed traders in Montreal. (16)
A period of more active interest in the fur trade began about the year 1800. The durable beaver fur was so water-resistant that beaver hats had become the rage in Europe and America. (17) The first trader of the new commercial era was Jean Baptiste Faribault. An agent of the North West Company operating out of Canada, he established a post called "Redwood" located some two hundred miles above the mouth of the Des Moines River, probably somewhere above the present site of Des Moines. Within a year after his arrival he had collected enough furs to arrange a trip to the mouth of the river where he "delivered them to Mr. (Louis) Crawford, one of the accredited agents of the Company." During the four years Faribault remained in charge of this lonely trading post he saw no white men but his own assistants, except on his annual trip to the mouth of the river. (18)
"High prices" were often charged by the traders. It has been estimated that the "Ayouwais", a tribe of some eight hundred Indians located about forty leagues up the river "Demoin", annually consumed merchandise valued a thirty-eight hundred dollars for which they gave in return six thousand dollars worth of "deer skins principally, and the skins of the black bear, beaver, otter, grey fox, raccoon, muskrat, and mink." (19) In 1804, following the purchase of the Iowa country by the United States, the government agreed to establish a post to allow the SAUK and FOX to obtain goods "at a more reasonable rate" and incidentally "to put a stop to the abuses and impositions practiced upon them by private traders." President Washington had begun this idea among the southern tribes. President Jefferson extended the plan to the LOUISIANA PURCHASE as part of the government's tariff policy against England and to disrupt the profitable trade enjoyed by British traders in the Upper Mississippi Valley. (20) As a result of this treaty Zebulon Montgomery PIKE set out the following year on his expedition to Zebulon Pike was assigned to find sites for forts, determine the source of the Mississippi, make peace between warring tribes and stop unlicensed British trade on land just acquired by the Americans. (21)
It was not until 1808, however, that the United States government began to keep its promise to the Sauk and Fox by actually giving the necessary orders. This fort, with its factory, was located on the Mississippi River about twenty miles above the mouth of the Des Moines River and was called Fort Madison. It was the first government post to be erected in Iowa. Trade with the Sauk, Fox, and Ioways flourished in spite of the opposition of British traders and the unfriendly attitude of their chief supporter, Black Hawk. According to an inventory in 1809 the "Le Moine Factory" appeared to be a healthy institution showing "merchandies, furs, pelts, cash on hand, and debts due" to the value of nearly thirty thousand dollars. (22)
Trade along the Mississippi River and its tributaries - the Des Moines, the Skunk, the Iowa, and the Turkey rivers particularly - flourished. The forts, factories, and private establishments located along these waterways - such as Fort Madison, Dirt Lodge (at the Raccoon Forks of the Des Moines River), Redwood, Tesson's place at the head of the Des Moines Rapids, Flint Hills (Burlington), the Dubuque Mines, and Giard's post opposite Prairie du Chien, all on Iowa soil, and Prairie du Chien near the mouth of the Wisconsin River - were the centers of the "Indian trade" in Iowa and the surrounding territory. (23)
It was during this period that encouragement was given to the exploitation of the vast region drained by the Missouri. No sooner had Lewis and Clark returned from their expedition in 1806, than that picturesque character Manuel LISA began the operations that made him the "trade maker" of the newly opened country. In 1807, well supplied with merchandise, he began the first of twelve or thirteen long and dangerous trips up the Missouri. He erected several forts with their accompanying trading posts, one of which was located about eleven miles above the present site of Omaha. There Lisa spent several profitable winters promoting friendly relations with the Indians - an art in which he had no superiors - and acquired a considerable harvest in furs from the natives of western Iowa. (24)
With the construction of Fort Madison, the government shown commitment to the policy of establishing posts with the intention of driving out private traders. By 1811 there were ten such "forts" in operation in the upper Mississippi Valley, only one of which was in Iowa however. In that same year Nicholas Boilvin recommended that a new fort be situated at Prairie du Chien, for many years the headquarters of the Indian trade of northern Iowa. The proximity of this locating to the lead mines also made it an ideal spot, particularly since the tribes of the region had during the past year "manufactured four hundred thousand pounds" of lead "which they exchanged for goods." It appears that they had abandoned hunting for the most part "except to furnish themselves with meat". The lead "manufactured" had been bought by Faribault, then located at Prairie du Chien as a private trader. Boilvin considered it a good stroke of business if the Indians could be encouraged to engage in mining as a regular occupation. Lead, too, was not perishable and was "easily transported"; whereas pelts were bulky and large quantities spoiled every year before they reached the market. (25)
During the War of 1812 Manuel Lisa was made sub-agent for all the tribes of the Upper Missouri and his work was very effective in defeating British plans in the West. (26)
The war, however, brought the government experiment at Fort Madison to a close. Being poorly situated, the garrison there was subject to repeated attacks by the Indians. This hostility, said to have been of British origin, resulted in frequent requests by the commandant for relief. Finally, being "reduced to the direct extremity and driven to the verge of starvation" the garrison decided to abandon the post and escape. Digging a trench to the river the soldiers were able to elude the besiegers, remove their "provisions and property", and gain "their boats by crawling out on hands and knees . . . leaving the fort wrapped in flames to the enemy's utter surprise." (27)
After the War of 1812 the government in Washington once more undertook to promote friendly relations with the tribes. In order to reserve the trade for Americans, however, Congress "at the instigation of John Jacob Astor" passed a statute prohibiting "foreign merchants or capital" from "participating in Indian trade within United States territory." Aimed particularly at the British, the law enabled Astor to buy "the interests which the gentlemen of Montreal held in the South West Fur Company" and to reorganize it as the American Fur Company. In addition the government at last erected a factory at Prairie du Chien. (28)
American domination and control of the fur trade was not easy to secure. Capital and men "to bear the fatigues, and brave the dangers incident" to the wilderness commerce were not always available. Accordingly, the Indian Agents were given "the exclusive right of granting trade licenses to foreigners". Bonds were required to insure compliance with the provisions of the law, particularly with reference to carrying liquor into the Indian territory. (29)
In actual practice, the new policy was abused. A foreigner of undesirable character being unable to secure the necessary license often resorted to a ruse. By employing an American to take out the license the alien, accompanying the expedition as an "interpreter" or "boatman", would, as soon as the Indian agencies were passed, assume control of his property and carry on his business as usual. (30)
Such men were frequently employed by Astor - French Canadians who otherwise could not have engaged in the trade. The Secretary of War recommended that every facility be provided Astor and his agents consistent with the laws and the regulations. Moreover, instructions were given to issue licenses to any person that Ramsay Crooks, the agent of the American Fur Company, might designate. Headquarters were maintained at Mackinac Island and trading posts were in time established at strategic points from there to the Pacific coast. The trade of the Iowa country was handled chiefly through Prairie du Chien. At first the policy of the American Fur Company was not to trade directly with the Indians but to outfit private traders and buy the furs from them. (31)
In 1816 troops were landed at Rock Island to build Fort Armstrong. Accompanying the soldiers was an Englishman by the name of George Davenport, later "destined to exert a tremendous influence upon the Indians of the neighborhood." (32) At first "content to furnish the troops provisions" he decided the following year to enter the Indian trade. He erected "a double log-cabin and store-house" on Rock Island a short distance from the fort, "purchased a small stock of goods", and proceeded to gain the confidence of "the hostile Winnebagoes" located on the Rock River. There he lived, building up a profitable business with the Indians of eastern Iowa until he was murdered by a band of outlaws in 1845. (33)
The system of government factories was entirely successful. Private traders made bitter complaints against it and the natives for whose benefits the scheme was devised were not satisfied with its operation. The British traders continued to take an undue share of the business "by trading rum for furs, by selling better goods on credit, and by reason of their marriage to Indian wives." The natives lost confidence in the government since the goods sold at its factories were of poor quality. (34)
In 1820 the Secretary of War, John C. Calhoun, sent Rev. Jedidiah Morse on a tour of the West to learn the facts. He found that private traders had "secured from the Indians in the very shadow of the walls of the government trading-house at Fort Edwards 980 packs of all sorts of furs and peltries valued at $58,800". (35) George Davenport, with headquarters at Rock Island, traded also at Flint Hills and the mouths of the Iowa, Wapsipinicon, and Maquoketa rivers. Dr. Samuel Muir, located on an island opposite the Dubuque mines, and Maurice Blondeau, who maintained a trading house above the mouth of the Des Moines River during almost the entire first quarter of the nineteenth century, each did a flourishing business. The government had in reality been crowded out of the fur trade, so that the Morse report, unfavorable to the continuance of the system, was readily accepted. (36)
The act abolishing the government factories, passed on June 3, 1822, was in some respects unfortunate in its results. Private traders without supervision and regulation often resorted to improper methods. According to one authority the "rapacious system of exploitation by means of credit and whiskey" now came to be the usual means of business. (37)
Astor now proceeded to grind smaller competitors out of existence. (38) It was also true that traders whose business had reached considerable proportions - Maurice Blondeau, George Davenport, Russell Farnham, and others operating in the Iowa country - were finally convinced to join "the first American monopoly". (39) Trade ledgers of Davenport and Farnham are now preserved at Augustana College. (40)
The fur trade on the Upper Mississippi created important business for the steamboat industry. (41) Supplies and equipment for traders and goods for trading with the tribes was the major upstream cargo with pelts being shipped downstream. The removal of the government factory system encouraged business. (42)
Dissatisfaction soon developed due to the practice of sending out "runners to secure credits and follow the hunters to their places of chase". This method was particularly corrupting to the Indians for with an ever-present supply of liquor the trader could secure pelts when the natives were in no condition to drive an honest bargain. The practice was therefore made illegal by an act of Congress in 1824. Furthermore, the law made it "the duty of Indian agents to designate, from time to time, certain convenient and suitable places for carrying on trade", requiring all vendors of goods to do business at the places indicated and at no others. (43)
These new regulations pleased neither the traders nor the natives. The western movement of population had brought to the frontier many men who had no hesitation selling whiskey to the natives. Indeed, the problem of restraining the natives living near the settlements from the use of liquor was impossible. The "beverage which seemed to fascinate all Red Men" encouraged them to visit "the various little distilleries and Grocery establishments" and exchanged their money, furs, and furs for rum. Frequently the traders who had advanced them goods on credit were left in hard circumstances - the Indians being encouraged with whiskey "to carry the produce of their winter hunts to others." (44)
The next step in the regulation of the fur trade was to absolutely prohibit the "introduction of liquor into the Indian country." This was accomplished by a measure which was intended to protect the natives against the white trader; and if it worked a hardship on the trader he had only himself to blame. (45)
In 1829, President Andrew Jackson ordered Native Americans to relocate onto land west of the Mississippi River. The Sauk and Fox were split into two camps - one accommodating, one defiant. Sauk Chief Black Hawk led nearly 1400 followers back across the Mississippi to reclaim their homelands in southwestern Illinois in 1832. (46)
Illinois militia plus 12,000 U.S. Army soldiers chased the rebellious Black Hawk for four months through Illinois and Wisconsin. The war ended tragically on the banks of the Mississippi where 300 Sauk warriors, women, and children were massacred. After Black Hawk's defeat in 1832, most of the Meskwaki living in Iowa withdrew along the Iowa River into Johnson County, where the river crossed the northwest boundary of Keokuk's Reserve. John Jacob Astor's American Fur Company quickly sent fur traders after the Meskwaki and, by 1836, two trading posts stood on the river between Snyder and Ralston creeks. One of the traders, a part-time land speculator named John Gilbert, invited a few settlers to visit his post. Their families soon followed. (47)
The Sauk and Meskwaki were forced to cede more and more of their land to the US government. By 1845, the tribes were sent to Indian reservations in Kansas. (48) As the westward movement of population advanced, "crowding in closer upon the native inhabitants", the trader's profits decreased. "Only the Indians' removal farther west", whence the fur-bearing animals had already retreated, offered any hope for the "revival of business in furs and peltries." The "scenes of barter and exchange" no longer characterized the eastern border of Iowa but "were being shifted westward as the vanguard of sturdy Anglo-Saxon conquerors with axe and plow began to reach the west bank of the Mighty River". (49)
By 1836 the beaver had been eliminated as a major source of fur in the Mississippi Valley. Muskrats accounted for 95% of the furs shipped and 75% of the monetary value. (50) By 1854 the great fur companies had moved on. This did not mean that the fur trade ceased to be an important part of the American economy. The early trade on the Southern Plains was closely linked to the lower Mississippi River valley. From there, French and later American traders pushed up the Red and Arkansas Rivers to barter for furs, hides, and deerskins with Caddos, Wichitas, and Comanches. (51) The total value of United States fur exports increased steadily between 1830 and 1880. (52) Now, however, it was a business that shifted to the western United States where names like Jim Bridger, John Colter, and Jedidiah Smith have often made readers unfortunately believe the only fur trade ever existed.
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Source:
1. Baker, Jerry R. "A Message from the President," Vol. 9. No. 3, September 2009. Online: http://www.hawkeyestatearchaeologicalsociety.com/newsletter_sept09.html 2. Whittaker, William A. Frontier Forts of Iowa: Indians, Traders and Soldiers, 1682-1882, Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 2009, p. 3
3. "Fur Trade," Old Montana Prison. Online: http://www.pcmaf.org/wordpress/about/local-information/fur-trade/
4. Robeson, George F. "Fur Trade in Early Iowa," The Palimpsest, Volume VI, January 1925 No. 1, Online: http://iagenweb.org/history/palimpsest/1925-Jan2.htm
5. "Time Line – A Brief History of the Fur Trade," White Oak Society-White Oak Learning Centre & White Oak Fur Post. Online: http://www.whiteoak.org/historical-library/fur-trade/time-line-a-brief-history-of-the-fur-trade/
6. "Fur Trading: A Native Iowan Industry," Iowa Pathways, Online: http://www.iptv.org/iowapathways/mypath.cfm?ounid=ob_000020
7. Carlos, Ann M. (University of Colorado) and Lewis, Frank D. (Queen's University), "The Economic History of the Fur Trade: 1670 to 1870," Online: http://eh.net/encyclopedia/the-economic-history-of-the-fur-trade-1670-to-1870/
8. Ibid.
9. Ibid.
10. "Why Did France Take Louisiana Back from the Spanish?" Curiosity.com. Online: http://curiosity.discovery.com/question/why-france-take-louisiana-back
11. Robeson.
12. Ibid
13. Ibid
14. Ibid
15. Lebeau, B. Pierre, "French Entrepreneurship in the Post Colonial Fur Trade" University of Wisconsin, Green Bay, Online: https://www.uwgb.edu/wisfrench/library/articles/lebeau.htm
16. "The Mississippi River – An Important Fur Trade Waterway," White Oak Society: White Oak Learning Centre & White Oak Fur Post, Online: http://www.whiteoak.org/historical-library/fur-trade/mississippi-river/
17. "Old Man River: Life Along the Mississippi River," Online: http://hoover.archives.gov/exhibits/Mississippi/2trade.html
18. Robeson.
19. Ibid.
20. Shambaugh, Benjamin F. The Iowa Journal of History and Politics, Iowa City: The State Historical Society of Iowa, "Fur Trade Operations in the Eastern Iowa Country From 1800 to 1833," Vol. 4, October 1914, p. 496
21. "For Better or Worse, America's First Emissary on the Upper Mississippi Set History into Motion." Midwest Weekends. Online: http://www.midwestweekends.com/plan_a_trip/history_heritage/frontier_history/pike.html
22. Robeson.
23. Ibid.
24. Ibid.
25. Ibid.
26. Ibid.
27. Ibid.
28. Ibid.
29. Ibid.
30. Ibid.
31. Ibid.
32. Ibid.
33. Ibid.
34. Ibid.
35. Ibid.
36. Ibid.
37. Ibid.
38. "Fur Trade," Encyclopedia of Chicago. Online: http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/492.html
39. Robeson.
40. Petersen, William J. Steamboating on the Upper Mississippi, "Steamboating in the Upper Mississippi Fur Trade," Des Moines: State Historical Society of Iowa, Online: http://collections.mnhs.org/MNHistoryMagazine/articles/13/v13i03p221-243.pdf
41. "Indian Trade Ledgers--1819-1979, bulk 1819-1835, Augustana College, Online: http://www.augustana.edu/SpecialCollections/Resources/Finding%20Aids/MSS101.htm
42. Peterson.
43. Robeson.
44. Ibid.
45. Ibid.
46. "Old Man River:..."
47. Humanities and Social Sciences Online, "History for Lunch: Meskwaki Fur Trade," Online: http://h-net.msu.edu/cgi-bin/logbrowse.pl?trx=vx&list=H-Iowa&month=0907&week=a&msg=JwlI%2BuQdA35enDoDI%2Braew
48. "Old Man River..."
49. Robeson.
50. Gilman, Rhoda. "Last Days of the Mississippi Fur Trade," Minnesota History, Winter 1970, p. 123
51. Wishart, David J. (ed.) Encyclopedia of the Great Plains, "Fur Trade," Online: http://plainshumanities.unl.edu/encyclopedia/doc/egp.ind.022
52. Gilman, p. 124
