THE NORTHWEST TO 1870
THE HUDSON’S BAY CO.




Founded by Radisson and Groseilliers.
Granted Royal Charter - exclusive trade rights.
‘Stay by the Bay’ policy.
Strict standards




little room for barter.
Worked for salaries.
Often had better quality goods.
No booze and no fraternizing.
HUDSON’S BAY CO.
RUPERT’S LAND
All lands drained by rivers flowing into Hudson’s Bay (1/3 Can.)
‘Made Beaver’ (MB)
became common
currency.
Ice free ports from July
to Sept. made trade
swift and precise.
Mb in Canada
Like cigarettes
In prison.
THE
NORTH WEST CO.
- French Can. Traders that went to the Natives.
- Emerged from the ‘Montrealers’.
Ft.Ft.
William
- Main
trading
William
Trading
Postpost
- Worked on commission and were
much more aggressive.
- Hiverants (wintering partners)
stayed in the Northwest.
-
Fraternizing more common and marriages occurred.
Voyageurs (the muscle) paddled and transported the
goods.
- More willing to dicker and often used alcohol.
-
THE NORTH WEST CO.
The NWCo. moved inland and
made trade easier for the Natives.
Several inland posts were
constructed.
Fort William was established at
head of Lake Superior. These
headquarters also had to be time
specific as winter froze rivers.
TRANSPORTATION
YORK BOAT - HBCo. double ended
wood boat.
- carried up to 3-6000kiograms.
- heavy & hard to portage.
- 13 meters long / sail or paddle.
CANOTS DU NORD/MAITRE
-NWCo. Canoes - 7-11m long.
- up to 4000 kilograms.
-Made of birch bark.
-Smaller but more portable for
portages.
Canot du Nord
Canot du Maitre
THE NATIVE PEOPLES OF
THE NORTHWEST

Home of four aboriginal nations.


The Ojibwa, the Assiniboine, the Cree, and the
Chipewyan. The inuit were further north.
Natives became so involved in the fur trade
that it disrupted their tradtional way of life.
 Became the ‘middle men’ of the
fur trade.
 Contact with Europeans resulted
in disease. Smallpox and
measles.
THE NATIVE PEOPLES OF
THE NORTHWEST
The Chipewyan
The Assiniboin
THE BATTLE FOR THE FUR
TRADE 1800-1810
HBCo. & NWCo.
Fur trade battle
grew fierce.
 Furs become
scarce & posts
moved farther and
farther inland (as
far west as B.C.)
 The “race” for the
west was on.

THE METIS
(French for ‘mixed’)

The NWCo. encouraged
native/European
marriages. It secured
trading rights and helped
hiverant’s lifestyle.
 Many lived in the Red
River Valley and combined
both Native and European
lifestyles.


Buffalo hunts
Pemmican



Sold to NWC
Seigneurial land patterns
Farmers
HIDE
THE BUFFALO HUNT
SINEW / MUSCLE
BONE
FAT
BUFFALO
CHIPS
HAIR
HORN
SKULL
TAIL
BRAIN
TEETH
BLADDER
.
TONGUE
SCROTUM
MEAT
INTERNAL ORGANS
HOOF/FOOT
MARROW
BEARD
THE
BUFFALO
HUNT
HIDE - blankets,
SINEW / MUSCLE
robes, whips, saddles, BONE - Clubs, arrowheads,
Thread, Bow strings..
foods, knives, ornaments.
Clothing, moccasins.
HAIR - Halters,
FAT - soap.
Padding, head dress,
BUFFALO
CHIPS -fuel.
ornaments.
HORN - Clubs,
spoons, ornaments
Powder horns.
TAIL - ceremonial
SKULL
ornamental.
- ceremonial.
BRAIN - used
BLADDER
for tanning.
- Bags, pouches.
TEETH - necklas
ornaments.
SCROTUM
- rattles.
TONGUE
MEAT- Roasted
HOOF/FOOT
- Boiled, dried.
INTERNAL ORGANS
- food, containers.
MARROW
- Food, Soup.
Rattles, glue,
spoons.
Meat.
BEARD
Ornaments.
Where have all the bison gone??
Today
COLONY ON THE RED RIVER

Enclosure brought Scottish farmers to
N. America.
 Selkirk was director of the HBCo. and
felt he could give Scottish farmers a
home & supply HBCo. workers with
food.
 Convinced HBCo. to give him 300 000
sq. km. => Selkirk’s Grant.
 Nobody even considered the
people already living there.
Scottish Enclosures - farmers forced to leave, as land
was more valuable for grazing sheep.
Selkirk
PROBLEMS FACED BY RED
RIVER SETTLERS




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Nobody even considered the people already living
there.
Scottish not used to harsh winters.
Macdonell’s farmers arrived too late to prepare for
winter.
Farmers first crops were failures.
Pemmican proclamation ordered to feed settlers.
NWCo. retaliated against Pemmican proclamation.
HBCo. Settlers vs. NWCo. Metis
The confrontations escalated to
the legendary “Battle of
Seven Oaks”. Twenty one
colonists and one Metis would
die. It would bring the dispute to
a full scale conflict.
Selkirk hired Swiss mercenaries
to help return the settlers for a third
Time and made a deal with the local
First Nations to lease the land for
100 lbs of tobacco per year.
Selkirk would later return to England and
died while fighting several court cases
regarding his Red River settlement.
Cuthbert Grant led
the Metis in a fight
to regain their land
The Merger of the HBC and
George Simpson
the NWC (1821)

As the pelts declined the two
fur trading companies had to
merge => The Hudson’s Bay
Company.
 George Simpson was put in
charge.


He became known as the “Little
Emperor.”
Social elitists => his new wife
refused to socialize with the
locals.

Note - Simpson had his original
Metis family removed before his new
bride arrived- ‘Turn-Off’.
Frances Simpson
THE RED RIVER SETTLEMENT
1821-1860
For next 40 yrs.
peaceful & stable
self-sufficient
community.
 By 1860, 80%
‘mixed’ descent.
 Built around the
needs of the
HBC.
Red River Cart

To this day, Winnipeg St. is The
widest street in Can. It was built
to fit ten “Red River Carts.”
Red River
Rich Farm Land
“Le commerce est libre!
Vivre la liberte”
Adam Thom
By 1840, the Metis fought for
the right to trade furs. Judge
Adom Thom,
found four Metis fur
traders guilty of trading fur but
ordered no sentence. The
HBC’s
monopoly had been
broken.
“Le commerce est libre! Vivre la liberte”
“Business is open! Long live freedom
CHANGES IN RED RIVER
1860-1870

Canada became a dominion.

Canadians moved west to fertile soils of Red River.



Most were protestant members of the Orange Order
(anti-French / anti-Catholic / anti-Metis).=> tensions rose.
Dr. John Schultz angered Metis with his NorWester
Economic problems.


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Crop failures.
Bison disappearing.
HBC losing interest. Dr. John Schultz
Metis had no legal claim to land.
Farmers start
moving West
(Most were
protestant
anti-Fr.)
CANADA PURCHASES
RUPERT’S LAND
CANADA PURCHASES
RUPERT’S LAND

MacDonald buys HBC Rupert’s
Land, for his ‘sea to sea’ nation.




Became part of NW Territory.
No one consults Metis farmers
They have no ‘legal’ claim to the land.
In 1868, surveyors arrive to layout
township grids.

Seigneurial land patterns were not
recognized
Seigneurial land patterns
were not recognized.

Land speculators soon follow the
surveyors.
 Tensions rose and Louis Riel takes
on leadership of the Metis.
LOUIS RIEL
THE RED RIVER REBELLION
A. Riel began by forming the Metis National Committee
to fight for the Metis land.
B. Riel then met with Governor McDougall but when
things did not Go well he took control and seized
munitions from Fort Garry.
C. Riel established his “Provisional Government” to
protect the Metis’ rights.
Riel’s Provisional
He wanted to negotiate and had no
Government
intentions of rebelling
against Canada.
Sometimes the best
defence is a good
offence.!!
Munitions @ Ft Gary
THE REBELLION (cont.)
Schultz led the anti-Metis Canadian Party.
Riel created the Metis List of Rights and set
off to Schultz’s home where he captured and
held 48 of his followers at Fort Garry.
Schultz
Fort Garry
MacDonald refused
to negotiate with
“half breeds.”
MacDonald
Thomas Scott
Schultz would escape, but while trying to free
other prisoners, several men,including
Thomas Scott would be captured again.
What would you do with
Thomas Scott?
Thomas Scott
Riel’s Provisional
Government
THE EXECUTION OF
THOMAS SCOTT
While captive Thomas Scott was verbally
and physically abusive & threatened the
life of Riel.
Thomas Scott
On March 4, he would be executed by firing squad.
Despite six shooters, Scott still
lived and a seventh shot was
needed.
By March 9, Riel had talked to Ottawa
and things seemed to settle as Canada
was ready to discuss a new province
for the Metis.
Unfortunately, Schultz had made his
way east and had made a martyr out of
Thomas Scott. The Orange Order was
furious and rallied around the execution.
MANITOBA CREATED
By April, MacDonald was willing to compromise.
- 200 000 hectares of land for the Metis =>Manitoba.
- Colonel Wolseley & 1200 men to sent to keep the
peace.
-Riel and his men were not be recognized as an
official government.
Riel fled Canada for the USA and was
banished from Canada for five years.
His men would later be granted
amnesty.
Manitoba 1870
Thomas Scott Execution
Use your textbook Horizons 2nd Ed.
p. 157-163.
Do Page 163 #4.
You are a resident of the Red River
Settlement in 1870. Thomas Scott was
executed yesterday. In a poem, letter,
cartoon, or picture, describe your feelings
about this event. You could take the
viewpoint of a Metis, a colonist, or a
member of the Orange Order.
10 Marks