1. THE NORTHWEST TO 1870

2. 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.

3. 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.

4. THE NORTH WEST CO. - French Can. Traders that went to the Natives.
Emerged from the ‘Montrealers’.
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.
Ft. William - Main trading post
Ft. William Trading Post

5. 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.

6. TRANSPORTATION YORK BOAT - HBCo. double ended wood boat.
- carried up to kiograms.
- heavy & hard to portage.
- 13 meters long / sail or paddle.
CANOTS DU NORD/MAITRE
NWCo. Canoes m long.
up to 4000 kilograms.
Made of birch bark.
Smaller but more portable for
portages.
Canot du Maitre
Canot du Nord

7. 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.

8. THE NATIVE PEOPLES OF THE NORTHWEST
The Chipewyan
The Assiniboin

9. 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.

10. 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

11. THE BUFFALO HUNT HIDE SINEW / MUSCLE BONE FAT HAIR BUFFALO CHIPS HORN
SKULL
TAIL
BRAIN
TEETH
BLADDER .
TONGUE
SCROTUM
MEAT
HOOF/FOOT
BEARD
INTERNAL ORGANS
MARROW

12. THE BUFFALO HUNT HIDE - blankets, BONE - Clubs, arrowheads,
robes, whips, saddles,
Clothing, moccasins.
BONE - Clubs, arrowheads,
foods, knives, ornaments.
SINEW / MUSCLE
Thread, Bow strings..
HAIR - Halters,
Padding, head dress,
ornaments.
FAT - soap.
BUFFALO
CHIPS -fuel.
HORN - Clubs,
spoons, ornaments,
Powder horns.
TAIL - ceremonial
ornamental.
SKULL
- ceremonial.
BRAIN - used
for tanning.
BLADDER
- Bags, pouches.
TEETH - necklas
ornaments.
SCROTUM
- rattles.
TONGUE
Meat.
MEAT- Roasted
- Boiled, dried.
HOOF/FOOT
Rattles, glue,
spoons.
BEARD
Ornaments.
INTERNAL ORGANS
- food, containers.
MARROW
- Food, Soup.

13. Where have all the bison gone??
Today

14. 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 sq. km. => Selkirk’s Grant.
Nobody even considered the
people already living there.
Selkirk
Scottish Enclosures - farmers forced to leave, as land
was more valuable for grazing sheep.

15. PROBLEMS FACED BY RED RIVER SETTLERS
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.

16. 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

17. The Merger of the HBC and the NWC (1821)
George Simpson
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

18. THE RED RIVER SETTLEMENT 1821-1860
Red River Cart
For next 40 yrs. peaceful & stable self-sufficient community.
By 1860, 80% ‘mixed’ descent.
Built around the needs of the HBC.
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

19. “Le commerce est libre! Vivre la liberte”
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
Adam Thom

20. 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.
Crop failures.
Bison disappearing.
HBC losing interest.
Metis had no legal claim to land.
Farmers start
moving West
(Most were
protestant
anti-Fr.)
Dr. John Schultz

21. CANADA PURCHASES RUPERT’S LAND

22. 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
Land speculators soon follow the surveyors.
Tensions rose and Louis Riel takes on leadership of the Metis.
Seigneurial land patterns
were not recognized.
LOUIS RIEL

23. THE RED RIVER REBELLION
A. Riel began by forming the Metis National Committee
to fight for the Metis land.
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.
He wanted to negotiate and had no
intentions of rebelling
against Canada.
Riel’s Provisional
Government
Sometimes the best
defence is a good
offence.!!
Ft Gary

24. 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
Schultz would escape, but while trying to free
other prisoners, several men,including
Thomas Scott would be captured again.
Thomas Scott

25. What would you do with Thomas Scott?
Riel’s Provisional
Government

26. 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.
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.
Despite six shooters, Scott still
lived and a seventh shot was
needed.

27. MANITOBA CREATED By April, MacDonald was willing to compromise.
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

28. Thomas Scott Execution
Use your textbook Horizons 2nd Ed. p   Do Page 163 #4. You are a resident of the Red River Settlement in 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