Saskatchewan River fur trade facts for kids

The Saskatchewan River was a super important waterway for the fur trade in Canada, especially west of Lake Winnipeg. It was like a main highway for traders! While another big route went northwest to the Athabasca Country, the Saskatchewan River was key for moving furs and goods. The main path followed the North Saskatchewan River and the Saskatchewan River itself, which were just south of the forests where beavers lived. The South Saskatchewan River was more of a prairie river and didn't have as many furs.

Why Was the Saskatchewan River Important for Fur Trading?

The Saskatchewan River was a natural superhighway for the fur trade. Furs traveled east, and trade goods like tools and blankets went west. The forests to the north were full of beavers, which meant lots of valuable beaver pelts. The grasslands to the south provided buffalo, which was a vital food source. People made pemmican from buffalo meat, which was dried meat mixed with fat. This pemmican was super important for feeding the voyageurs (the people who paddled the canoes) in areas where food was scarce. Sometimes, pemmican was even more important than the beaver furs themselves! Much of it was sent downriver to Cumberland House, Saskatchewan, and then northward to the Athabasca Country.

How Did People Travel on the River?

The Saskatchewan River was pretty easy to travel on. There were no major portages (places where you have to carry your canoe and goods overland) between the rapids at Rocky Mountain House and where the river meets Lake Winnipeg.

In the spring, canoes filled with furs from the winter's hunt had an easy trip downstream thanks to the melting snow and ice. But when traders were going upstream in the summer and fall with new goods, the water was lower. This meant they often had to use "poling" (pushing the canoe with long poles) and "tracking" (pulling the canoe from the shore).

The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) even built an early version of the York boat on the river in 1788. York boats were large, sturdy boats that could carry a lot of cargo. However, the North West Company (NWC), another big fur trade company, seemed to prefer smaller "north canoes."

Sometimes, when speed was needed, people would ride horses alongside the river. Around 1825, a horse trail was even cut from Fort Assiniboine, Alberta on the Athabasca River to Fort Edmonton. This made it easier to connect the Athabasca region with the Saskatchewan River route.

What Happened to the Fur Trade Later On?

Starting in the 1870s, life for the Indigenous peoples changed a lot. The buffalo herds were greatly reduced, smallpox outbreaks caused illness, and more settlers started arriving. This made the fur trade much harder. In 1876, a road for ox-carts was built from Fort Carlton north to Green Lake, Saskatchewan. By the mid-1800s, the Carlton Trail was developed. This trail ran along the north bank of the Saskatchewan River, connecting Winnipeg (at the Red River) to Edmonton.

The first steamboat on the river, called the Northcote, appeared in 1874. Then, in 1905, the Canadian Northern Railway reached Edmonton from Winnipeg, following the old Carlton Trail route. This meant goods could be moved much faster than ever before.

Who Lived Along the River?

The northern forest region was home to the Cree people, who had moved northwest to become important middlemen in the fur trade. In the early and mid-19th century, the Saulteaux people also lived there. Just south of the forests were the Plains Cree and the Assiniboine people, with the Nakoda (Stoney) living closer to the mountains.

Further south were the Plains Indigenous peoples, also known as Gens du large or First Nations. These included the Gros Ventre in Saskatchewan, the Blackfeet in Alberta, and the Piegan Blackfeet near the Rocky Mountains. Across the mountains were the Kutenai people.

Since the Cree and Saulteaux had beaver skins to trade, and the Plains Natives mostly had buffalo and wolf skins, the northern peoples were able to get most of the guns from the traders. They used these guns to expand their territory southward. This often made the Plains Natives unfriendly towards the traders, as they seemed to be helping the northern tribes.

Many of the voyageurs were part-Cree and knew the local languages, which helped with trade. The trading posts were usually very strong and hard to attack. They were only destroyed if the traders were away. One exception was Fort Pitt in 1885, but by then it no longer had its protective walls. In the east, the Gros Ventres destroyed South Branch House and Manchester House in 1793–94. In the west, the Blackfeet often caused problems for the fur trade. They tried to stop the Kootenays from getting guns. Fort Sturgeon was burned in 1780, and Rocky Mountain House in 1860. Fort Pitt and Fort Carlton were also burned during the North-West Rebellion in 1885.

Key Moments in Exploration

Here are some important dates and events in the exploration of the Saskatchewan River for the fur trade:

• 1691: Henry Kelsey reached the lower Saskatchewan River from Hudson Bay.
• 1731-1743: Pierre Gaultier de Varennes, sieur de La Vérendrye pushed west from Lake Superior.
• 1739: Louis-Joseph Gaultier de La Vérendrye explored parts of the lower Saskatchewan.
• 1741: Fort Bourbon was built at the mouth of the Saskatchewan, and Fort Paskoya on the west side of Cedar Lake.
• 1753: Fort de la Corne was established about 20 miles below the Forks (where the North and South Saskatchewan Rivers meet).
• 1755: Anthony Henday, after almost reaching the Rocky Mountains from Hudson Bay, traveled down the North Saskatchewan from near Edmonton.
• 1759: After the British conquered New France, the fur trade slowed down. It took about 15 years for the English to get it going strong again.
• 1774: The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) built Cumberland House, Saskatchewan. This was the first HBC inland post and a gateway to the Athabasca Country.
• 1776: Traders reached the North Saskatchewan at Fort Sturgeon.
• 1786: Manchester House was built.
• 1792: The first trading post in Alberta on the North Saskatchewan River was built at Buckingham House (fur-trade post).
• 1795: Fort Edmonton was established near present-day Fort Saskatchewan.
• 1799: Rocky Mountain House was built.
• 1807: David Thompson crossed the Rocky Mountains at Howse Pass.

Fur Trade Posts on the Saskatchewan River

Most fur trade posts didn't last very long, usually less than ten years. This was because the beaver population in an area would get low, and the wooden walls of the forts would rot. The most important or permanent posts on the North Saskatchewan River were Cumberland House, Fort Pitt, Fort Carlton, Edmonton, and Rocky Mountain House.

In the early days, until 1811, the fur traders from the North West Company (NWC) and the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) actually got along quite well. Sometimes, their rival posts were even built inside the same protective walls! But after 1811, the competition between the HBC and the NWC became much more intense.

Fur Trade Posts on the Saskatchewan and North Saskatchewan Rivers
Red square = French foundation

Images for kids

• 

  Dark green shows forests, light green shows prairies. Most of the Saskatchewan River flowed through the prairie, just south of the forest.