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Fur trading was done by canoe and largely by French Canadians. But the distances involved by river called for individuals of exceptional strength and endurance. Thus was born the voyageur.
Image: Nicolas de Fer (–1720)
While they were employed to transport goods to trading posts, voyageurs were usually forbidden from undertaking any trading of their own.
Voyageurs were skilled boatmen who worked as canoe paddlers, bundle carriers, and general laborers for fur trading firms.
In time, however, and as the fur trade expanded, unlicensed voyageurs, or coureurs des bois, threatened the legitimacy of those boatmen tasked with delivering their wares to bona fide customers.
This arduous enterprise quite often involved leaving the river to trek overland on foot. Carrying their canoes and contents aloft, voyageurs would embark on what was called portaging.
Portaging was unavoidable. Rapids and waterfalls presented formidable obstacles, making it necessary to proceed over equally treacherous terrain.
The voyageurs were the backbone of the North West Company, moving furs and trade goods over a route that spanned 5,000 km (3,106 mi).
Changing fashions in Europe in the 19th century saw a marked decline in the fur trade. Furthermore, by the 1880s fur trading routes were largely obsolete due to the emergence of railways and steamships.
As the colonization of North America progressed, so the fur trade expanded. After the British conquered Canada in 1763, management of the Montreal trade was taken over by English speakers.
By the 1540s, a burgeoning trade in fur had been established throughout the territory, conducted between European and First Nations peoples.
Muskrat, lynx, skunk, and other wild furbearing animals also fell victim to the hunter's trap.
However, the French Canadian voyageurs' reputation was such that British merchants continued to employ them, calling them engagés, indicating a hired wage-earner.
Athabasca was one of the most profitable fur-trade regions in the colonies because pelts from further north were thicker and of superior quality to those trapped further south.
As a result of this royal intervention, New France authorities began a process of issuing permits, or congés.
The founding of the Hudson's Bay Company in 1670 had prompted the establishment of a series of fur trading posts along the shores of Hudson Bay. The North West Company opened in 1784. Both afforded opportunities for the fur trade to expand further inland.
Voyageurs needed to be short in stature, muscular, and in tip-top condition. The ability to withstand harsh weather conditions was a prerequisite, as was maintaining a rapid paddling pace.
Not for nothing were voyageurs celebrated for their stamina. Typically, the route from Montreal to Lake Superior and back would take up to 16 weeks. Along the way, each boatman was expected to carry out repairs when necessary and make light work of numerous and grueling portages.
The work of the voyageur, a term that literally means "traveler," was now a fully licensed endeavor.
The life of a voyageur carried with it enormous risk. Drownings were commonplace, and broken limbs, hernias, and rheumatism were occupational hazards. And there was always the danger of running into a band of dissatisfied indigenous fur trappers or outlawed coureurs des bois intent on looting the voyageurs' precious cargo.
Voyageur culture is maintained throughout Canada and the United States. Voyageurs National Park, in northern Minnesota near the border with Canada, established in 1975, commemorates the intrepid French Canadian fur traders of old.
Montreal was a main origination point for voyageur routes into the interior. A principal artery was the Ottawa River, which fed Lake Huron. Following the Saint Lawrence River to Lake Erie was another favored waterway. Lake Athabasca in the north was a prized destination. Reaching it, though, tested even the toughest of boatmen.
The voyageurs' principal mode of transport was the canoe. The vessel was handcrafted using the bark of large paper birch trees (pictured) stretched over a frame of white cedar.
The maître canoe, or canot de maître (master's canoe), was widely used on the Ottawa River and the Great Lakes. Crew numbers averaged eight to 10, and the boat had to be sturdy enough to withstand a cargo weighing upwards of 2,300 kg (5,070 lbs).
The French were the first to forge fur trade routes into and beyond the Great Lakes. They did so by hiring independent contractors known as voyageurs.
The colonization of territory in North America by France began in the early 16th century. Canada became the most developed colony, and was named Nouvelle-France, or New France.
The demand for furs in Europe, especially by royalty and the nobility, stimulated the growth of trade and exploration in this vast new land.
In response, King Louis XIV passed an edict in 1681 limiting who could participate in the fur trade.
Bever pelt was the commodity most favored by fur traders. According to Animal Justice, Canada's fur trade reduced a 60 million strong population of beavers to as few as 100,000 because of over-trapping.
Noted for its outstanding watersports options, outdoor pursuits that include canoeing, kayaking, and fishing, the park upholds the traditional notion of romance, exploration, and sense of adventure forever associated with the exploits of the voyageurs.
Sources: (HBC Heritage) (The Canadian Encyclopedia) (National Park Service) (Animal Justice)
See also: America's 30 best national parks
The fur trade established in Canada in the 16th century brought with it a unique occupation: the voyageur. This was a tough and resilient French-Canadian boatman tasked with transporting cargoes of pelt and other goods on rivers over vast distances for delivery to remote trading posts. These were hazardous journeys often resulting in injury and sometimes even death. Voyageurs were celebrated for their skill and stamina on the water, and their position was coveted. But what did it take to become one of these iron-willed canoeists, and what were the perils of paddling into the wilderness?
Click through and chart a course to find out.
Who were the French Canadians known as voyageurs?
Meet the canoeists who paddled Canada
LIFESTYLE History
The fur trade established in Canada in the 16th century brought with it a unique occupation: the voyageur. This was a tough and resilient French-Canadian boatman tasked with transporting cargoes of pelt and other goods on rivers over vast distances for delivery to remote trading posts. These were hazardous journeys often resulting in injury and sometimes even death. Voyageurs were celebrated for their skill and stamina on the water, and their position was coveted. But what did it take to become one of these iron-willed canoeists, and what were the perils of paddling into the wilderness?
Click through and chart a course to find out.