The Fur Trade

Alice and I enjoyed a stellar Field Trip Tuesday to Fort Langley in British Columbia, Canada.

Fort Langley was established by the The Hudson's Bay Company in 1827. For approximately the next 30 years, the Fort served as a trading post. The fur trade involved Aboriginal groups (aka, First Nations) who traded furs in exchange for manufactured goods with the European settlers.

One of the first stops on our tour was the Storehouse. The Storehouse was built in the 1840s and is the oldest original standing building in British Columbia. The storehouse housed lots of furs. And blankets! I read that three to five beaver furs were exchanged for one Hudson's Bay Company blanket. My burning question... "If these blankets are made of wool and there were no sheep here at the time, how the heck did they have these blankets available for trade?" And the answer is - they were all imported from London - the long way, all the way south around the tip of South America and on up the west coast to Fort Langley. They also imported metal and just about everything else they needed for trade with the Aboriginals.

Owen looked very dapper in this beaverskin hat.
As did Alice.

The storehouse also had other interesting displays. It was a really cool building.
Our next stop was the Blacksmith Shop. Blacksmiths forged farm tools, hardware, and iron trade goods both for the fort and other trading posts. One of the most fascinating pieces of information I learned was that all the metal was shipped from London in long, metal rods. Then each piece was forged into the many metal tools/goods necessary for the Fort. We watched this blacksmith forge a beautiful wall hook which he then gave to us to take home. Alice is already planning to hang it in her room.
On to the Cooperage. This is where barrels were built to store and ship salmon, cranberries, and other goods.
All sorts of interesting coopering tools.

The Servants' Quarters afforded us a glimpse into how the people lived during that time. This building housed the fort's workers and their families (I'm not sure if they actually called them "servants"). Tiny little beds.
And even a cradle. We had a fun conversation about the fact that the house had bedrooms, a kitchen, a dining area, a work area, but no.... bathroom! "Alice and Owen, what do you suppose they did when they had to use the bathroom?" "Ummmm... mountain style?" Then we went on to have a fun conversation about chamber pots.
The discovery of gold in 1858 changed Fort Langley forever. About 30,000 people, from California and around the world, came in search of riches. Fort Langley achieved world fame as the starting point for the Fraser gold fields.
Swish, swish.
Melinda had the midas touch and struck gold!
We each went home with a little nugget. Such fun!
Then we visited the Big House which served as the Fort's office and residence of the chief trader, the clerk, and their families. British Columbia was proclaimed a colony at a ceremony in the Big House on November 19, 1858.

There were lots of fun activities in the Big House, including an archealogical dig.

More storage for trade items.

And some lovely rooms.

Good-bye, Fort Langley! We'll be back!

(growled Owen)Couldn't quite escape without a trip to the gift shop. Alice chose a wonderfully soft rabbit pelt. I was so pleased - I have very fond memories of a white rabbit pelt I had as a child.

A new place explored, history learned, and imaginations were peaked. Field trip mission... accomplished!