France's Key to Power

In the early days of French explorations of the Americas, they posed no threat to Spanish power because they were mostly interested in the forests of the St. Lawrence River Valley.  This was before the Spanish began to even seek gold in the Southwest.

Jacques Cartier was a skilled navigator who first explored the gulf of St. Lawrence in 1534.  Early fisherman who landed on Newfoundland to salt and dry fish, noticed Indians who were dressed in heavy beaver cloaks to keep warm.  They proposed trading their knives with the Indians for a pile of beaver skins..and thus was born the fur trade on which France would build her new colony in North America.

In the beginning the trade was simple beads, mirrors, and knickknacks for pelts, but when news of the
huge profits spread, licensed companies entered the fur trade.  In 1605 Samuel de Champlain, a 36 year old visionary explorer, founded the village of Quebec as his center of fur trading.  From there Champlain and his men explored he Great Lakes country, allying with Hurons and Montagnais.  Canoes filled with furs were exchanged for guns, blankets and brandy.

As a side story:  In the Canadian woods, French authorities began demanding fees for limited fur trading licenses in the 1680s...they even went as far as executing unlicensed traders.  Those unable to pay the high cost of a license disappeared into the Canadian forests as outlaw traders, living and trading with the Indians.

Next time...Go Westward Explorers!
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Today in Pioneer History: On August 6, 1787, in Philadelphia, delegates to the Constitutional Convention begin debating the first complete draft of the proposed Constitution of the United States.