The Hudson

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The Hudsons Bay Company

• By Lauren Coutts

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What is the Hudsons Bay Company?

• The Hudsons Bay Company is the oldest commercial
  company in North America and one of the oldest in
  the world
• The Hudsons Bay Company started off during the
  fur trade in 1670 and is still a successful
  company today around the world

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The fur trade

• Since the beginning of time people have been
  trading animal furs to create pelts for
  protection
• Around the 1600s, there was an increasing demand
  for beaver fur to create hats in Europe
• Beaver pelts created high quality felt which was
  resistant to water and very warm
• At one point, the beaver became virtually extinct
  in Europe because of the high demand for their
  fur which led European explorers to travel to
  North America in search of beavers
• The Europeans came in contact with the aboriginal
  peoples who traded their pelts. This fuelled the
  fur trade

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The beginning of the fur trade in Canada

• Contact between the Aboriginals in Canada and
  Europeans grew when Jacques Cartier sailed from
  France to North America in 1534
• Cartier sailed on behalf of the king of France in
  search of gold and first reached the Atlantic
  Coast of Canada where he met the Mikmaq peoples
  

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The beginning of the fur trade in Canada

• The Mikmaq were eager to trade their furs with
  Cartier in exchange for European tools and
  inventions such as knives
• When Cartier travelled further inland, he
  discovered the Iroquois who also traded their
  furs
• Cartier claimed the land for France and the
  Tadoussac (St. Lawrence River) became the centre
  of trade for the French and aboriginal people
• The aboriginal peoples were vital to the fur
  trade because of their knowledge of fur-trapping
  and navigation of Canadian landscape which they
  passed on to the Europeans

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Samuel de Champlain

• In 1608, Samuel de Champlain realized potential
  trade opportunities and travelled to modern day
  Québec City in order to establish a perminant
  settlement
• Champlain wanted to bring the French over to
  Canada, and the King gave him permission provided
  that Champlain established the fur trade
• Samuel de Champlain sent his men to live among
  the Algonquin and Huron people in order to learn
  their culture and language
• It was part of his plan to strenghthen the bond
  between the French and aboriginal in order to
  keep the fur trade thriving because they depended
  on the aboriginal peoples resourses

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English vs French

• Shortly after Samuel de Champlain established a
  perminent French settlement in modern day Québec
  and started developping the fur trade, the
  English became interested in the potential for
  money from the fur trade
• Competition between the French and English was
  fierce
• England and France competed for control over the
  land and resources and shipped their beaver pelts
  back to Europe
• The competition between England and France also
  caused disputes among First Nations who took
  sides among England and France.
• Many wars between the French and Wendat against
  th English and Iroquois took place and the
  disputes lasted over 90 years, almost putting an
  end to the fur trade

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The Hudson Bay

• Meanwhile, over serveral years, explorers Martin
  Frobisher, John Davis, and Henry Hudson explored
  the Atlantic searching for a Northwest Passage
• In 1610, Explorer Henry Hudson came across a bay
  which was named after himself Hudson Bay
• This marked an important day in Canadian History
  and the fur trade

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Médard Chouart des Groseilliers and Pierre
Radisson

• Médard Chouart des Groseilliers and Pierre
  Radisson were two french courieurs de bois (fur
  traders who gathered fur from the woods and
  traded with the First Nations) who brought the
  fur trade back to life
• During their travels, the two men met the Sioux
  who told them about the abundant amount of
  beavers up north near the Hudson Bay
• Coming back from the Hudson Bay, they had
  thousands of beavers which were taken away
  because the two men didnt have rights to the
  lands
• The two men could not get financial support for
  their expeditions from the American or French so
  they started working for the English
• In 1665, they met with the king of England, King
  Charles II who supported their expeditions to
  collect furs

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The Hudson's Bay Company is formed

• Prince Rupert, the cousin of King Charles II,
  aquired the Royal Charter giving permission to
  the land around the Hudson Bay to the Governor
  and Company of Adventurers of England trading
  into Hudson Bay
• This gave Médard Chouart des Groseilliers and
  Pierre Radisson the permission to hunt beavers in
  the lands of the Hudson Bay for King Henry II
• This was the foundation of the Hudsons Bay
  Company

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The Governor and Company of Adventurers of
England Trading into Hudson's Bay

• The charter giving King Charles II the rights to
  the land around the Hudson Bay were incorporated
  on May 2nd 1670
• The royal charter given to the Governor and
  Company of Adventurers of England Trading into
  the Hudson Bay gave the company a monopoly over
  the fur trade
• The area was named Ruperts Land after Prince
  Rupert
• This region that King Charles II owned rights to
  consisted of (3.9 million km²) and was 1/3 of the
  size of Canada today and also included parts of
  the United States
• Rupert's Land was the largest purchase of land in
  the 1800s

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The beginning of The Hudson Bay Company

• The headquarters of the Hudsons Bay Company was
  established in Fort Nelson which is in present
  day northeastern Manitoba
• The Business was booming from 1714 until the late
  1740s bringing back profits to England
• The Hudson's Bay Company had no competition since
  they were the only company aloud to trade fur
• The company built posts all along the Hudson Bay
  in present day Manitoba, Ontario, and Québec and
  eventually began creating factories inland
• The First Nations and Métis peoples did most of
  the animal trapping and pelt preparation for the
  Hudsons Bay Company

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Conflict for the Hudsons Bay Company

• The success of the Hudsons Bay Company began to
  slow down around the 1750s due to the Seven
  Years War, a war between England and France
  battling over land in Canada
• Eventually Britain won back most of the land that
  France had taken over also taking over New France
• After the war had ended, The Hudsons Bay Company
  had new competition from North West Company in
  Montréal
• The North West Company was formed by former
  French coureurs de bois in 1783 who had no one to
  work for after Britain won New France

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Hudsons Bay Company vs. North West Company

• After the Hudsons Bay company had a monopoly
  over the fur trade for so long, eventually the
  North West Company became a strong competition
• A rivalry formed between the two companies trying
  to have control over the fur trade
• Around the 1800s, a war began between the two
  companies
• They began to explore farther west in order to
  find new trading partners, traveling to Edmonton
  and Calgary and establishing trading posts
• After years of war, the North West Company was
  defeated and in 1821, it merged into the Hudsons
  Bay Company
• There was now no competition and the company
  experienced success once again

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Years of power and change

• After merging with The North West Company, HBC
  owned most of the land in Canada and was the most
  powerful company in North America
• In 1821, HBC started trading their furs from
  other countries
• New technologies in treating fur made the need
  for beaver less necessary
• Different types of animals were now being used
  for cheaper and silk hats were becoming
  fashionable
• By 1840, the fur trade was shrinking and by 1870,
  it was no longer a major industry

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The beginning of the retail era

• In 1867, the Dominion of Canada was formed
• The government of Canada asked Britain for the
  rights over Ruperts land in fear that the
  Americans would take over the land in the west
• The HBC signed the Deed of Surrender in 1869,
  signing most of their land over to the British
  Crown which granted the land to Canada in
  exchange for money and some of the land
• This started the retail era for the HBC, since
  the fur trade had collapsed
• The company started a new business selling land
  to the farmers, settlers and developers
• They also provided supplies for the settlers in
  the West and opened its first retail store in
  Winnipeg, Manitoba in 1881

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Hudsons Bay Company Today

• Most of the Hudsons Bay Company stores were in
  Western Canada until the 1960s when the company
  bought several chains in Montreal and shortened
  their name to the Bay
• This led to the expansion to Eastern Canada
• By 1978, it was the largest chain store in Canada
• Around the 1980s, the Bay bought several retail
  stores including Zellers, Simpsons, Fields,
  Robinsons, Home Outfitters and many more
• The Bay was still involved in the fur trade up
  until 1991, when it sold the last of its trading
  posts
• It is now a chain of over 90 department stores
  across Canada and is North Americas oldest
  company

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Bibliography

• http//firstpeoplesofcanada.com/fp_furtrade/fp_fur
  trade3.html
• http//www.canadiana.ca/hbc/hist/hist6_e.html
• http//www2.hbc.com/hbc/history/