What are the coureurs de bois known for?
The independent coureurs des bois played an important role in the European exploration of the continent. They were also vital in establishing trading contacts with Indigenous peoples. Coureurs des bois were itinerant, unlicenced fur traders from New France.
What was it like being a coureur de bois?
The coureurs de bois were relatively young men, usually between 20 and 30 years of age, and who were not afraid of danger or physical exertion. They usually set off in the spring, travelling in bark canoes filled with goods to the “Upper Country” of the Great Lakes region. They did not return until the fall.
What did the coureurs de bois wear?
Their fashion choices separate overtime namely because the coureurs des bois were no longer around and the trading companies took over. During the colder months, they would wear a large coat made of deer, moose, or caribou skin with a large belt around the middle. Belts could be made of leather or colorful wool.
What does the word coureurs de bois mean?
Definition of coureur de bois : a French or métis trapper of North America and especially of Canada.
What did French fur traders wear?
Voyageurs and engagés in the fur trade wore a variety of clothes over the centuries. From the early days of New France, they wore a mixture of European clothing, Indigenous garb and colonial adaptations. Certain garments disappeared over the years and were replaced by others.
What were French fur trappers called?
Voyageurs
Voyageurs (“travelers” in French) were men hired to work for the fur trade companies to transport trade goods throughout the vast territory to rendezvous posts. At the rendezvous points, these goods were exchanged for furs, which were then sent to larger cities for shipment to the east coast.
What challenges did the coureurs de bois face?
The coureurs des bois faced deadly rapids, canyons, blizzards, bears, wolves, and marauding Iroquois. They must have really wanted those hats. A route carved out by a river through a valley was the main highway between Québec City and the north for the coureurs des bois.
What did the coureur de bois eat?
What did the Coureurs des bois eat? The Coureurs des Bois ate fish, pemmican, rubaboo, pork, etc. If they didn’t find anything to eat, they would have to make a black soup made of moss that comes from rocks.
Why did the days of the coureurs de bois came to an end?
After 1681, the independent coureur des bois was gradually replaced by state-sponsored voyageurs, who were workers associated with licensed fur traders. Coureurs des bois lost their importance in the fur trade by the early 18th century.
Who were the coureurs de bois quizlet?
Who were the coureurs de bois? This is a French term for “runners of the woods”. Coureurs de bois were independent traders who lived among the Indians.
What did fur traders eat?
The food also had to keep and not spoil during the long journey. Their diet included biscuits, pork and beans, pancakes, dried peas, cornmeal and pemmican (dried meat that could be eaten fried, or even made into a stew seasoned with maple syrup or berries). Voyageurs didn’t eat fancy meals, but the meals were hearty.
How did fur traders travel?
In the fur trade period, there were few roads in what is now Canada. The highways were the waterways and the vehicle was the canoe, designed and perfected by First Nations peoples. The voyageurs made these long and difficult journeys to deliver the cargoes to the posts and to return with vessels laden with furs.
What is a coureur des Bois?
KidzSearch Safe Wikipedia for Kids. A coureur des bois ( French pronunciation: [kuʁœʁ de bwa], runner of the woods) was a French Canadian man who engaged in the fur trade. They trapped and traded the hides of many animals, especially beaver. The coureurs des bois worked in eastern North America from the late 1700s,…
What was the population of the coureurs des bois in France?
In 1680, the intendant Duchesneau estimated there were eight hundred coureurs des bois, or about 40% of the adult male population. Reports like that were wildly exaggerated: in reality, even at their zenith coureurs des bois remained a very small percentage of the population of New France. 1681–1715: decline
Why were the coureurs de Bois brave and strong?
The Coureurs de Bois were brave and strong due to the places traveled + weather and any other complications in their path to the trader made them who they are. The coureurs de bois were relatively young men hired by explorers like Samuel de Champlain in the 17th century for transportation of furs during the fur trade in New France.
What did the coureurs de Bois eat?
The Coureurs de Bois ate deer meat, squirrels, bear, dried corn, moose and even birch bark. Eating these foods kept the Coureurs de Bois strong and energized during work hours. A picture of dried corn like the Couerus de Bois ate. And a example of a bear that the Coureurs de Bois may have hunted for food.