Trappers and Mountain Men/American Heritage
Trappers and Mountain Men is one of many volumes in the American Heritage Junior Library. This series is an introduction to key events and people in American history. This volume is an overview of the French, Dutch, British, American, and Russian involvement in the fur trade in North America between the early 1600s and the 1840s. Luxurious furs, and beaver hats in particular, were a symbol of rank and wealth in Europe; hence the competition among the French, Dutch, and British to control the lucrative fur trade. The United States and Russia would later become involved in this fierce rivalry over one of the most valuable natural resources of North America. Frenchman Samuel de Champlain, Englishman William Johnson, and Canadian Alexander Mackenzie are among the prominent individuals featured in the first half of the book; a chapter portraying the coureurs de bois (trappers and traders who hunted beaver illegally without government licenses) is included. Trader Manuel Lisa and mountain men John Colter, James Beckwourth, and Jedediah Smith are some of the major figures portrayed in the last half of the book; a full chapter is devoted to mountain man and scout Kit Carson. The final chapter looks at the Russian settlement of the Pacific coast and the division of the Oregon Country between Britain and the United States in 1846. Numerous paintings, prints, drawings, maps, and photographs from the period supplement the succinct yet informative narrative. After reading this book, one could come to the conclusion that the fur of the lowly beaver was the motivating factor in the exploration and settlement of North America. In sum, Trappers and Mountain Men is an excellent overview of some of the more colorful individuals in American history.
