Go West with Merchants and Traders

Go West with Merchants and Traders — page 1 — What Are the Prospects By 1848 the United States had gained control over Mexican and British territory in the West Settlement soon followed and more settlers meant more business opportunities µµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµ did you know East Meets West µ East supplies the West µ West feeds the East During the 1800s industry grew quickly In the East manufacturers mass-produced goods in factories Meanwhile the West had many natural resources such as minerals timber farmland and oil As settlers moved west they began trading to supply eastern industries with materials In turn eastern factories made clothing farming equipment and other materials western settlers needed The hunters who killed buffalo on the plains wanted the animals skins But US manufacturers soon realized that buffalo bones were also useful They could be processed to make sugar or fertilizer Manufacturers also ground up buffalo hoovess and horns to make glue The First Boom µ Fur trade expands west µ Trading posts open for business The first valuable trade in the West was based on fur from beavers otters and seals In 1670 Britain formed the Hudson’s Bay Company to trade furs It was the first company in North America As the West was opened up the company opened trading posts such as Fort Edmonton in Alberta Canada The trade involved First Nations and Europeans In 1808 John Jacob Astor set up the American Fur Company Astor established Astoria right in Oregon It was the first permanent US settlement west of the Rocky Mountains 4

Go West with Merchants and Traders — page 2 — Mountains of Metal Above Steam engines pulled long wagons full of borax from the bottom of Death Valley µ Minerals discovered µ Mining frenzy begins In 1848 the discovery of gold in California began a gold rush Later gold prospectors found rich deposits of silver in the Rockies The West also had supplies of copper lead and zinc A prospector in Death Valley found borax a mineral used to make ceramics glass and detergent These minerals were valuable for growing western industries Western traders also made money selling them to eastern industries µµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµ µµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµ Buffalo hides piled up on the plains Where the Buffalo Roam µ Wild beasts killed for hides µ Hunters rake in money By the 1870s buffalo hunting on the Great Plains was a popular sport among white Americans It was also big business Traders sent thousands of hides to cities in the East and to Europe Manufacturers used the hides to make belts to drive machines in their factories Train companies bought buffalo robes or cured hides to make seats for railcars The US Army made coats out of buffalo hide for its soldiers By the end of the century the buffalo was almost extinct WHAT ARE THE PROSPECTS 5

Go West with Merchants and Traders — page 3 — Meet the Folks As settlers moved west during the 19th century they needed goods and services Merchants and traders started businesses to provide them and many jobs were created µµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµ The Mountain Men µ Fur trade comes to the West µ Trading centers open In the early 1800s the fur trade in the West expanded rapidly Established firms such as the Hudson’s Bay Company set up remote trading posts to buy furs from mountain men and Native Americans Individuals such as General William Ashley a Missouri politician saw opportunities to make money In 1822 Ashley started the Rocky Mountain Fur Company He hired 100 mountain men as trappers Some such as Joe Meek and Kit Carson later became famous for guiding settlers to the West Right After working as a fur trapper Kit Carson became a guide who helped settlers move west µµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµ sITuatIOns VaCANt my Western journal You are the newspaper editor in town Using information from this book what kinds of stories do you think would interest your readers Give your reasons 6 A Western town offers all kinds of jobs SALOONKEEPER Must be prepared to break up bar fights Late nights NEWSPAPER EDITOR Good spelling useful but not essential STOREKEEPERS For grocers outfitters drug stores and so on HOTELIER To run anything from a boarding house to a luxury hotel COOK Working in a hotel Suitable for women SCHOOLTEACHER Basic level only Also suitable for women BLACKSMITH To shoe horses and repair tools µµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµ

Go West with Merchants and Traders — page 4 — Multi-taskers µ Why do one job when you can do two µ Multiply your talents In most towns people did more than one job The local furniture dealer also worked as the mortician The local carpenter made the coffins The newspaper editor sometimes acted as the town lawyer The blacksmith sometimes ran the livery stable where people kept their horses Many hotels had their own restaurants run by the cook did you know Felix Gillet a French immigrant worked as a barber in Nevada City He also worked as a fruit grower In 1871 Gillet opened one of the first fruit nurseries in the West He introduced strawberries and walnuts to California µµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµµ All the News That’s Fit to Print µ A newspaper in every town µ Local and national news Soon after a settlement formed it usually had its own newspaper The editor often had little or no experience It didn’t really matter because settlers were eager for any reading material Newspapers carried articles on all subjects Smaller towns had little local news so editors reprinted stories from larger cities Left Newspaper staff outside the office of The Custer Leader in Broken Bow Nebraska in 1887 Shopping on Main Street µ Town business booms The first business in a new town was usually a general store or trading post It sold everything settlers needed from food to furniture A saloon often opened at the same time As the population grew so did the businesses There were specialty stores such as bakeries butcher shops and drug stores Banks followed and a town photographer Soon a main street could attract customers from in and out of town MEET THE FOLKS 7

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