Voyageurs Moccasins — Souliers De Boeuf

CW Jefferys, Voyageurs and Raftsmen on the Ottawa about 1818

As my followers know I have been studying all aspects of Voyageurs lives for many years. 

Not long ago I came across the term, “Souliers De Boeuf,” and I was sure I had seen it on one of my great-grandfathers engagement contracts.

Sure enough, I found it on my 4th great-grandfather — Gabriel Pinsoneau’s 1797 contract with Jacques and François Lasselle for a trip to Detroit.

His contract notes state, “uen couverte 3 ptes, six aunes de cotton, une pr souliers de boeuf,” meaning (a three-point blanket, a standard trade item valued by its woven stripes indicating size and quality), "six aunes de cotton" (six ells—about 7 yards—of cotton fabric for making shirts or other garments), and "une pr souliers de boeuf" (a pair of beef shoes).

So what exactly are “Souliers De Boeuf” (Beef or Oxen Shoes)? It turns out they were a heavy cowhide moccasin made by Montreal cordonniers (English: shoemakers) for use by the voyageurs.

The idea behind Souliers De Boeuf was the result of the blending Native American moccasins with French colonial shoes. 

The Beef Shoe from Musée de la Gaspésie

Apparently French inhabitants saw the practicality of deerhide moccasins, and decided to use very thick cowhide to make them stronger and more durable.

Coureur des Bois and North men or "hivernants" most likely wore moccasins made by their Native and Mixed-Blood 'country wives' some of these probably had elaborate beadwork.

Indian Moccasins by CW Jefferys

Native women living in New France or at trading posts often made moccasins for sale to voyageurs, soldiers, and other inhabitants.

2025 addition courtesy of Grok xAI...

The Cordonnier's Craft in the Heart of New France

In the bustling cobblestone streets of Montréal in the early 18th century, where the sharp clang of blacksmith hammers mingled with the salty tang of the St. Lawrence River drifting through open workshop doors, Jacques Marié dit Lemarié (1687-1742)(our 6th great-grandfather), a maître cordonnier of renown, bent over his worn oak bench, his calloused fingers deftly stitching layers of thick cowhide under the flicker of a tallow candle. Born in Neuville amid the rugged frontiers of New France, Jacques had inherited a legacy of craftsmanship from a line of resilient French settlers—his father Charles Marier dit Ste-Marie and mother Marie Madeleine Garnier dit Laforge had instilled in him the art of turning raw hides into tools for survival. By 1721, married to Marie Angélique Duquet dit Desroches in Rivière-des-Prairies, he had fathered a growing family, their modest home echoing with the laughter of children like Marie-Angélique and Jacques Jr., while the scent of curing leather permeated every corner, a constant reminder of his trade's vital role in the fur empire.

As a master shoemaker, Jacques specialized in souliers de boeuf—those sturdy, unyielding moccasins that bridged the wild ingenuity of Indigenous designs with the robust practicality of colonial needs. Each pair began with the selection of prime cowhide, tanned to a deep mahogany sheen in vats bubbling with oak bark solutions that filled the air with a pungent, earthy aroma. He cut the soles thick and broad, double-layered for the punishing portages where voyageurs hauled canots over jagged rocks, their feet sinking into mud that squelched like wet clay. The uppers, soft yet resilient, were molded from supple leather, often reinforced with rawhide laces drawn tight like bowstrings, ensuring they hugged the foot through endless days of paddling foaming rapids or trudging snow-laden trails. Jacques would pound the hides with a wooden mallet, the rhythmic thuds echoing like distant thunder, before sewing them with waxed sinew threads that resisted the bite of river water and the grind of gravel.

Word of his craftsmanship spread among Montréal's merchants and outfitters, who commissioned dozens for their voyageur crews. Imagine a crisp autumn morning in 1730: a burly engagé like your distant kin Gabriel Pinsonneau—though generations apart—might have stepped into Jacques's shop, the bell tinkling softly as he entered, carrying the faint musk of beaver pelts from his last expedition. "Maître Lemarié," he'd say, his voice gravelly from chansons sung around campfires, "I need shoes that won't fail me on the Detroit run—something to outlast the devil's own portages." Jacques, wiping sweat from his brow with a leather apron stained by years of toil, would measure the man's feet with a notched stick, then set to work, hammering brass tacks for extra grip and rubbing in bear grease that left a glossy sheen, repelling the chill spray of the Ottawa River. These souliers de boeuf weren't mere footwear; they were lifelines, blending the soft, silent tread of deerhide moccasins worn by coureurs des bois—often beaded intricately by Indigenous women at posts like Michilimackinac—with the enduring strength of ox leather, perfect for the hivernants overwintering in frozen lodges.

Jacques's legacy wove through the veins of New France's fur trade, his shoes carrying men like the Lasselle brothers' hires across vast waters, their soles imprinting the paths that mapped a continent. By the time of his passing in 1742, buried in the soil of Pointe-aux-Trembles where his descendants would continue the craft, his work had outfitted countless souls chasing fortunes in pelts. In the glow of his forge, amid the scrape of awls and the warm scent of polished hides, Jacques Marié dit Lemarié embodied the quiet artisans who armed the adventurers, one stitch at a time, ensuring the river's call was met with feet unyielding.

Reproduct moccasins are still available from makers like Loyalist Arms

http://www.loyalistarms.freeservers.com/oxhideshoes18thcentury.html

SOURCES:

NativeTech: Native American Technology and Art

http://www.nativetech.org/clothing/moccasin/moctext.html

Gabe the Shootist

https://gabetheshootist.com/2012/02/21/souliers-de-boeuf/

Posted February 21, 2012

Mlle Canadienne

http://mllecanadienne.blogspot.com/2016/06/souliers-de-boeuf.html

mercredi 22 juin 2016

French Coureurs des Bois, Voyageurs and Tattooing

In the 18th century Native Americans (or First Nations People) commonly practiced tattooing as a form of personal identity. We know nearly all Iroquois men’s tattoos were distinct to them. 

Here’s an interesting example of how tattooing was used as identification…

“According to the account book of Dutch trader Evert Wendell dated August 13, 1706, a young Seneca brave named Tan Na Eedsies visited Wendell in Albany, New York, and completed his transaction by drawing a pictograph next to his order. This drawing identifed Tan Na Eedsies, and the tattooed patterns on his face, neck, and chest were considered equivalent to his personal signature. 

Tan Na Eedsies’ facial marks are consistent with the ethnographic record and include a serpent manitou, a series of bird manitous skirting his hairline, scalp-tally markings running along a bar that crossed his nose and other neck and V-shaped sternum markings.”

Source above: “Tattooed War Clubs of the Iroquois” by Lars Krutak

Contact between French Voyageurs and First Nations resulted in influencing the customs of each group

The French began to appropriate indigenous manners, as the First Nations peoples had to adjust to the arrival of the colonizing force. The adoption of Native tattooing practices by the coureurs de bois and the French voyageurs may be seen, to a certain degree, as an imitation of a Native practice. Europeans who lived among various First Nations peoples year round began to copy the customs of the peoples with whom they shared a way of life.

Many French, especially the voyageurs, who often travel across Canada for the fur trade, take pleasure in following the example of the savages; the white man never tattoos his face like the savage man, but only other small parts of their bodies like the chest, back, arms and especially their legs.

The French ordinarily let the savages execute the work as they are the masters of the art.

Documented Testimony

A testimony making reference to the coureurs de bois' tattoo images exists in a passage recorded by Tonti, a voyageur and trading post commander, who explained that:

“The fur traders often adopt tattooing, covering nearly their entire body with pictures Indian style. Some mixed Christian symbols with Indian, using an image of the Virgin, Christ Child, and a large cross on the stomach.”

This adoption of Native body marking practices by the coureurs de bois and voyageur is reiterated in an excerpt taken from Marquis de Montcalm's journal. On October 8, 1758 Montcalm stated:

“We found nine hundred and Fifty Canadians and this detachment was of a good sort, almost all voyageurs. We easily recognized them due to their size and that they all had tattooed their bodies with images of some plant or animal. The image was traced by pricking the skin with a needle and printing was done by burning powder in the holes.”

Source above: “Body Marking Within New France: A Contemporary Perspective” by Carolyn Christina Cross

Permanent tattoos using vermilion and gun powder were applied to punctured wounds and the colors are differentiated under the skin. Common designs included the sun, crosses, religious symbols, animals, flowers and anything else they wish.

Daniel Joseph Amiot dit Villeneuve’s Tattoos

Daniel Joseph Amiot dit Villeneuve, our 8th great-uncle, was a Voyageur and Coureur de Bois who married Domitilde Oukabe Nepveuouikabe LaFourche an Ottawa woman whose father was a chief named Kewinaquot "Returning Cloud.” 

The record suggests Daniel was already tattooed before he married Domitilde. I believe Coureurs des Bois, like Daniel, used tattooing as a means of acceptance to help fit into Native American culture.

In the book “Masters of Empire: Great Lakes Indians and the Making of America” by Michael A. McDonnell we find a reference on page 107 to the tattooing on Daniel’s back…

Above image from the author’s library.

Read more about Daniel Joseph Amiot dit Villeneuve:

Great-Uncle Daniel Amiot Canoes to the Gulf of Mexico

https://a-drifting-cowboy.blogspot.com/2016/07/great-uncle-daniel-amiot-canoes-to-gulf_3.html

Chapter Four, Quebec's Amiot Family

http://laprairie-voyageur-canoes.blogspot.com/2017/03/ripples-chapter-four-amiot-family.html

GENERAL BRADDOCK'S DEFEAT, A PAINTING BY EDWIN WILLARD DEMING

“An important event of the French and Indian War (1754-1763) was commissioned in 1903 by Robert Laird McCormick, president of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin. Charles Langlade, the Green Bay fur trader is on the left directing the attack with Indians from Wisconsin and Michigan (Ottawa, Chippewa, Menominee, Winnebago, Pottawatomie, and Huron). The commander-in-chief of the British Army in America, General Edward Braddock, is just falling from his horse, and Major George Washington is catching its bridle.” Source: https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Image/IM1900

CHARLES DE LANGLADE WAS BORN AT FORT MICHILIMACKINAC (PART OF NEW FRANCE THAT WOULD BECOME MICHIGAN).

MICHILIMACKINAC AND A CAST OF CHARACTERS IN OUR FAMILY…

In 1715 French soldiers constructed Fort Michilimackinac.  This fortified community became the great fur trade center of the Northwest until its relocation to nearby Mackinac Island in 1781.  It was here where fur traders and Indians rendezvoused, French and British officers organized war parties and explorers began their journeys into the vast western unknown.

Source: https://www.mackinacparks.com/more-info/history/individual-site-histories/colonial-michilimackinac-history/

RENE BOURASSA DIT LARONDE 1688–1778 

7th great-uncle

BIRTH 21 DEC 1688 • Laprairie, Quebec, Canada

DEATH 7 SEP 1778 • Mackinac Island, Mackinac, Michigan, USA

SEE: http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/bourassa_rene_4E.html

AND: https://laprairie-voyageur-canoes.blogspot.com/2017/03/ripples-from-la-prairie-voyageur-canoes_77.html

CHARLOTTE AMBROISINE BOURASSA 1735–1818 

1st cousin 7x removed

BIRTH 14 JUN 1735 • La Prairie, Quebec, Canada

DEATH 1818 • Green Bay, Brown, Wisconsin, United States

Daughter of Rene Bourassa dit LaRonde

SEE: http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/mouet_de_langlade_charles_michel_4E.html

AND: https://laprairie-voyageur-canoes.blogspot.com/2017/03/ripples-from-la-prairie-voyageur-canoes_77.html

CHARLES MICHEL DE LANGLADE 1729–1801 

husband of Charlotte Ambroisine Bourassa 1st cousin 7x removed (son-in-law of Rene Bourassa our 7th great-uncle)

He is known as the father of Wisconsin, SEE: https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Article/CS1667

BIRTH 7 MAY 1729 • Mackinac Island, Michigan, United States

DEATH 26 JULY 1801 • Green Bay, Wisconsin, United States

SEE: http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/mouet_de_langlade_charles_michel_4E.html

AND: https://laprairie-voyageur-canoes.blogspot.com/2017/03/ripples-from-la-prairie-voyageur-canoes_77.html

DOMITILDE OUKABE NEPVEUOUIKABE LAFOURCHE 1690–1782 

mother of Charles Michel De Langlade and widow of Daniel Joseph Amiot (Amyot) Dit Villeneuve8th great-uncle

BIRTH ABT. 1690 • Near, Michilimackinac, New, France

DEATH 1 JAN 1782 • Green Bay, Brown, Wisconsin, United States

SEE: https://laprairie-voyageur-canoes.blogspot.com/2017/03/ripples-chapter-four-amiot-family.html

AND: http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/mouet_de_langlade_charles_michel_4E.html

DANIEL JOSEPH AMIOT (AMYOT) DIT VILLENEUVE 1665–1725 

8th great-uncle

BIRTH 4 OCT 1665 • Québec, Quebec, Canada

DEATH 1725 • Michillimackinac, Michigan, United States

SEE: https://a-drifting-cowboy.blogspot.com/2016/07/great-uncle-daniel-amiot-canoes-to-gulf_3.html

AND: https://laprairie-voyageur-canoes.blogspot.com/2017/03/ripples-chapter-four-amiot-family.html

KEWINAQUOT "RETURNING CLOUD" OTTAWA CHIEF 1660–1717

father-in-law of Daniel Joseph Amiot (Amyot) Dit Villeneuve 8th great-uncle and grandfather of Charles Michel De Langlade

BIRTH ABT. 1660 • Penobscot, Maine, United States

DEATH AFT. 1717

SEE: https://laprairie-voyageur-canoes.blogspot.com/2017/03/ripples-from-la-prairie-voyageur-canoes_77.html

NISSOWAQUET KEWINAQUOT NEVEU LA FOURCHE OTTAWA CHIEF 1715–1797

brother-in-law of Daniel Joseph Amiot (Amyot) Dit Villeneuve 8th great-uncle and uncle of Charles Michel De Langlade

BIRTH ABT. 1715 • Near, Michilimackinac, New, France

DEATH 1797 • Michigan

SEE: http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/nissowaquet_4E.html

Fort Michilimackinac, 18th-century French fort and trading post at the Straits of Mackinac

Built around 1715, and abandoned in 1783, it was located along the Straits, which connect Lake Huron and Lake Michigan of the Great Lakes of North America.

The primary purpose of the fort was as part of the French-Canadian trading post system, which stretched from the Atlantic Coast and the St. Lawrence River to the Great Lakes, and south to the Mississippi River through the Illinois Country. The fort served as a supply depot for traders in the western Great Lakes.

The French had first established a presence in the Straits of Mackinac in 1671 when Father Marquette established the Jesuit St. Ignace Mission at present-day St. Ignace in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. In 1683, they augmented the mission with Fort de Buade. In 1701, Sieur de Cadillac moved the French garrison to Fort Detroit and closed the mission.

By 1713, however, the French decided to re-establish a presence along the Straits of Mackinac, and built the wooden Fort Michilimackinac on the northern tip of the lower peninsula. They sent Constant le Marchand de Lignery with a contingent of soldiers and workmen in 1715 to accomplish the job.

Over the decades, they made several modifications and expansions to the palisade walls. Chevalier Jacques Testard de Montigny, who was a Lt. and a Knight of the Order of St. Louis, was appointed in 1730 and served for three years as commandant of the fort. He was previously commandant of Fort La Baye (Green Bay, Wisconsin).

The French relinquished the fort, along with their territory in Canada, to the British in 1761 following their loss in the French and Indian War, the North American front of the Seven Years' War. 

The British continued to operate the fort as a major trading post, but most residents were French and Métis (Ojibwe-French), who spoke predominately French and worshipped at Sainte Anne Church in a small log structure. Other civilian residents included British fur traders, some of whom resided within the fort in the southeastern row house.

The Ojibwe in the region resented British policies as harsh. On June 2, 1763, as part of the larger movement known as Pontiac's Rebellion, a group of Ojibwe staged a game of baaga'adowe (a forerunner of modern lacrosse) outside the fort as a ruse to gain entrance. After entering the fort, they killed most of the British inhabitants. They held the fort for a year before the British regained control, promising to offer more and better gifts to the native inhabitants of the area.

The British eventually determined that the wooden fort on the mainland was too vulnerable. 

In 1781 they built a limestone fort on nearby Mackinac Island. Now known as Fort Mackinac, it was apparently also initially named Fort Michilimackinac. The British then moved related buildings to the island by dismantling them and moving them across the water in the summer and over ice in winter to the island during the next two years. Ste. Anne's Church was also moved. Patrick Sinclair, the lieutenant governor of Michilimackinac, ordered the remains of the southern Fort Michilimackinac to be destroyed after the move.

Source above: Wikipedia

A recommended good read:

“Michilimackinac: A Tale of the Straits,” by David A. Turrill, 1989, 466 pages

"Michilimackinac: A Tale of the Straits," incorporated the real-life story of how Indians staged a "friendly" lacrosse game just outside the fort walls as a guise to lay siege and massacre all the English soldiers.

A rich and captivating historical novel that captures the events and occupants of Fort Michilimackinac, Michigan from the 1720s through 1763, and the French and Indian War. 

Detailed descriptions of the Ottawa, Potawatomi, and Ojibway tribes, and their partnerships with French trappers, the intrusion of the English and the resulting bloodshed are skillfully shared in this gripping tale of the Straits.

Author’s note:

"This is a work of fiction. I make no claim on Dame History other than to use the characters and events She has so generously provided. My primary concern in writing this novel has been to bring the story of Michilimackinac to life and to rescue its ghosts from the penitential fires of obscurity. 

On occasion, this task has required some 'truth enhancement' - what writers like to call 'poetic license.' 

What happens in this book is very closely to what really occurred, but to me, the 'sense' of drama is more crucial to understanding than the accurate portrayal of individual lives. The whole, in other words, is superior to its parts. I have supplied the dialogue and applied some make-up, but "the play's the thing.”

Reviews:

An incredible amount of digging has gone into reconstructing life during French and British rule. It's lively reading. -- Detroit Free Press

Turrill breathes life into the ghosts of Michilimackinac. He creates a living history lesson, adding rich detail of pioneer life. -- The Saginaw News

Uncle Jean Tavernier dit Laforest — Killed in the Battle of Long Sault

Jean Tavernier dit Laforest dit la Hochetière, my 10th great-uncle, (Armurier or gunmaker)

Born: 1632 Chateau Richer, Quebec

Died: May 1660), at the Battle of Long Sault

Jean Tavernier was the second companion of Dollard des Ormeaux, who volunteered to defend the colony of the Iroquois peril in 1660. The day before his departure for the Long Sault, he had made his will by which he bequeathed at the church of Montreal four acres of land

From Wikipedia: 

THE BATTLE OF LONG SAULT occurred over a five-day period in early May 1660 during the Beaver Wars. It was fought between French colonial militia, with their Huron and Algonquin allies, against the Iroquois Confederacy.

Adam Dollard des Ormeaux was a 25-year-old commander of Ville-Marie's garrison. In April 1660, Dollard requested permission from Governor Paul Chomedey de Maisonneuve to lead an expedition up the Ottawa River to attack a war party of Iroquois. 

Many Iroquois warriors were encamped along the Ottawa and were preparing to destroy the settlements of Ville-Marie, Quebec and Trois-Rivières. So in order to prevent this, Dollard would surprise and ambush the Iroquois before they could begin their campaign. 

Assembling a force of sixteen volunteer riflemen and four Algonquin warriors, including Chief Mituvemeg, the expedition left Montreal in late April with several canoes, filled with food, ammunition and weapons.

The journey through the waterways to the Long Sault rapids was slow, it reportedly took a week to get past the strong current just off of Montreal island and they had to pass through what is today known as the Lake of Two Mountains, and then the Ottawa. 

It was on or about May 1, 1660 when the expedition finally reached their destination. Deciding the area to be a good place for an ambush, the French and their allies occupied an old Algonquin fort along the Ottawa made up of trees planted in a circle and cut down to trunks. 

Forty Hurons, under their chief Etienne Annahotaha, arrived at the fort not long after the French, they were happily greeted and joined the garrison for defence. Dollard ordered his men to reinforce the fortification by building a palisade around the wall of tree trunks but preparations were not entirely completed by the time the Iroquois arrived.

THE BATTLE

Over 200 Iroquois warriors were camped a few miles from Long Sault, they first made their appearance by advancing down the Ottawa in a fleet of canoes. Among the 200 were several Huron slaves who fought alongside their captors. 

Two canoes carrying five warriors were spotted by the French so Dollard decided to lay an ambush at a place where the Iroquois were most likely to land. Assuming correctly, Dollard's men drove off the enemy with musket fire and four of the Iroquois were killed or wounded. 

After this first skirmish, the fleet of canoes came in sight and began landing men. An immediate assault was made upon the fort but the Iroquois were repulsed, they then started preparing for a siege by building their own fort and siege works. 

But first they requested a parley. Suspecting it to be a ruse for a surprise attack, Dollard refused to consult with the Iroquois. In response the Iroquois attacked the French canoes. Undefended, the canoes were broken into pieces, set on fire and then used in a second assault to burn the walls of the French fort. 

Again the French and their warrior allies resisted and defeated the attacking Iroquois. Many natives were killed in the second attack, including the Seneca commander.

When the Seneca chief fell dead, a few Frenchmen fought their way out of the fort to the chief's body where they cut his head off and placed it on the palisade. After their chief was killed, the Iroquois launched a third attack but it was also repulsed and as result, a canoe was sent up the river to another war party of 500 men, who were on their way to sack Ville-Marie. 

Abandoning the advance towards Ville-Marie, the 500 warriors proceeded to Long Sault. When they arrived, it was the fifth day of fighting, the natives constructed mantelets made from three logs attached together to form a shield from musketry. 

Before the arrival of reinforcements, the Huron slaves shouted to the Hurons within the fort, assuring them that they would be treated well if they abandoned the French. All of the Hurons, except the chief, deserted at this point and joined the Iroquois and their Huron slaves. Deserting proved to be a mistake, all but five of the Hurons were killed, the remaining returned to Ville-Marie where they relayed the story of the defeat to the French colonists. 

When a fourth and final attack was launched, the Iroquois advanced with their mantelets ahead of them. The French and their allies could not hold out any longer, their corn dust food and muddy water was nearly exhausted. When within range, the French opened fire but the mantelets were capable of stopping the incoming musket balls.

With knives and axes the Iroquois hacked a breach through the fort's walls and started pouring in while others climbed on top of the structure for the attack. 

Standing atop one of the walls, Dollard ignited a keg of gunpowder which he intended to throw over the wall onto the Iroquois but when the bomb left his hands, it struck the palisade and exploded within the fort, killing or wounding many of the defenders. 

When the Iroquois were finally inside, Dollard and the others were quickly overpowered. Four Frenchmen were found alive: three of them were seriously wounded and burned alive within the fort, and the fourth was taken prisoner before being tortured and killed later on.

See the rest of the story at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Long_Sault#/media/File:Battle_of_Long_Sault_1660.jpg

LINEAGE:

Jean Tavernier dit Laforest dit la Hochetière (1632 - 1660) — 10th great-uncle

Eloi Tavernier (1596 - 1651) — Father of Jean Tavernier dit la Hochetière

Marguerite Tavernier (1627 - 1697) — Daughter of Eloi Tavernier

Pierre Gravel (1647 - 1677) — Son of Marguerite Tavernier

Augustin (Lieutenant ) Gravel (1677 - 1736) — Son of Pierre Gravel

Joseph Placide Gravel (1721 - 1769) — Son of Augustin (Lieutenant ) Gravel

Marie Judith Gravel Brindeliere (1757 - 1779) — Daughter of Joseph Placide Gravel

Jean-Baptiste Meunier (Mignier) dit Lagacé (Lagasse) (1776 - 1840) — Son of Marie Judith Gravel Brindeliere

Marie Emélie (Mary) Meunier Lagassé (Lagace) (1808 - 1883) — Daughter of Jean-Baptiste Meunier (Mignier) dit Lagacé (Lagasse)

Lucy Passino (Pinsonneau) (1836 - 1917) — Daughter of Marie Emélie (Mary) Meunier Lagassé (Lagace) — my 2nd great-grandmother

Confessions of an Obsessive Compulsive Genealogist

I’ve never actually been diagnosed with an Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, but I do tend to do things with extreme passion.

Since the 1970s I’ve had a passion for canoeing and studying North America’s fur trade.

As far as canoeing is concerned I’ve managed to do canoe trips on a number of lakes and rivers.

The most notable being Canada’s Algonquin Park, Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Canoe Area, Montana’s Upper Missouri River, as well as National Parks including the Grand Tetons, Yellowstone, Yosemite and Canada’s Jasper Park.

My interest in the fur trade led me get involved in historical rendezvous reenactments during the 1980s and 1990s.

I participated in rendezvous camps in several states including California, Arizona, Wyoming and Montana.

Over the years I’ve also acquired a huge collection of books dealing with the North American Fur Trade, its history, art and fiction.

Then, about a decade ago I discovered my previously unknown French-Canadian Voyageur Heritage.

Since then I’ve studied and written extensively about more than 125 relatives involved in the fur trade during the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. Most recently I’ve collected documentation for more that two dozen direct great-grandfather voyageurs.

Fur trade collectibles, both historical and replicas, are expensive and hard to come by.

Now, in my late 70s, my options for adventure and exploration are limited, so my passion has turned to collecting.

I am intrigued and consumed with collecting fur trade accoutrements such as trade beads, trade silver, assumption sashes, beaded and quilled knife sheaths, trade knives, canoe cups and replica voyageur clothing items like capotes, tuques and sashes. 

I’ve even managed to get some copies of great-grandfathers’ voyageur contracts. I have one for a great-uncle that is signed by Alexander MacKenzie the famous Canadian explorer.

My kids have no interest in learning about their genealogy and Fur Trade Heritage, but maybe when they are forced to sell my collection, they’ll find something worth knowing.

In case you’ve been following my blogs you know my other passions include horses and Western movies.

I hope you are lucky enough to find some silent places that can only be reached by paddle and portage.

Voyageurs, Coureurs des Bois and Their Knives

Étienne Brûlé at the mouth of the Humber River by CW Jefferys

While there are no old voyageurs around to consult with — it’s reasonable to believe early Voyageurs and Coureurs des Bois carried a knife of some sort.

We know for sure that everyone in the 18th century used a knife as a primary food preparation and eating tool, and a sheath was necessary to carry a it, so we can logically conclude early Voyageurs and Coureurs des Bois carried a sheath knife. 

Also early artist’s paintings often show frontiersmen or coureurs des bois carrying a sheath knife of some sort.

Davy Crockett by William Henry Huddle

During the 18th and 19th centuries there was a huge variety of knife blade-shapes and styles available. 

Among colonial period knives found and studied there are butcher knives, skinning knives, scalping knives, daggers, patch knives, roach belly knives, camp knives, paring knives, and crooked knives.

Remember there were two categories of voyageurs:

The "Montreal men,” who paddled from Montreal to Grand Portage for the annual rendezvous and back to Montreal. These fellows did not need a heavy butcher knife used by hunters or a patch knife used by a riflemen. They most likely carried a sturdy trade knife, with roughly a 5” blade, that could be used for cutting tobacco, eating, minor canoe repairs, and general camp chores such as cutting kindling or fire tinder.

The "North men,” voyageurs who wintered in the interior and brought down furs to Grand Portage to meet the summer brigades coming from Montreal, spent long periods of time in the wilderness and were required to feed themselves by hunting, so they carried a variety of knives used for hunting and fighting as well as for everyday use.

Ah-yaw-ne-tak-oár-ron, a warrior wearing a neck knife by George Catlin

Knife sheaths

18th century knife sheaths were made of buckskin, leather, rawhide or sometimes even birch bark and could be carried several ways.

I believe most voyageurs carried a sheath knife attached to their belt or sash. These were commonly referred to as belt knives.

Coureurs des bois, on the other hand, often adopted the customs of their native hosts, and may have worn a knife in a sheath hanging on their neck.

Another way a coureurs des bois might have carried a knife would be fastening a small sheath to the garter on his leggings, or on the strap of his shooting bag. These would usually be smaller patch knives. 

Patch knives were primarily used to cut patches, pieces of cloth or leather which were wrapped around the rifle ball to insure a tight fit against the rifling in the barrel of the weapon.

French-Canadian Frontiersmen. The gent knelling has 3 knives.

Knives in my collection

A ‘Green River’ skinning knife in a replica beaded and tacked plains Indian style sheath made of buckskin and rawhide. This style would have been used c. 1840-1860.

A typical French Trade Knife from last half of the 18th century. This is the knife I believe most Montreal Men would have carried in a simple leather sheath attached to their belt or sash.

A typical rifleman’s patch knife with a 3 1/2” blade and a bone handle. This one is a replica from Asia.

A forged Trade Knife in a beaded brain-tanned buckskin sheath. The sheath was crafted by an Iroquois native and was designed so it can be worn either as a neck knife or a belt knife. The overall length of the knife is 10” with a 5” blade.

A Quilled, brain-tanned buckskin, neck knife sheath. Metis/Sioux style sheath with a 10” long Trade Knife.

19th century Trade Knife with an ebony handle and pewter decoration (some pewter is missing).

A diminutive neck knife with Porcupine Quill Decoration on Birchbark. This strictly artistic knife sheath was created by a talented Mohawk craftsman.

The most recent additions to my collection are two replicas of 18th century Northeastern Woodland Indian neck knives with quilled sheaths. The one above is by Robert Pawling has whitetail leg fur on a quilled buckskin sheath.

This one (above) is by Hugo Vandermaesen features a walnut stained buckskin sheath with quillwork.