17th Century Canadian Fur Trade Reenactment Clothing - Need Help

maple leaf

maple leaf

CGN frequent flyer
Rating - 100%
64   0   0
Location
SW Ontario
Hi everyone,
I'm hoping someone on here can help me out. I am interested in the 17th century Canadian fur trade and want to get into reenacting. The only things going for me is a flintlock and a beard. I have a wool blanket, that I am hoping to turn into a hunting coat, but I'm a bit lost on what else I should get (and where to get it), to make the costume complete. If anyone can help me fill in the blanks, it would be appreciated. I'm on a limited budget, but something accurate and functional would be great.

Thanks
 
you need a possibles bag, some moccasins, and a bone handled knife...at the very least I would think.

I would scout the second hand stores for an old fringed leather purse and moccasins.

Have you done any image searches for what you are after?

Code: 
https://www.google.ca/search?q=17th+Century+Canadian+Fur+Trade+Reenactment+Clothing&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=xU7WVNaiDoG3ogTN44GYCQ&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1088&bih=506

Code: 
https://www.google.ca/search?q=17th+Century+Rendezvous+Clothing&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=BU_WVI-ON4LyoASf5YCgBw&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1088&bih=506
 
My brother belongs to a "mountain man" group in the US. I know they have coats made from blankets, but they also have full leather or hide type attire complete with fringes etc. You'll also need some type of hat. A lot of my brother's clothing I believe was custom made by his wife. His group also make their own knives. I must say, they have some pretty darn nice looking knives.
 
My wife and I have been reenacting for about 35 years. Our personnas are mid 18th century English middle class settlers on the frontier. My advice to you is to start by picking a time period, which you have apparently done (17 th century, which is 1600s) but should probably narrow down to a quarter or so and then pick a personna. Then research that personna and time period. A 17th century (French) Canadian fur trader could be one of a number of different personnas, and the portrayal of each would be unique to that personna.

Don't rush out and start buying or making clothing and gear right away. If you do that, I guarantee you will end up replacing it in short order. Do your research first and build your kit slowly and deliberately. There are a number of good books on the relevant subjects and a number of good online groups. I will go through my library and list of online favorites and post some recommendations a little later.

One hard rule is clothing and gear from an earlier time period can be used, but you cannot mix in clothing and gear from a later time period. That is where most folks go astray.

Welcome aboard
 
Do you really mean 17th century (1600's)? Or the more common "Rendezvous" outfits (1750 - 1830)?

Dixie Gun Works has a great catalog containing just about anything you'd need.
 
Try these.

Crazy crow
G gedney Godwin
Jas Townsend


Also mabye buy some buckskin and make yourself a set of leggings and a coat!

The era and persona come first then you can narrow down your search for clothes. Otherwise you will end up like me and have enough outfits to wear a different one every day for a 10 day event and no persona haha
 
Depends on what part you're looking to re-enact. The Festival du Voyageur is about to start in Winnipeg (err, well, St. Boniface) --- you may get some idea of what the Voyageur wore at the time (personally, I wanted a voyageur toque --- a local knitter made me one to spec --- and I love it!!!!!)
 
I neglected to state the obvious. You are likely doing this for your own enjoyment. You can work to achieve whatever level of historical accuracy you want. Which events you can attend are, to an extent, determined by your level of authenticity. Most events are pretty much wide open. The most authentic are juried events where you may be required to submit a personal profile and photos to gain admittance. Getting there takes time and commitment. Do what makes you happy.

Here are some websites and online organizations, in no particular order, you might find helpful:
http://historicaltrekking.com/forums/index.php?sid=83545183cb07a16cb8439b5997b8642e
http://www.re-enactmentevents.com/re-enact/Proposal.php
http://www.furtrade.org/
http://firstpeoplesofcanada.com/
http://www.reenactor.net/
http://www.coloniallivinghistory.org/
http://elnuabenakitribe.org/17LivingHistory.html
Some of these will probably be of no interest to you, but one can frequently find other sites by going to the “links” page.

A good historical read to give you the flavor of the era would be “Company of Adventurers” by Peter C. Newman. It deals with the Hudson’s Bay Company in the 18th century, so is a little out of your chosen time period.

Some good books on costuming are:
Historic Dress in America by Elisabeth McClellan
It covers dress between1607 to 1870 in great detail. We consider this to be the single best reference book for costuming.
The Cut of Men’s Clothes 1600 – 1900 by Norah Waugh
What People Wore by Douglas Gorsline
Tidings From The 18th Century by Beth Gilgun. Chock full of useful information on costuming and 18th century life.
The New England Indians by C. Keith Wilbur. Mostly Native American lifestyle and possessions. It wouldn’t be particularly high on my list.
There are a number of books that may be of interest in the Man-at-Arms series by Osprey publishing:
One is American Woodland Indians by Michael Johnson and Richard Hook.
Another is Tribes of the Iroquois Confederacy by Michael Johnson

An appropriate firearm is probably high on your want list. A percussion (caplock) would definitely not be appropriate for the time period. The percussion system came into being in about 1812. A flintlock or matchlock smoothbore would be your best bet for the 1600s. I am not certain they will be early enough for you, but a French Fusil de Chase or an English Northwest Trade Gun would likely be appropriate. I love my Centermark fusil.

You might want to portray a French colonist, a Metis or a Native American. Personas could include a Coureur de Bois, Voyageur, Engagee or a Clerk. They frequently mimicked Native dress.

Overwhelmed yet? Take your time and enjoy the ride.
 
Lots of good information mentioned above. Some reading such as Muzzleblasts and Muzzleloading magazines that may be found on some better news stands. Buckskinning series of books are a big help. As well as the sites and vendors as listed in above posts. Most of what your are looking for can be made or bartered for. Contact your local Reenactment groups as they are very friendly and welcome newcomers and will offer good information in regards to the way it was in the day for that region. Good luck in your venture and Welcome to the world of the Holy Smoke......
 
The wool coats were usually made from Hudsons Bay blankets - a 6 point is big enough for one coat and they are called a "Capote". They are very comfortable on a cold day or around an evening campfire! As noted above you can make most of your kit if you do a bit of research and take some time.
 
The term "Fur Trader" is very broad as well. In British NA in the 17th/18th century there were 2 main European players. The Hudson's Bay Company and the NorthWest Company.

Hudson's had a majority contingent of French Canadian "men" (kids really, this was not work for a 30 year old). Founded in 1670

Although at any given time in Canadian history the ethnic population of Scots has never risen above 16%, in the 18th century the NorthWest Company(1770-1821) was being operated by a disproportionate amount of Scots.

Bear in mind that although both groups leaned heavily on native experience to learn what worked and what did not, the French however, were well ahead having been doing interior fur trading for 100 years unobstructed...therefore it's no small wonder that there were major visual differences in what they wore, who (native) they traded with and where they traveled. These two groups/Companies of course spoke different mother languages (neither English), as well as dialects of those they traded with...blood has been spilt both on the portage trail and at the trading post whenever these two entities collided.

My 2 cents in regards to keeping historical dress accurate.
 
You say you're in SW Ont? Even though the bi-centennial is over, 1812 re-enactments will still be on as they were before the 200th. Not 17th century, but guaranteed there will be folks camping who have the info you need since many re-enactors do multiple eras. Some of the merchants work on furs and leather.
The first big event of most years is Longwoods in early May near London.
 
Here's an example of some outfits.
100_0081.jpg


Here's a nice "Capote"
100_0298.jpg


Here's some warm weather outfits
100_0074.jpg
 
Try this website; it's a reinactment group in Alberta, that centers around the fur trade: EdmontonHouseBrigade.com
Also Google NorthWest brigade club out of Calgary.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom