Museum of the Fur Trade

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Museum of the Fur Trade The fox-in-circle. The museum's tradmark (above), originally served as an inspector's mark on guns m

“This is an extremely rare Dutch fowler of the very plain trade quality and one of the few to ever surface in upstate Ne...
09/17/2026

“This is an extremely rare Dutch fowler of the very plain trade quality and one of the few to ever surface in upstate New York.
It has a slender part-octagon barrel 53½ inches long and of .65 caliber. The lock is of early form with sharp bevels at the tail and thin attached pan. It can be seen in the enlarged view that the sear spring was filed with a projecting rectangular stud at the top front end and this stud is driven through a slot in the lock plate to hold the spring in place.
The hammer or c**k has an unusual sharp curve at the neck but this is typical of several found at the old Iroquois village of Gannogaro (now Boughton Hill) destroyed by the French in 1687. The light iron trigger guard is similar to several iron guards found at Gannogaro and at the Susquehannock village site ca. 1625-1675 known as the Strickler Site in Pennsylvania. Hamilton was not aware of these iron guards found archaeologically when he illustrated and briefly described this gun in Colonial Frontier Guns (Chadron, NE. 1980), page 28.
There is, of course, no way of positively identifying this gun as Dutch but all the diagnostic features make it appear to be Dutch of the period before English domination of New York. The gun was purchased locally some 50 years ago and was evidently a family heirloom preserved for its association with early wars or with other activities of some ancestor. It is a perfect example of the light mid-17th century trade guns sold to Iroquoian tribes. It has surprisingly good balance and would obviously handle well for off-hand shooting.
This is the kind of gun the Iroquois learned to use and depend upon and it is the kind spoken of by the people of New Netherlands in their ‘Remonstrance’ to the Lord States General of the United Netherlands in 1649 describing the Indians of New York: ‘Their weapons used to be a war club and the bow and arrow, which they know how to use with wonderful skill. Now, those residing near, or trading considerably with the Christians, make use of firelocks and hatchets, which they obtain in barter. They are excessively fond of guns; spare no expense on them, and are so expert with them that, in this respect, they excel many Christians.’”

~The Museum of the Fur Trade Quarterly, vol. 20, no. 1, (Spring, 1984), Collection Corner: “1650 Dutch Trade Gun from New York.”

Niobrara Cross owned by John Bissonette, son of the noted fur trader Joseph Bissonette, whose firsthand accounts contrib...
09/15/2026

Niobrara Cross owned by John Bissonette, son of the noted fur trader Joseph Bissonette, whose firsthand accounts contributed to the faithful reconstruction of the Bordeaux Trading Post here at the Museum of the Fur Trade.

"The precise location of the post, by the 1950s a large sloping depression on a natural terrace a few yards from Bordeaux Creek, had been conclusively identified by eyewitnesses including Hudson Mead, the first county surveyor, and Welcome Naylor, son of the first homesteader on Bordeaux Creek. Both had seen the collapsing ruins in the 1880s. Most amazing, however, were the recollections of Herbert and John Bissonette, the sons of fur trader Joseph Bissonette who was a competitor and contemporary of Bordeaux. During the 1870s Joseph had operated a trading post less than a mile away, and both brothers had visited the Bordeaux post on countless occasions when it was still in business! The brothers’ descriptions of the Bordeaux post interior, with details of shelves, counters, window locations, and furnishings were priceless details that were often corroborated by the archeological record."

~The Jewel on the Bordeaux Creek: The Museum of the Fur Trade Story (1999)

“Since the author of the foregoing article mentioned buffalo tongues going to St. Louis, it might be useful to consider ...
09/10/2026

“Since the author of the foregoing article mentioned buffalo tongues going to St. Louis, it might be useful to consider in more depth these almost neglected products of the western fur trade. In the years following 1833 the tongue became an increasingly popular item of trade.
In 1801 A.N. McLeod, bourgeois at the North West Company’s Fort Alexandria on the Assiniboine River, mentions the hanging in the meat house of meat and tongues ‘put in salt ten days ago.’ They were apparently intended as provisions for the fort. Edwin Denig wrote of a trader trading for tongues opposite Fort Pierre on the east side of the Missouri in 1830. In 1848 John Palliser noted ‘dried tongues’ as an article of trade with the American Fur Company at White River Post. In 1851 Rudolph Friederich Kurz at Fort Union described packing tongues ‘thick in a cask filled with warm salt water’ and later taking them out and hanging them up to dry.
Henry A. Boller, trading on the upper Missouri in the 1860 period, told of lively competition for tongues between two rival trading firms and pointed out that they were salted by the traders and not, as generally supposed, by the Indians. He said that the dry tongues were sometimes painted over with molasses and water to ‘give them a dark smoky color,’ and that they were packed into barrels for shipment downriver.
The tongues were a popular delicacy for parties and cold suppers and had ready markets from New York to St. Louis to Mexico City. Lt. Thomas Sweeney, on duty at Fort Pierre in 1856, sent two dozen tongues to his wife in New York in care of a trader who was going there in the spring. They were apparently the choicest present he could think of. The professional white buffalo hunters in the 1870’s continued to cure buffalo tongues for market as long as the supply lasted.”

~Charles E. Hanson Jr., “Buffalo Tongues in the Fur Trade,” The Museum of the Fur Trade Quarterly, vol. 21, no. 2, (Summer, 1985).

This week marks the 161st anniversary of the death of Pierre Choteau Jr., the frontier entrepreneur, founder of Ft. Pier...
09/08/2026

This week marks the 161st anniversary of the death of Pierre Choteau Jr., the frontier entrepreneur, founder of Ft. Pierre near present day Pierre, South Dakota, and grandson of Pierre Laclède, the founder of St. Louis.

“Pierre Chouteau, Jr., {snip} was the second son of [Jean-]Pierre Chouteau, born at St. Louis, January 19, 1789. From early life he was engaged in the fur trade. He was one of the principal owners of the American Fur company, associated with Pratte, Cabanne, Sarpy and others famous in that trade. His business operations during his whole life were extensive. In 1849, he, John Harrison and Felix Vallé organized the American Iron Mountain company to work the Iron Mountain deposits in St. Francois county. In 1851 he organized the firm of Chouteau, Harrison and Vallé to operate a rolling mill in North St. Louis, and for many years this establishment was one of the principal industries of St. Louis. He was one of the original incorporators of the Missouri Pacific Railroad in 1849 and also one of the incorporators of the Ohio and Mississippi Railroad in 1851. In 1822 after serving in the constitutional convention he was appointed one of the commissioners to locate the St. Louis jail. He was a man of affairs and indefatigable in his enterprises.”

~A History of Missouri from the Earliest Explorations and Settlements until the Admission of the State Into the Union, vol 2, by Louis Houck, (1908) — Chapter 29: “Rapid Growth of Population &c.”

"One of the best known knives in American history and folklore, rivaled in fame only by the Bowie knife, was the famous ...
09/03/2026

"One of the best known knives in American history and folklore, rivaled in fame only by the Bowie knife, was the famous Green River Knife used by Mountain Man, Indian and Buffalo Hunter. It gave rise to such expressions as the war-cry of “Give it to ’em up to Green River”. Because of the quality of the blades “a Green River job” indicated a job well done. John Russell, head of the firm which manufactured these knives, began making cutlery in a shop on Green River, near Deerfield, Massachusetts, in 1836. Competition was keen and Russell met it with a quality product by lowering production costs. He developed labor-saving machinery, installed the first water-driven trip hammer for forging blades and eventually set up a true production line. The company prospered and it is reported that for over 25 years the annual value of its products more than doubled each year (Peterson, 1958, p. 148). From 1840 to 1860 they are said to have shipped 600,000 knives to the West (ibid. p. 64).It is natural to assume that museum collections would be rich in Green River knives, but they seem to have vanished with the Mountain Man and the buffalo. A recent search of the Plains Indian collections in the Division of Cultural Anthropology, N.S. National Museum, turned up only a single specimen. Knives were worn out, lost, buried, with the dead, sacrificed — and yet one wonders at the whereabouts of the missing thousands."

~George Metcalf, “A Green River Knife and Sheath from the Southern Plains,” The Museum of the Fur Trade Quarterly, vol. 2, no. 2, (Summer, 1966). See less

“While Lieutenant Whipple was at the junction of the Colorado and Gila river, in 1849, engaged in astronomical observati...
09/01/2026

“While Lieutenant Whipple was at the junction of the Colorado and Gila river, in 1849, engaged in astronomical observations for the Boundary Commission, he was constantly surrounded by the Yuma Indians, and had therefore a good opportunity to observe their habits. He has permitted me to copy from his journal the following notices of them." {snip} "While the party remained at the lower crossing waiting for a road to be cut, the Indians were very sociable, carrying them grass, beans, melons, and squashes; for which, they received in return to***co or money. They professed great friendship for the Americans, and declared that they ‘had never stolen from the emigrants, nor maltreated them in any way; but the Indians higher up, and near the mouth of the Gila, they represented as being a desperate set of rascals.’ Lieut. Whipple afterwards met the head chief, Pablo, who wore a scarlet coat trimmed with gold lace, with epaulettes of silver wire, and, to crown all, green goggles. His legs and feet were bare, but he did not allow that to detract from the dignity of his manner. At this time the Yumas had extensive fields of maize, and patches of melons and squashes.”

~Personal Narrative of Explorations and Incidents in Texas, New Mexico, California, Sonora, and Chihuahua Connected with the United States and Mexican Boundary Commission, During the Years 1850. ’51, ’52, and ’53, vol II by John Russell Bartlett (1854) — Chapter 28: “Fort Yuma and the Adjacent Country.”

"During the winter, at times we had much leisure, and we employed it in playing at Draughts, for which we had two cheque...
08/27/2026

"During the winter, at times we had much leisure, and we employed it in playing at Draughts, for which we had two chequer boards, one with twelves, the other with twenty four men on each side; it is a game of skill and I became expert at it; having nothing to do, it was my constant employment; and for want of a companion frequently played by myself. A strange incident now happened to me, and which some [times] happens to mankind, which brings with it a strong influence on their conduct for the rest of their lives. I was sitting at a small table with the chequer board before me, when the devil sat down opposite to me, his features and color were those of a Spaniard, he had two short black horns on his forehead, which pointed forwards, his head and body down to the waist, (I saw no more) was covered with glossy, black, curling hair, his countenance mild and grave; we began playing, played several games and he lost every game, kept his temper, but looked more grave; at length he got up, or rather disappeared. My eyes were open, it was broad day light, I looked around, all was silence and solitude; Was it a dream, or was it a reality. I could not decide. Young and thoughtless as I was, it made a deep impression on my mind. I made no vow, but took a resolution from that very hour never to play a game of chance, or skill or any thing that had the appearance of them and I have kept it. It is now upwards of sixty three years, since, and yet the whole of this strange incident is plain before me.."

~David Thompson’s Narrative of His Explorations in Western America, 1784–1812. ed. by Victor G. Hopwood (1971) — Chapter 2: "The Saskatchewan and the Bow."

“From the era of the American Revolution to the end of the War of 1812, Britons and Indians found that they were to a la...
08/25/2026

“From the era of the American Revolution to the end of the War of 1812, Britons and Indians found that they were to a large extent natural, if often uneasy, allies against their common enemy, the United States. There was no official alliance in arms between the Indian tribes and the Crown, but Britain regarded American expansion as a threat both to its North American colonies and to its political traditions, while Indians saw their lands, culture, and existence imperiled by the growth of the new nation. During the Indian wars against the Republic, Britain watched from the wings, prompting the tribes with advice and supplies. In almost every tribe there were pro-American as well as pro-British factions; but many Indians, and the British authorities generally, recognized that in unity lay their best hope of restricting American expansion. The community of objectives was underlined by British fir-trading interests that wished to see the Indians preserve their lands against the tide of American settlement.”

~Crown and Calumet: British-Indian Relations, 1783-1915, by Colin G. Calloway (1987) — Chapter 8: “Indians as Allies.”

"SATURDAY, August 20th.—At six, practiced at the gun till a quarter past eight. Went around to arrange with the farmers ...
08/20/2026

"SATURDAY, August 20th.—At six, practiced at the gun till a quarter past eight. Went around to arrange with the farmers for flour. They will begin to thrash out their wheat on Monday. I promised them every assistance. At ten, the Michigans were drilled. At 2 P. M., got the other three pounder mounted, and went out in brigade at four o’clock, practicing sham fighting till six, when we returned to the fort. At half past three P. M., three young Renards arrived with a pipe, they say, from the Sauks, who send me word that the Americans were on their way up here in barges. They say they do not deceive me, three different couriers having seen the barges above the Cap au Gris ten days ago. The Sauks request me to go down to the Rapids with all the forces here, and meet the enemy there, and at the same time take them am******on and guns. I told them I could give them an answer in the morning, as they told me this news at seven o’clock in the evening. I cannot put faith in this report. The couriers cannot inform me the number of the enemy’s barges, nor can they even tell me the number of young Sauks that brought the pipe to the Renard village. They ask for am******on and guns, two articles they have been repeatedly told that we have none; and Col. McKay, when he gave the Epervier Noir, or Black Sparrow Hawk, the last present, told him positively he need not expect any further supply of powder till the reinforcement came out. All these circumstances considered, I conceive it to be a made up story of the Renards and Aile Rouges or Red Wings, to get us away from this, perhaps to destroy the place; or else to get us, as they suppose, into their power below this, and, as in such a case we would not suspect them, to get us into a council, and then do our business. Be this as it may, I treat the couriers well, and do not give the smallest idea that I doubt the truth of their report. On the contrary, I will encourage them to be on the lookout, etc. If there is any truth in their assertions, we shall know it in the course of three or four days by Lieut. Graham. The enemy will not reach this point, if the report is true, before twenty days."

~Captain T. G. Anderson’s Journal, 1814, from the Collections of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin, vol. 9, (1882).

"Tiah-na-zi, who volunteered his services as scout, reported that he had seen some Comanches and had given them chase. T...
08/18/2026

"Tiah-na-zi, who volunteered his services as scout, reported that he had seen some Comanches and had given them chase. They had doubtless obtained a glimpse of the main party and were not at all disposed to be overtaken. He soon after came to our camp in company with several Spaniards. When he first saw them he had raised the war whoop and started to give them chase, but they, finding themselves pursued by a single individual, awaited his approach. They proved to be a small party of traders, who had come out under the guidance of one of the Pueblo Indians, and told us they had been twenty days in reaching this place from Taos, in New Mexico. They were dressed in conical-crowned sombreros, jackets with the stripes running transversely, large bag breeches extending to the knee, long stockings, and moccasins. They were badly armed, and presented a shabby and poor appearance though we learned that they were a good specimen of the class to which they belong. They are called “Comancheros” and make frequent trading excursions into the country of the Indians with whom they exchange their stock for horses and mules, which the Indians frequently retake before they reach their homes. Their defenceless state gives the Indians little to fear. They suffer them to traverse the country even whilst they are at war with the Mexicans."

~Through the Country of the Comanche Indians in the Fall of the Year 1845: The Journal of a U.S. Army Expedition led by Lieutenant James W. Abert, ed. by John Galvin (1970).

Address

6321 Highway 20: 3 Miles East Of
Chadron, NE
69337

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 5pm
Tuesday 8am - 5pm
Wednesday 8am - 5pm
Thursday 8am - 5pm
Friday 8am - 5pm
Saturday 8am - 5pm
Sunday 8am - 5pm

Telephone

+13084323843

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