Rocky Mountain Fur Company
Encyclopedia
The Rocky Mountain Fur Company, sometimes called Ashley's Hundred, was organized in St. Louis, Missouri
in 1823 by General William H. Ashley and Major Andrew Henry (c. 1775-1832). They posted advertisements in St. Louis newspapers seeking "One Hundred enterprising young men . . . to ascend the river Missouri to its source, there to be employed for one, two, or three years." Among those hired were Jedediah Smith
, the four Sublette brothers, including William
and Milton
, Jim Beckwourth, Thomas Fitzpatrick and David Edward Jackson
, who in 1826, bought the Company and for the next seven years it continued to prosper. Other mountain men who worked for the Company were Jim Bridger
, Joseph Meek
, Robert Newell, George W. Ebbert
, and Kit Carson
.
Major Henry's plan was formed in response to a July 1822 law prohibiting the sale of alcohol to Indians. Prior to this point, the fur trade had relied on Indians to do the actual trapping and hunting that produced the furs; they were then brought to trading posts where, with increasing frequency, the Indians were given liquor both as an actual medium of exchange, and in order to render them pliant and easily cheated. The pattern was so firmly established that it was difficult to conduct business without a substantial supply of alcohol. Henry's plan made Indian trappers and trading posts unnecessary—he trained young American men to trap, and had them meet him at rendezvous, which were temporary, and could be located wherever it was convenient.
The Rocky Mountain Fur Company was a rival to Hudson's Bay Company
and John Jacob Astor
's American Fur Company
. They frequently held their rendezvous near a Hudson's Bay Company post to draw off some of their Indian trade, and their trappers went into the Snake
, Umpqua
and Rogue River
valleys, all of which were considered the domain of the Hudson's Bay Company.
The fur trade declined in the 1830s due to major declines in the beaver
population and the fact that beaver hats were going out of style, replaced by hats made of silk
. A Hudson's Bay Company policy of underselling the American fur companies in the Rocky Mountains during the late 1830s succeeded in destroying the American system and led to the failure of the Rocky Mountain Fur Company.
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
in 1823 by General William H. Ashley and Major Andrew Henry (c. 1775-1832). They posted advertisements in St. Louis newspapers seeking "One Hundred enterprising young men . . . to ascend the river Missouri to its source, there to be employed for one, two, or three years." Among those hired were Jedediah Smith
Jedediah Smith
Jedediah Strong Smith was a hunter, trapper, fur trader, trailblazer, author, cartographer, cattleman, and explorer of the Rocky Mountains, the American West Coast and the Southwest during the 19th century...
, the four Sublette brothers, including William
William Sublette
William Lewis Sublette Born near Stamford, Lincoln County, Kentucky on September 21, 1798. Died on July 23, 1845 in Pittsburg. W.L. Sublette was a fur trapper, pioneer and mountain man, who with his brothers after 1823 became an agent of the Rocky Mountain Fur Company exploiting the riches of the...
and Milton
Milton Sublette
Milton Green Sublette was an American fur trader, explorer and mountain man. He was the second of four Sublette brothers prominent in the western fur trade; William, Andrew, and Solomon...
, Jim Beckwourth, Thomas Fitzpatrick and David Edward Jackson
David Edward Jackson
David Edward Jackson was an American pioneer, explorer, trader, and fur trapper.He spent his early life west of the Shenandoah Mountains, in what was then part of Virginia and is now in West Virginia: he was born in Randolph County, and his parents, Edward and Elizabeth Jackson, soon moved the...
, who in 1826, bought the Company and for the next seven years it continued to prosper. Other mountain men who worked for the Company were Jim Bridger
Jim Bridger
James Felix "Jim" Bridger was among the foremost mountain men, trappers, scouts and guides who explored and trapped the Western United States during the decades of 1820-1850, as well as mediating between native tribes and encroaching whites...
, Joseph Meek
Joseph Meek
Joseph Lafayette "Joe" Meek was a trapper, law enforcement official, and politician in the Oregon Country and later Oregon Territory of the United States. A pioneer involved in the fur trade before settling in the Tualatin Valley, Meek would play a prominent role at the Champoeg Meetings of 1843...
, Robert Newell, George W. Ebbert
George W. Ebbert
George Wood “Squire” Ebbert was a mountain man and early settler in the Oregon Country. Born in Kentucky, he settled on the Tualatin Plains in what would become Oregon and participated in the Champoeg Meetings that created a government prior to the formation of the Oregon Territory...
, and Kit Carson
Kit Carson
Christopher Houston "Kit" Carson was an American frontiersman and Indian fighter. Carson left home in rural present-day Missouri at age 16 and became a Mountain man and trapper in the West. Carson explored the west to California, and north through the Rocky Mountains. He lived among and married...
.
Major Henry's plan was formed in response to a July 1822 law prohibiting the sale of alcohol to Indians. Prior to this point, the fur trade had relied on Indians to do the actual trapping and hunting that produced the furs; they were then brought to trading posts where, with increasing frequency, the Indians were given liquor both as an actual medium of exchange, and in order to render them pliant and easily cheated. The pattern was so firmly established that it was difficult to conduct business without a substantial supply of alcohol. Henry's plan made Indian trappers and trading posts unnecessary—he trained young American men to trap, and had them meet him at rendezvous, which were temporary, and could be located wherever it was convenient.
The Rocky Mountain Fur Company was a rival to Hudson's Bay Company
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
and John Jacob Astor
John Jacob Astor
John Jacob Astor , born Johann Jakob Astor, was a German-American business magnate and investor who was the first prominent member of the Astor family and the first multi-millionaire in the United States...
's American Fur Company
American Fur Company
The American Fur Company was founded by John Jacob Astor in 1808. The company grew to monopolize the fur trade in the United States by 1830, and became one of the largest businesses in the country. The company was one the first great trusts in American business...
. They frequently held their rendezvous near a Hudson's Bay Company post to draw off some of their Indian trade, and their trappers went into the Snake
Snake River
The Snake is a major river of the greater Pacific Northwest in the United States. At long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean...
, Umpqua
Umpqua River
The Umpqua River on the Pacific coast of Oregon in the United States is approximately long. One of the principal rivers of the Oregon Coast and known for bass and shad, the river drains an expansive network of valleys in the mountains west of the Cascade Range and south of the Willamette Valley,...
and Rogue River
Rogue River (Oregon)
The Rogue River in southwestern Oregon in the United States flows about in a generally westward direction from the Cascade Range to the Pacific Ocean. Known for its salmon runs, whitewater rafting, and rugged scenery, it was one of the original eight rivers named in the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act...
valleys, all of which were considered the domain of the Hudson's Bay Company.
The fur trade declined in the 1830s due to major declines in the beaver
Beaver
The beaver is a primarily nocturnal, large, semi-aquatic rodent. Castor includes two extant species, North American Beaver and Eurasian Beaver . Beavers are known for building dams, canals, and lodges . They are the second-largest rodent in the world...
population and the fact that beaver hats were going out of style, replaced by hats made of silk
Silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...
. A Hudson's Bay Company policy of underselling the American fur companies in the Rocky Mountains during the late 1830s succeeded in destroying the American system and led to the failure of the Rocky Mountain Fur Company.