The fur trade influenced the historical development of Canada in a number of ways including: the development and expansion into western and northern Canada; the significance of Canadian place names; the origin and rise of the Métis Nation; the impact of interaction between the First Peoples and the Europeans-and these connections can be found in personal and commercial stories about the people and events of the fur trade.
--14-- Chief Factor Barnston and R.M. Ballantyne at Tadoussac, 1846
Winter was the favoured season for staff movements, making travelling much easier because of the down time. This painting depicts three traders arriving at the Hudson's Bay Company trading post of Tadoussac, their new assignment.
The central figure is Chief Factor George Barnston. R.M. Ballantyne is the figure on the left carrying the copper kettle and green blanket.
In the last period of his employment with HBC, Ballantyne started to write a journal. Although his intent was to describe his experiences to his mother, "The Record", as it was called, ultimately led Ballantyne to what would become his life's work.
His novel, Hudson's Bay or The Life in the Wilds of North America, which recounts his youth and adventures during his seven-year employment with HBC, was published in 1848.
