Why were the Nor’westers’ tents in neat rows at the rendezvous while the Montrealers were a jumbled mess? (Bruce)
The historic interpreters at Grand Portage National Monument told us that only the Northmen rated tents — a concession to the long distance they traveled. The North West Company set the tents up, so they’d be very efficient and line them all up.
Because the pork-eaters from Montreal didn’t get tents, they flipped over their canoes for shelter from the rain. Their camps were set on opposite sides outside the post.
Native Americans camped in a nearby location.
At Fort William Historical Park in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, the voyageur saga continues a dozen or more years later. The North West Company offered tents to both voyageur groups.
Nikki
