Voyageur’s Blog
Ask a voyageur a question
Here’s a blog to answer your questions, like what was life like during the 1800s in French Canada? Like who could or couldn’t be a voyageur? How big the canoes were? What trade goods they carried? What different furs were worth? What they used for medicine? I’ll answer these and more in the “A Voyageur’s Life” blog. Click on the button below to ask your question or go to the “Contact” section of this site — I’ll find the answers.
What is it like to “become” a voyageur at Fort William Historical Park?
What is it like to “become” a voyageur or another character at Fort William Historical Park? Is it fun or hard to do? (Mikaela, 14) Jenni Grandfield, who works at Fort William Historical Park in Thunder Bay, Ontario, answered the question for me: I'm studying art at...
Is that a real voyageur on the book cover?
Is that a real voyageur on the book cover? Is it a real birch bark canoe? (Justin, age 13) This voyageur is a “historic interpreter” who works summers at Fort William Historical Park in Thunder Bay, Ontario. The photo was taken by Jenni Grandfield, who spends her...
Why were the Nor’westers’ tents in neat rows at the rendezvous?
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....
Do voyageurs still gather for a rendezvous?
Do voyageurs still gather for a rendezvous? Where could my family go to see one? (Gabi, 14) You can visit a rendezvous with costumed historical interpreters of Native Americans, voyageurs, traders and lots of fun activities to show how things were done. Here are some:...
What happened at the voyageur rendezvous at Grand Portage?
What happened at the voyageur rendezvous at Grand Portage? Was it every summer? (from Jessa, age 12) The rendezvous took several weeks each summer, so the North West Company could basically swap loads of their employees — the canoemen who had traveled from distant...
Where does "Waters Like the Sky" take place?
Where does “Waters Like the Sky” take place? (Kris) “Waters Like the Sky” starts in a small village near Quebec, Canada, not far from Montréal. Find the St. Laurence River on the right side of map, and Montréal is where the river divides. The canoe brigade travels...
No wonder Nikki Rajala writes about voyageurs—her French-Canadian ancestors paddled birch bark canoes on many fur trade brigades. One great-great wintered for 16 years in fur posts west of Lake Superior and threads of family stories infuse this book. On Girl Scout canoe expeditions as a teen, she explored Minnesota's Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Ontario's Quetico Provincial Park. Nikki loves rendezvous re-enactments, reading fur trade journals, visiting museums, tasting voyageur foods.
