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The Fur Trade Gamble

North West Company on the Pacific Slope, 1800-1820

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About this listen

In an era of grand risk, fur moguls vied to command the northwest and China markets, gambling lives and capital on the price of beaver pelts, purchases of ships and trade goods, international commerce laws, and the effects of war.

©2016 Board of Regents of Washington State University (P)2017 Redwood Audiobooks Adventurers, Explorers & Survival Americas United States
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I received a review copy of this book. The information given was very interesting and it was all narrated. This is an excellent book for those with some familiarity of the trade that are looking for additional information. For those such as myself work minimal knowledge of the subject area I felt a lot of the more nuanced information was lost on me.

This is a book I will need to come back to once I have read other books on the subject area.

Not an introductory text

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I remember this historical events in high school. This is about the 18th and 19th fur trade that shaped not only the US but North America as a whole . It’s a story that will open your eyes how the settlers made a living in the US . The events really happened .

Bill Nevitt narrating this story was great . Bill makes you understand the story

Gamble on this real story

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This densely detailed book charts the attempts to open up the trading routes in the Pacific North West in the late 18th and early 19th Centuries. Battling through thousands of miles of harsh weather and scenery, facing uncertainties and enduring biting insects, untrustworthy opponents and native Indians upon whom they often had to rely for help without the advantage of a shared language or knowledge of terrain, the attempt to establish a profitable business based on fur sales was ultimately doomed to fail. But the stories of the men involved, the clandestine acts, illicit deals, lives lost, personality clashes, misunderstandings and just plain failure to understand their market, make for a wonderful peek into a world which really was wild.
This is not an easy read. Covering a huge area of place and time as well as personalities, it requires concentration to follow all of the subject matter. Narrator Bill Nevitt's clearly enunciated reading, performed with steady pace, makes this as easy as it can be. A book to marvel at - individuals driven and daring, and stupidity and rivalry also.

An enormous amount of research has gone into compiling this book. The Fur Trade Gamble is not a book for everyone, but if reconstructed historic records of place, time and men's achievement, even in the face of failure, are of interest then this book comes highly recommended.

The Keystone Cops conquest of the Columbia.

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