French Canadians who engaged in the North American fur trade
For other uses, see Voyageur (disambiguation).
Shooting the Rapids, 1879 by Frances Anne Hopkins (1838–1919)
Voyageurs (French:[vwajaʒœʁ]ⓘ; lit.'travellers') were 18th- and 19th-century French Canadians and others who transported furs by canoe at the peak of the North American fur trade. The emblematic meaning of the term applies to places (New France, including the Pays d'en Haut and the Pays des Illinois) and times where that transportation was over long distances. The voyageurs' strength and endurance was regarded as legendary.[1][unreliable source?] They were celebrated in folklore and music. For reasons of promised celebrity status and wealth, this position was coveted.
Despite their fame, their lives were arduous and not nearly as glamorous as folk tales made out. For example, they had to be able to carry two 90-pound (41 kg) bundles of fur over portages. Some carried four or five, and there is a report of a voyageur carrying seven bundles for half a mile.[2] Hernias were common and frequently caused death.[3] Most voyageurs started working in their early twenties and continued working until they were in their sixties. They never made enough money to consider early retirement from a physically grueling lifestyle.[4]
Fur trading was done by canoe and largely by French Canadians.[citation needed] In the fur trade context, the word also applied, to a lesser extent, to other fur trading activities.[5] Voyageurs were part of a licensed, organized effort, a distinction that set them apart from the coureurs des bois. Additionally, they differed from engagés (hired men),[6] who were much smaller-scale merchants and general laborers. Mostly immigrants, the engagés were men required to go anywhere and do anything their masters told them as long as their indentureship was still in place. Until their contract expired, engagés were servants of their masters, who were most often voyageurs.[7] Less than fifty percent of engagés remained in New France when their contracts ended. The others either returned to France or died while indentured.[8]
^"White Oak - Companies and Organizations". www.whiteoak.org. Archived from the original on February 23, 2011.
^Mike Hillman, "La Bonga: The Greatest Voyageur" Boundary Waters Journal Magazine, Summer 2010 Issue, pp 20–25
^Cite error: The named reference TheVoyageurNute2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Louise Dechêne, Habitants and Merchants in Seventeenth-Century Montreal, Montreal: 1992, p. 122
^The Coureur de Bois Chronicles of America http://www.chroniclesofamerica.com/french/voyageurs_to_the_back_country.htm Retrieved August 2011
^Population: Social Groups Virtual Museum of New France http://www.historymuseum.ca/virtual-museum-of-new-france/population/social-groups/ Retrieved February 2015
^Louise Dechêne, Habitants and Merchants in Seventeenth-Century Montreal, Montreal: 1992, p. 27
^Louise Dechêne, Habitants and Merchants in Seventeenth-Century Montreal, Montreal: 1992, pp. 34-35
of voyageurs. First, their background of French-Canadian heritage as farmers featured prominently in their jobs as voyageurs. Working as a voyageur was...
and maintenance. E-Voyageurs: includes the online travel agent OUI.sncf and the Assistant SNCF app. Additionally, SNCF Voyageurs oversees SNCF's investment...
The Voyageurs Cup (French: Coupe des Voyageurs) is the domestic trophy for professional soccer in Canada, awarded to the best men's and women's clubs in...
Voyageurs National Park is an American national park in northern Minnesota near the city of International Falls established in 1975. The park's name commemorates...
Voyageur Aviation operating as Voyageur Airways Limited is an airline based in North Bay, Ontario, Canada that commenced operations in 1968. Along with...
in Canada "Voyageurs Cup". Archived from the original on December 28, 2005. Retrieved December 14, 2022. "Voyageurs History". The Voyageurs. Retrieved...
event by wearing clothing that represented the Voyageurs. This initiated the tradition of "Official Voyageurs", which continues to this day. The 1970 festival...
Terminus Voyageur may refer to: Gare d'autocars de Montréal, formerly Terminus d'autocars Voyageur Ottawa Central Station, formerly Voyageur motorcoach...
attendance and travel costs. The Voyageurs (or "Vees" for short) played their first two seasons (1969–71), as the Montreal Voyageurs and were the affiliate of...
Ottawa. Stacey, Charles, ed. (2013). Records of the Nile Voyageurs, 1884-1885: The Canadian Voyageur Contingent in the Gordon Relief Expedition. Toronto:...
soccer, and the 23rd competition staged to determine the winner of the Voyageurs Cup. It features all eleven professional men's soccer teams in Canada...
Kingston Voyageurs were a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Kingston, Ontario, Canada. They were a part of the Ontario Junior A Hockey League. The Voyageurs entered...
path of work ensued. An exhibition of Catalano's sculptures entitled Les Voyageurs took place in Marseille in September 2013, to celebrate its status as...
Capital Current. Retrieved December 1, 2022. "CANADIAN SILVER DOLLARS (VOYAGEURS AND COMMEMORATIVES)". Archived from the original on February 3, 2022....
Community Radio Association. The university's varsity teams, known as the Voyageurs, compete in basketball, soccer, rowing, cross country running, golf, curling...
competition, the Voyageurs donated the cup to the Canadian Soccer Association to award to the winners. The trophy is still awarded by a Voyageurs member to the...
the Rapidz declared bankruptcy on 29 September 2009. A new team, the Voyageurs, was announced by the Can-Am league for the 2009 season. However, the...
team in October, with Voyageurs being the most-submitted team name. The club's logo was designed by Matthew Wolff. The Voyageurs won their debut game 3–0...
Treasury, as the Provincial Commissariat Voyageurs. This corps was disbanded in March, 1815. The Corps of Voyageurs was organized on the initiative of the...
Peintres Voyageurs 1828-1908 Maroc Charles Kerivel - 2009 "Ahmed Rafif a créé cette maison d'édition spécialement orientée vers les peintres voyageurs qui...
renamed Springfield Indians) Montreal Voyageurs (1969–71; became Nova Scotia Voyageurs) Nova Scotia Voyageurs (1971–84; became Sherbrooke Canadiens)...
the team was rechristened as the Voyageurs after a name-the-team contest won by Michael Jacobsen. However, the Voyageurs would never take the field as the...
Global Information