Cree-Michif woman posing with her Red River Cart. Photo by Galt Museum & Archives on The Commons on flickr  P19640164000 · · · 1885 24.5 x 19.5 cm. Black and white copy print. Unidentified Cree woman standing next to a horse hitched to a red river cart. Wooden hut in the background. Written on the back: "Red River Cart and Washie Joe".

    “Métis women were integral to the fur trade. They were sought after as marriage partners for fur trade managers because of their kinship ties to local First Nations and Métis. Some English Métis women, known as “Country Born,” married high-ranking officials and became members of the “Red River aristocracy.” French Métis women were likely to marry fur trade labourers such as French-Canadian voyageurs. Their work was vitally important, as they provided food such as garden produce, berries, fish and game to the fur trade posts. They also made and sold hand-worked items such as sashes and quilts.”

Indigenous Peoples Atlas of Canada, 2020

Source: Indigenous Peoples Atlas of Canada – Royal Canadian Geographical Society (Canadian Geographic). (2020). Fur Trade. Atlas / Métis. Retrieved June 23, 2020 from https://indigenouspeoplesatlasofcanada.ca/article/fur-trade/

    “Métis women did not sew solely to clothe their families, their sewing also benefited the men in trading posts, as well as many passing travelers heading west. These women were essential to the fur trade industry, for they did not only serve as companions (and mates) to the men, but they also worked as much needed labourers to convert meat into pemmican and skins into clothing (NOTE 6). In fact, they were genuine seamstresses, since they sewed the gloves, hats, leggings, moccasins and coats that men wore as everyday clothes in their community and when working in the trading posts. These Métis women sometimes even traveled with expeditions, such as Sir John Franklin's Arctic expedition, to wash, sew and mend clothes (NOTE 7).

   "Their work was also prized by those who traveled to Western Canada because the style of the clothing took its inspiration from both Native and European traditions. Sometimes the demand was such that travelers had a hard time getting their clothing finished on time. The names of a few of these women, such as Charlotte Sauvé, Nancy Labombarde (née Kipling) and Marie Rose Delorme Smith, are still well known today, their work of such good quality that their names are mentioned in a few writings (NOTE 8). While most of the clothing, such as the blue capotes (that, incidentally, cannot be found in any museum), were made to be worn, some leather coats were made solely to be displayed in museums. After 1870, the women started to prefer working with imported fabrics instead of leather. Moreover, it is not uncommon that they sought to meet the needs and stylistic demands of their customers (NOTE 9). Although some visitors were surprised by Métis dress at first, they were quickly won over by the local style and finally adopted it. Such was the case of George Winship who, in 1867, professed to dislike the Red River style, but who eventually became very fond of it (NOTE 10).”

Source: Encyclopedia of French Cultural Heritage in North America. (2007). Sewing for a living - Floral Beadwork: A Métis Cultural Heritage to Rediscover. Retrieved June 29, 2020 from http://www.ameriquefrancaise.org/en/article-476/Floral_Beadwork:_A_M%C3%A9tis_Cultural_Heritage_to_Rediscover_.html

Red River Métis-style buckskin jacket (belonging to Louis Riel) and leggings (mitasses) decorated with the distinct floral beadwork designs. A similar jacket is on display at the Dawson Trail Museum in Richer, Manitoba. Source: First People of Canada. (2007). Canada’s First Peoples: The Métis. Goldi Productions Ltd. Retrieved June 29, 2020 from http://firstpeoplesofcanada.com/fp_metis/fp_metis5.html

    “Métis women took the leather and furs to the country and made clothes from Indigenous materials patterned on European-style tailor-made clothes, rather than the continued use of straight flowing robes or huge blankets. Métis furnishing and utensils, like their clothing, were a combination of Aboriginal and European. From the trading posts, they obtained cast-iron pots and skillets, copper kettles, tin plates, cups, cutlery and blankets. Most of their other needs they supplied themselves, from items found in nature.

    "The many uses of native animals was important to the Métis peoples way of life. Buffalo and game rawhide was cut and sewn to make containers, pots and storage bags. Baskets and other containers were also made from birch bark and sewn with spruce roots. Bones from rabbits and other small animals were hollowed out, cleaned and plugged at both ends to store needles. The stomachs of small animals, when cleaned and dried, made excellent airtight bags. Sinew was commonly used for sewing. Long and stringy when dried and separated, it made an excellent thread almost impossible to break. Glue was obtained by boiling down animal hooves and horns to a fine paste.

    "The Métis made dishes from birch bark and hollowed slabs of wood, rock and stone hammers and mauls were made by painstakingly grinding rocks for hours with another stone. With a maul, buffalo meat and wild berries could be pounded on a hollowed out stone to make pemmican. Buffalo robes were used as blankets and rugs, and when cloth scraps were available, a quilt could be produced by making a sheet from many small pieces, sewing the sheet into a bag and stuffing it with feathers or down. Like their sisters (Plains First Nations women), Métis women put colourful designs and patterns on the everyday articles they used. Sometimes this was used for spiritual reasons, but most often it was simply out of their love of decoration.”

Métis Family Services, 2020

Source: Métis Family Services. (2020). Métis History, Merging Cultural Practices [webpage]. Retrieved June 29, 2020 from http://www.metisfamilyservices.ca/resources/metis-history.

The Begbie Contest Society. (n.d.) Canadian Primary Sources in the Classroom – Riel and Manitoba. Multiple Perspectives. Retrieved June 29, 2020 from http://www.begbiecontestsociety.org/RIEL%20and%20MANITOBA.htm

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