As Edmonton entered its fourth decade, its future as one of the most profitable Hudson's Bay Company posts seemed secure, but were its best days behind it? In the late 1820s and the 1830s, John Rowand, the imposing figure in charge of the fort, struggled to adapt to the rapidly changing circumstances on the northwestern plains. American traders operating from the Missouri river began to draw off much of the trade of the Plains people, even as the relations among and within Plains nations grew ever more acrimonious. Closer to home, and much to Rowand's frustration, Métis families grew increasingly assertive and independent. Rowand could not find peace within the fort's palisades. Company servants chafed under the heavy hand of an increasingly irascible Rowand. The Edmonton House Journals published here offer a fascinating glimpse at the day-to-day life at one of the HBC's most important trading centres.
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As Edmonton entered its fourth decade, its future as one of the most profitable Hudson's Bay Company posts seemed secure, but were its best days behind it? In the late 1820s and the 1830s, John Rowand, the imposing figure in charge of the fort, str (more)