History of Grand Forks County : with special reference to the first ten years of Grand Forks City, including an historical outline of the Red River Valley

• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: State Historical Society of North Dakota
• Subjects: Canada; Flint; Glacial Lake; Grand Forks; Hudson; Hudson Bay; Indian; York Factory
• Online Access: http://cdm16921.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/ndsl-books/id/38977

24 P It E - S E T T L E M 10 N T A N N A L S The guns used in tlie Northwest were, made in England specially for purposes connected with the fur trading business. They were imported by way of York Factory and exchanged at tbe posts for peltries at certain values. They continued to have flint fire locks long after the percussion cap had came into general use, on account of the great distances to tlie points at wl ich the cups might be obtained. If an Indian or other hunter happened to get. out of his supply of percussion caps, on the supposition that he used a percussion fire gun, it might be a hundred or more miles from Ihe nearest, post, in which case his piece would be of no use to him, while a flint-lock gun was generally serviceable at any time. There were some salt springs in the valley that were utilized to some extent by the Selkirk colonists and the fur companies, on account of the expense of importing salt. "Considerable quantities" says Warren Upham "were yearly made by the evaporation of tlie water of salt springs. One of these springs from which much salt was made for the Hudson Bay company is situated in the channel of the south branch of Two Rivers, about 1J mile above its junction with the north branch, and some six mile's west of Hallock. It is exposed only when the river runs low, and in such part of the summer the work of salt-making was done."* During the period mentioned above life in and around the trading posts continued the same as it had been. The country, the surroundings, the mode of life of the people, and its object, wiif. of that character which admitted of but little change from one generation to another. The Selkirk colonists also continued their simple and isolated mode of life, having at last attained a fair measure of prosperity and happiness, and but liltle mindful of the continual progress and irresistible advancement of that westward tide of emigration, which, both in Canada and in the United Stales, was destined in future years to close in upon them and merge their descendants amidst tlie present population of the Northwest. JEAN N. NICOLLET. Jean N. Nicollet was a Frenchman in tlie service of the bureau of topographical engineers. After exploring (he basin of the Mississippi in the south witli its western affluents for geographical and natural history purposes, he was next assigned to the region of the upper Mississippi. These latter explorations covered the period between the yenrsl886 and 1813. Lieut. J. C. Fremont was Nicollet's principal aid and assistant. Fremont was born in Savannah, Ga., in 1813, consequently ho was merely a young man while in tlie service of government under Nicollet. * 'flic Glacial Lake Agassiz, p. f.'JS. Scanned with a Zeutschel Zeta book scanner at 300 dpi. Edited with Multi-Page TIFF Editor.