article

Rainy River sturgeon: an Ojibway resource in the fur trade economy

Canadian geographer32 (3)Published In 1988 • Pages: 194-205

By: Holzkamm, Tim E., Lytwyn, Victor P., Waisberg, Leo G..

AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
This work discusses the significance to the Ojibwa of sturgeon fisheries, not only in providing a source of food, but as a component in trade relations with native peoples in the northwestern interior of North America and with European trading companies (e.g., the Hudson Bay Company). The author notes that sturgeon also provided the Ojibwa with a substance called isinglass, a marketable commodity obtained from the air bladders of the sturgeon, with particular value in European trade. 'During the fur trade period the sturgeon fishery was a highly productive industry, characterized by a sustained annual yield. With the advent on non-native commerdial fisheries in the region, production increased beyond the level of sustained yield. The resource was virtually destroyed by the early 20th century' (p. 194).
SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
Fishing
Fishing gear
Animal by-products
Production and supply
External trade
External relations
Public welfare
cultureCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
Ojibwa
HRAF PubDateThe date HRAF published the document
2000
RegionThe area the document pertains to
North America
Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
Arctic and Subarctic
Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
article
Evaluation
Creator TypeThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
Ethnologist
Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
4: Excellent Secondary Data
5: Excellent Primary Data
AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
John Beierle ; 1998
Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
no date
Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
'traditional' to ca. 1850
Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
Central Ojibwa: Rainy River area, Minnesota, United States; Ontario
NotesAdditional notes
Tim E. Holzkamm ; Victor P. Lytwyn ; Leo G. Waisberg
Includes bibliographical references (p. 203-205)
LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
55025596
LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
Ojibwa Indians