Public Lecture: “The Fur Trader’s Table: A ‘Bill of Fare’ From 18th Century Rupert’s Land”
Join us on 24 October to hear alumna and contract lecture Beverly Soloway discuss “The Fur Trader’s Table” A ‘Bill of Fare’ From 18th Century Rupert’s Land.”
135 years before Fort William was built, the Hudson’s Bay Company was sending fur traders to the meager posts dotting the Hudson and James Bays coastline. These men were predominantly from Scotland’s northern Orkney Islands. When the annual ship from Britain arrived in the north, it brought imported food that was expected to last the year, supplemented with local foodstuffs from around the posts. The Fur Traders’ Table takes a closer look at what imported and local foods were eaten, as well as to what extent the men sustained old world foodways while experiencing new world resources.
This presentation will be in-person and online. Complete information and how to register to attend virtually can be found at https://thunderbaymuseum1.wildapricot.org/event-5388515
This presentation is part of the 2023-24 Thunder Bay Historical Museum Society’s Lecture Series sponsored by the Department of History. Since 1908, the Thunder Bay Historical Museum Society has been regularly holding talks on a wide range of topics on the fourth Tuesday of each month at the Thunder Bay Museum (425 Donald Street East) from September to April. All presentations are free and open to the public.
Dr. Michael O'Hagan is a historian researching German POWs in Canada during the Second World War. He completed his PhD in History at Western University in London, Ontario in 2020 and his dissertation focused on the employment of German POWs in labour projects scattered across Canada. He continues researching POWs in Canada and publishes his research on his blog, 
Since 1970, Peter has maintained a continuing interest in the amalgamation of the Twin Cities. He has published several articles in Papers and Records on the history and consequences of this seminal event in the life of Thunder Bay. In 1995 he oversaw the creation of an Oral History of Amalgamation, which included interviews with politicians, city administrators and staff who had been involved in the process.
John Sandlos is a professor of history at Memorial University of Newfoundland, with a research focus on the history of abandoned mines in Northern Canada. He is the author of Hunters at the Margin and co-editor (with Arn Keeling) of Mining and Communities in Northern Canada: History, Politics, Memory. He lives in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador.
Arn Keeling is a professor of geography at Memorial University of Newfoundland. His research examines the environmental legacies of abandoned mines, mine closure and remediation, and the social issues surrounding environmental contamination and its effects on northern Indigenous communities. He co-directed the Toxic Legacies Project with John Sandlos, conducting community-engaged research on the history and legacy of Giant Mine. He lives in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador.
