200@200 : February - Contention for the Confluence
Date:
Late 1700s - Early 1800s
Title:
Trade Beads
Description:
Fort Wayne and the Fur Trade

European demand for fur stretched across the Atlantic and all the way to the confluence of the three rivers by the late 1700s. To adapt to a changing way of life, Miami and other tribes in the area began trading with Europeans and Americans, and the Miami became very successful in the frontier enterprise.

The Miami adaptation to the trade industry led them to wealth and power through the exchange of furs for European goods. Metal products, blankets, cloth, guns, spices and other wares were common traded items. Beads such as these, called trade beads, were often used during that time as currency.
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Glass and Shell Trade BeadsGlass and Shell Trade Beads
Glass and Shell Trade BeadsGlass and Shell Trade Beads
Glass Trade BeadsGlass Trade Beads
Glass Trade BeadsGlass Trade Beads
Glass Trade BeadsGlass Trade Beads