The Bible and the Beaver: The Pilgrims' Journey and Economic Aspirations
The Bible and the Beaver: Key Points for Quick Review
Dual motives of the Mayflower voyage: religious dissent and economic gain. Merchant Adventurers sought profits; Pilgrims needed to earn a living to sustain the colony. The beaver trade would become the economic lifeline. Beaver pelts, extinct in England for 100+ years, would drive profits.
Beavers and the fur trade as a foundation: James Truslow Adams summarized the dynamic: "The Bible and the beaver were the two mainstays of the young colony. The former saved its morale, and the latter paid its bills, and the rodent's share was a large one."
Initial expectations vs. reality: original seven-year contract tied colonists to the Merchant Adventurers, with living costs covered and land/house ownership after years; later revisions forced long hours of company service and common property, provoking resistance.
Financial strain and brink of failure before departure: the Merchant Adventurers delayed funding, including refusing to pay 100 for the Mayflower/Speedwell and forcing a sale of supplies to meet debts.
Voyage challenges and landfall: the Speedwell failed; the Mayflower endured 65 days at sea, severe storms, and navigational uncertainty; landed in the Cape Cod area in late 1620, chose Plymouth rather than the patent location near the Hudson.
Harsh first winter at Plymouth: of the 102 initial passengers, nearly half died by March 1621; survival depended on community effort and later Indigenous assistance.
Indigenous first contacts and treaty foundation: Samoset (Abenaki) greeted the colonists and Massasoit arrived with a group; Squanto (Tisquantum) acted as interpreter, guide, and teacher, initiating a peace treaty and enabling the fur trade.
Early fur-trading expansion (1621–1622): Standish led a coastal expedition to Boston Harbor; they recognized better harbors and potential trade routes, though Massasoit’s alliance was essential for access to fur resources.
Ship returns and trade pressure: the Fortune returned with 37 colonists and a renewal demand for the harsh seven-year terms; the colonists sent back beaver/pelt cargo (roughly 500 pounds value, about 60\% of the cargo value).
Company misalignment on goods vs. needs: the Merchant Adventurers failed to provide traditional beaver-trade goods; colonists relied on corn and locally produced resources to trade for furs.
Trade dynamics and price formation: trading goods from English ships (e.g., the Discovery in Plymouth) allowed beaver prices to rise (coat-beaver at 3 shillings per pound, later 20 shillings in some contexts).
Biology, geography, and disease as limits: beaver populations were depleted by intensive hunting; Plymouth’s lack of large navigable rivers hindered transport of furs from the interior; epidemic decimated local Indian populations, reducing trading partners.
Indigenous labor and the fur economy: the colony depended on Indigenous trappers and knowledge; according to Harold Hickerson, Indigenous labor became a vast fur-production system for centuries.
Early beaver processing and pelts: Indians prepared pelts (castor gras preferred for quality), traded pelt robes, and used woolly undercoats to enhance felting; pelts varied in value depending on processing.
Competition and coast-wide fishing/trading pressure: English interlopers and fishermen cruised the coast, often arming Indians with guns, which alarmed Plymouth and threatened their security.
Gun trade and Morton’s Merrymount (1622–1628): Thomas Morton established Merrymount near Boston Harbor, trading guns with Indians and hosting a rowdy, libertine settlement; this undercut Plymouth’s trade and endangered regional stability.
The Merrymount crisis and Standish’s action: Morton’s strength and loosened morals provoked a crackdown; Morton was captured by Standish, tried, and kept at the Isles of Shoals before being sent to England; Merrymount was renamed Mount Dagon and eventually burned.
Dutch contact and wampum strategy (1627–1628): Isaack de Rasière formalized relations with Plymouth; Dutch offered to exchange goods for furs and introduced wampum, which Plymouth bought and later promoted for trade at Kennebec and Maine posts.
Maine expansion and the wampum program: Plymouth established a Kennebec trading post (Augusta) with clothing, blankets, corn, and wampum; wampum’s short-term trade value was unclear, but it became crucial over time as Indians grew to desire it.
Undertakers and Maine monopoly (1628–1630): eight leading men (including Bradford, Winslow, Standish) paid off the Merchant Adventurers’ debt (~£1800) in exchange for a six-year monopoly on the Maine fur trade; Isaac Allerton and others managed the London sales.
Penobscot post and Ashley’s issues: a Penobscot trading post run by Edward Ashley faced distrust; after misconduct and failure to repay supplies, the undertakers took over operations in 1630.
Trade expansion and optimism (1629–1630): Winslow predicted great profits from fur trade with Indians, supported by surplus corn and English trade goods; Plymouth expanded to Cape Cod/Buzzard’s Bay and solidified Maine posts, aided by the new financial setup.
The looming decline: by the early 1630s the fur-trade system looked promising, but within roughly a decade the fur economy would weaken and eventually disappear by the 1640s, reshaping New England settlement and commerce.