THE TIMBER TRADE IN THE 1800 S Timber

THE TIMBER TRADE IN THE 1800 S

Timber • After 1812, England wanted more timber from Canada. • Timber = wood / trees • Even after the war of 1812 England continued to order timber from Canada • This made the timber trade / industry grow within Canada

Timber • The timber trade had lots of effects on Canada • Timber became the most exported natural resource less and less attention was given to the fur trade • People invested ($$$) lots of money in the timber trade new companies, banks, etc. • New places to work and new jobs! • Sawmills, lumber yards, etc. • Lumberjacks, raftsmen, etc. • More jobs more people moved to Canada to work

Exported wood from the port of Quebec City to England

Logging • Logging means cutting down trees and moving the trees • Most of the time, logging happened in the winter • It was easier to cut trees down when the sap was not moving in the trees • Snow on the ground made it easy to drag the tress

Logging • In the late fall or early winter, men would set up a camp in an area where there were enough trees to cut • They would clear pathways to move the cut trees • They would make sure supplies could be delivered as well • The men spent several months in the camps

Logging • Lots of men who were in good shape were needed for logging • The men used timber axes to cut the trees down and the shape the trees into squares • The men also used crosscut saws to cut trees down

Logging • Usually, the cut tress were ‘squared’ • This means turning the round tree into a square shape • Oxen, horses and eventually trains were used to move the cut trees

Logging • Trees were put into a river or stream to be moved from the logging camp to other places • Trees were put into the water in spring • The water was free from ice • The men used the river to move the trees.

Logging • Most of the time the tress were tied together • This was called a ‘raft’ • Mean would stay on the raft until it got to its destination • Usually, the cut trees were put onto boats and sent to England

The Timber Trade 2 • The timber trade used technology in different ways • Sawmills, canals and railways were the most important • Sawmills cut the large logs quicker that cutting them by hand • Canals are man made ‘rivers’ to help move the logs quicker • Railways could move timber and other goods quicker than water and could connect cities • Banks were also important they helped pay for sawmills, canals and railways

Sawmills • Sawmills were built next to water way with fast currents • They used the current to move a blade that would cut the logs into squares or into boards. • There were very small sawmills that would cut logs for towns close by • There were also large sawmills that would cut lots of logs to ship elsewhere • Men would place logs in a harness and the waterpower would move the blade to cut the logs

Canals • Canals are man made rivers • They are used for the timber trade and for boats to travel into the continent • Canals connect to natural rivers and lakes • Canals were needed to make shipping faster • This made the economy stronger • The first canals were close to Ottawa • The Rideau Canal is still in Ottawa today. • It is used mainly for recreational (fun) purposes.

Banks • Some of the first ‘established’ banks in Canada were started in Montreal • The Bank of Montreal started in 1817 • Banks were ways for people to borrow money to start sawmills or build railways

CANAUX ET BANQUES CONCLUSION • 1791 – 1840 au Bas-Canada: • Importance: fourrure bois. • Stagnation ( ) agricole • Développement des transports (canaux) et des banques.