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After reading the book Whoop Up Country by Paul Sharp, I have more knowledge of the North American Plains and the habitants of them. In this book I learned a lot about trading up the Mississippi and along the Whoop-up trail. This trail covered most of the land east of the Rocky Mountains and up around Alberta and the Saskatchewan area. In this part of eastern Montana and up into Canada it talks of the free roaming trading that took place between Indians and the settlers and the dangers that came with it. This trading took place only after trading began along the Mississippi River with the help of steamboats. People traveled the River going to different military forts in hope of good trade. Forts that were talked about in this book included Fort Benson and Fort McLeod. This trading consisting of mostly whiskey, guns and fur according to Sharp. This lead to further development and eventually what we know today as the Northern Pacific Railroad. This railroad encouraged movement west and was what brought people to the area of the Whoop-up trail. Once in this area, settlers were able to encounter Native American, particularly the Sioux and Blackfoot, who helped with trade progress and ultimately people settled there after years of trading with the Natives and altered the area into a vast farmland.
Through this book we were able to see the different migration routes and patterns they had from what we’ve learned in class in comparison with what Sharp thought. It enhanced out knowledge in the development of the area in eastern Montana and up into Canada and helped create a sense of how habitants of that area of the Whoop-up trail got started and settled down. This is not a book that I would’ve picked out on my own to ready but after reading it I’m glad I did, it was and interesting and intriguing way to learn about the settlements in that part of the country.