The People

The People. Fort Clark State Historic Site. Fort Clark's citizens were small in number but extremely diverse in cultural origin. This ethnic diversity is reflected in one Company trader's remarks that trading posts were a "Babylonian confusion of languages...Assiniboin, Crow, Herantsa, Cree, Mandan, and even Blackfeet all mingled together, and then again mixed up with English, French, Spanish, and German." Employees of the company were organized in a rigid hierarchy based on education, skills and race. , Managers and Clerk/Traders were educated Europeans and Euroamericans who supervised the work force, operated the trade store, and maintained business records. The manager, earned over $1,000 per year and a share of annual profits. Clerk/traders assisted the manager, took the trade to distant villages, and per paid $800-$1,000 per year. , Hunter and Interpreters were often Métis, of Indian and French or English heritage. Their multilingual heritage and upbringing made them ideal interpreters and excellent bison hunters. Salaries were $400-$500 per year. Artisans/Mechanics (gunsmiths, blacksmiths, carpenters, and others) built and repaired fort structures, tools, and equipment. Most were Euroamerican and they earned up to $250 per year. Engagés/Common Laborers were men of all cultural backgrounds. Often illiterate and on the lowest social rung, these unskilled employees were assigned such tasks as hauling keelboats, cutting wood, putting up hay, pressing skins, and similar tasks. A laborer earned $60-$200 per year. , Families - Although women are rarely mentioned in historic documents, Indian and "mixed-blood wives and children lived and worked at Fort Clark. Lower status families sometimes were quartered two or three families to a small rooms. The wives' Native American heritage allowed women to help their husband's business. They served as translators or supplemental family income by tanning robes for trade. Even more rarely mentioned were children through they were probably common at Fort Clark.