Pathways for Commerce and Conquest:

Pathways for Commerce and Conquest:. Along the Warrior's Path. , Europeans and Native Americans traveled extensively on foot: marching to battle, hunting, delivering messages, moving furs and trade goods, and guiding parties through the forest. Since traveling by foot was difficult and often dangerous because of rough, rocky and eroded trail conditions, new more permanent roads were built. Native American foot paths had existed for centuries as routes between different trading areas. One trail, the Frankstown Path, "was by far the most important and frequently traveled" road that crossed the mountains of Pennsylvania. During the French and Indian War, this path was improved to form the Forbes Road, the main route used to attack Fort Duquesne in 1758. , The soldiers shoes wore out quickly and could not be imported from Europe fast enough. As a result, some soldiers began to wear moccasins. , Both the soldiers and Native Americans made use of a burden strap or "carrying girth" which allowed the user to carry packs more easily. Rev. David Zeisberger noted that "The women can carry everything by means of a carrying girth fixed to the forehead whence the whole burden - and a hundred weight is not considered heavy suspended down the back." , In a letter to General John Forbes on June 3, 1758, Colonel Henry Bouquet said that "...the roads full of sharp stones will very soon wear out the 3 pairs of shoes that each soldier is to have.", (Captions):, Soldier's shoes were difficult to acquire while on the frontier. These shoe parts were recovered from archaeological digs at Fort Ligonier. , Courtesy Ft. Ligonier Association, Ligonier, PA, While Native Americans had used the tumpline to carry burdens for centuries, traders and soldiers soon found it a useful device on the frontier , Courtesy Map Division, Public Archives of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada