Pathways for Commerce and Conquest:

Pathways for Commerce and Conquest:. Exploring the Frontier. , When Europeans first came to the Americas, they found no roads to travel. Through their experiences with the Native Americans, they found that walking the woodland foot paths or floating the river routes were their most effective means of traveling. By the eighteenth century with the American fur trade expanding westward, more efficient routes for moving goods were carved out of the wilderness. Horse travel quickly occupied Native pathways formerly used only for foot travel. By mid-century, the military was also expanding its influence on the frontier by moving large groups of men and bringing heavy equipment and supplies to the newly constructed forts. Men like Generals Edward Braddock and John Forbes made names for themselves by creating important military roads. These military roads replaced Native American pathways allowing the wagon to become the new "ship of the west." , Colonial and Native American peoples dealt with the problems of travel in many different ways during the eighteenth century. As you read about travel westward, try and decide which method you would have chosen., (Caption):, Coronelli's Map of Western New France, 1688. , Courtesy National Archives of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada