Series 07-03: Fur Traders

Episode 3: Fur Traders

Alexis Coquillard takes over Pierre Navarre's post in 1823, and a young rival, Lathrop Miner Taylor, arrives four years later. Learn how John Jacob Astor built America's first great monopoly by crushing foreign competitors and government trading posts alike, and how his agents in South Bend turned the portage into a two-sided hustle: shipping furs upstream to keep their bosses happy, while quietly buying cheap and selling dear to every traveler passing through.

 

Part of Series 7: Early South Bend

A Bend in Time is presented by The History Museum in South Bend, Indiana and hosted by Aaron Helman. 

This series is presented in conjunction with The History Museum's America250 programming and the exhibit First Peoples, First Settlers: Indiana's Interwoven Roots, which explores the beginnings of settlement in the area and the interactions between European settlers and America's Native peoples. First Peoples, First Settlers is on display until January 31, 2026. 

Visit The History Museum's website at historymuseumsb.org