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The territorial era of Minnesota covers the history of the land that is now the modern US state of Minnesota from the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, to its achieving statehood in 1858. The Minnesota Territory itself was formed only in 1849 but the area had a rich history well before this. Though there was a long history of European presence in the area before 19th century, it was during the 19th century that the United States began to establish a firm presence in what would become Minnesota.〔Mary Lethert Wingerd, ''North Country: The Making of Minnesota'' (University of Minnesota Press; 2010)〕 Many of the facets of Minnesota culture that are perceived as the area's ''early'' history in fact originated after this period. Notably, the heavy Scandinavian immigration for which the state is known, and the pioneering days chronicled by author Laura Ingalls Wilder occurred after statehood in the later 19th century. Unlike these later years, the first half of the 19th century was characterized by sparsely populated communities, harsh living conditions, and to some degree, lawlessness. This era was a period of economic transition. The dominant enterprise in the area since the 17th century had been the fur trade. The Dakota Sioux, and later the Ojibwe, tribes hunted and gathered pelts trading with French, British, and later American traders at Grand Portage, Mendota, and other sites. This trade gradually declined during the early 19th century as demand for furs in Europe diminished. The lumber industry grew rapidly, replacing furs as the key economic resource. Grain production began to develop late during this time as an emerging economic basis as well. Saw mills, and later grain mills, around Fort Snelling and Saint Anthony Falls in east-central Minnesota became magnets for development. By the end of the era east-central Minnesota had replaced northern Minnesota as the economic center of the area. This era was also as a period of cultural transition.〔Aby (2002), p. 83.〕 At the time the U.S. took possession of the region, Native Americans were by far the largest ethnic groups. Their role in the fur trade gave them a steady stream of income and significant political influence even as the French, British, and Americans asserted territorial claims on the area. French and British traders had mixed with native society in the area for many decades peacefully contributing to the society and creating new ethnic groups consisting of mixed-race peoples. As the Americans established outposts in the area and the fur trade declined, the dynamics changed dramatically. The economic influence of the Native Americans diminished and American territorial ideology increasingly sought to limit their influence. Large waves of immigration in the 1850s very suddenly changed the demographics so that within a few years the population shifted from predominantly native to predominantly people of European descent. The native and mixed-race populations continued to influence the territory's culture and politics, even at the end of the territorial era, though by the time statehood was achieved that influence was in steep decline. Heavy immigration from New England and New York led to Minnesota's being labeled the "New England of the West". ==Background== During the 17th century a Native American tribe known as the Ojibwe, or Chippewa, reached Minnesota as part of a westward migration. Having come from a region around Maine, they were experienced at dealing with European traders. Tensions rose between the Ojibwe and the Santee, or Eastern Dakota, Sioux, who were dominant in the area, during the ensuing years.〔(【引用サイトリンク】 url=http://events.mnhs.org/TimePieces/EventDetail.cfm?EventID=511 )〕 French exploration in Minnesota is known have begun in the 17th century with explorers like Radisson, Groseilliers, and Le Sueur. After France signed a treaty with a number of tribes to allow trade in the area, French settlements began to appear. Trader Daniel Greysolon, Sieur du Lhut explored the western area of Lake Superior helping to advance trade and leading to the establishment of Fond du Lac (part of modern Duluth, which was named after du Lhut).〔(【引用サイトリンク】 url=http://events.mnhs.org/TimePieces/EventDetail.cfm?EventID=512 )〕 Roman Catholic priest Louis Hennepin, captured by the Sioux in 1680 while exploring North America with famed explorer La Salle, discovered and named Saint Anthony Falls. The next account of an expedition into Minnesota's interior was that of Captain Jonathan Carver of Connecticut who reached Saint Anthony Falls in 1766.〔Atwater (1893), p. 13.〕〔Meyer (1993), pp. 15–17.〕 In the later 18th century trader Peter Pond explored the Minnesota River valley noting significant European settlement in the region in addition to the natives.〔Meyer (1993), pp. 17–18.〕 Explorers searching for the fabled Northwest Passage and large inland seas in North America continued to pass through this region. Fort Beauharnois was built by the French in 1721 on Lake Pepin to facilitate exploration.〔 In the 17th century a lucrative trade developed between Native Americans who trapped animals near the Great Lakes and traders who shipped the animal furs to Europe. For two centuries this trade network was the prime economic driver in the area.〔Harris (2004), p. 298.〕 A notable result of this trade network was the Métis people, a mixed-race community descended from Native Americans and French traders, as well as other mixed-race peoples.〔Holmquist (1981), p. 36.〕 In particular during the latter 18th century numerous French and English traders in the Minnesota region purchased Sioux wives in order to establish kinship relationships with the Sioux so as to secure their supply of furs from the tribes.〔Anderson (1997), p. 67–68.〕 The British Hudson's Bay Company was formed in 1670 to capitalize on the Native American fur trade near Hudson Bay. The company came to dominate the North American trade in the 18th century. The North West Company of Montreal was formed in 1779 to compete with Hudson's Bay Company establishing their western headquarters and key exchange point at Grand Portage in what is now Minnesota.〔(【引用サイトリンク】 url=http://events.mnhs.org/TimePieces/EventDetail.cfm?EventID=490 )〕 Grand Portage, with its two wharves and numerous warehouses, became one of Britain's four main fur trading posts, along with Niagara, Detroit, and Michilimackinac.〔Gilman (1992), p. 72–74.〕 British ships crossed Lake Superior regularly transporting supplies to the region and bringing back valuable furs.〔Aby (2002), p. 9.〕 Even after Grand Portage became property of the U.S. in 1783 the British operations, such as North West Company and the XY Company, continued to operate in the area for some time.〔Aby (2002), p. 10.〕 Though the various parts of what is now Minnesota were claimed at different times by Spain, France, and Britain, none of these nations made significant efforts to establish major settlements in the area. Instead the French and the British established mostly trading posts and utilized the natives in the area as suppliers.〔(【引用サイトリンク】 title=Minnesota )〕 All of the land east of the Mississippi River was granted to the United States by the Second Treaty of Paris at the end of the American Revolution in 1783. This included what would become modern day Saint Paul but only part of Minneapolis, including the northeast, north-central and east-central portions of the state. The wording of the treaty in the Minnesota area depended on landmarks reported by fur traders, who erroneously reported an "Isle Phelipeaux" in Lake Superior, a "Long Lake" west of the island, and the belief that the Mississippi River ran well into modern Canada. Much of this region was claimed by other states who subsequently ceded these to the federal government.〔Kincannon (2004), p. V 8–9〕 Most of the remaining areas of what is now the state were purchased in 1803 from France as part of the Louisiana Purchase (the area west of the Mississippi having been recently acquired by France from Spain).〔Neill (1881), p. 73.〕 Parts of northern Minnesota were considered to be in Rupert's Land, a large territory owned by Hudson's Bay Company. The exact definition of the boundary between Minnesota and British North America was not addressed until the Anglo-American Convention of 1818.〔Lass (2000), p. 80.〕 Until 1818 the entire Red River Valley in what is today southeastern Manitoba and northwestern Minnesota was considered British and was subject to several colonization schemes by the Hudson's Bay Company, particularly the Red River Colony (also known as the Selkirk Settlement) established in 1811. The valley had, in fact, been occupied by Métis since the middle 17th century.〔Risjord (2005), p. 41.〕 The Red River Colony, established to supply the British fur trade, was fraught with problems from the beginning but became important in the Minnesota area's early fur trade as well as supplying many early settlers to the region. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Territorial era of Minnesota」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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