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Excerpt from St. Joseph, Its Trade and Manufactures, 1873, Vol. 1: Being a Complete Sketch of the City Since Its Earliest Days, Its Rapid Growth, Attractions, Advantages, Resources, Manufactures, Mercantile Interests, Rail Road Facilities, Prospects, Business Houses, Etc., Etc., Etc It was at as early a date as when the General Government had incorporated the Territory of Louisiana, as it was generally termed to distinguish it from The Territory of New Orleans, that Joseph Robidoux, born in St. Louis in 1784, one of those hardy pioneers whose mission seems to be to carry civilization into the savage wilds, settled at the base of the Blacksnake Hills. It was at this point that the Indians used to cross the Missouri, or Muddy River, going over to the rivers and fertile country beyond for the summer, and returning in the winter, where, among the timber of the bottom lands of the Missouri, they could find shelter and warmth and where game was always abundant. Here Robidoux pitched his tents and erected his huts and entered into trade, exchanging glass beads and merchandise for the costly furs and peltries of the Indians. Long years passed, uneventful, probably, in their monotony, for the Indian was on good terms with his white brother, who dealt [fairly and honorably with him. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.