The American Fur Trade of the Far West. A History of the Pioneer Trading Posts and Early Fur Companies of the Missouri Valley and the Rocky Mountains and of the Overland Commerce With Santa Fe

New York: Francis P. Harper, 1902. First Edition. Hardcover. Very good. Three volumes in original green cloth, 1029 pages in total, complete with folding map in rear pocket of Volume III. A very good set with some insect nibbling to cloth, corners lightly rubbed, a few penciled noted on rear pastedowns. A highly respected and comprehensive study of the American fur trade. Beginning with a brief overview of the origins of the fur trade in eastern North America, it provides a detailed description and analysis of the major fur-trading companies operating west of the Mississippi River, other than those in Southwest. "Chittenden, a conscientious historian, went to the sources to ground his massive work. He located in private hands the papers of the great St. Louis fur-trading families of the Chouteaus and Sublettes. He interviewed, consulted newspapers, visited document repositories in St. Louis and throughout the West, and corresponded with experienced historians. The American Fur Trade remains the standard overview and has never been imitated" (ANB). Howes C-390, Rittenhouse 112; Streeter Sale 3206; Graff 696; Rader 770; Smith 1721.