The Merger of 1821

The competition between the North West Company and the Hudson's Bay Company was proving to be more destructive than anticipated. In 1821 the British government forced the two companies to merge, in the hopes that this would improve fur sales. The forts that were not needed anymore were abandoned and as a result, many jobs were lost. The Governor of the company then put policies in place in 1822 to make the Metis people more dependent on the Hudson's Bay Company. The Company then unsuccessfully tried to get the Metis into farming but instead the Metis started to hunt the plains for buffalo and trading with the United States, which was against the Company's laws.