Intra-Indian Activity.

Archaeological evidence clearly establishes that by the time of the Hopewell people, about 200 B.C. to A.D. 500, Native Americans engaged in trade on a continentwide basis. Artists in the Ohio Valley used shells from the Gulf Coast, mica from the Pacific Northwest, and copper from the Great Lakes. Furthermore, art objects traveled thousands of miles through many hands to end up in the burials of native leaders of many cultures. Over the centuries small family-based groups came together to trade goods and find mates. Some particularly popular locations, such as The Dalles on the Columbia River, apparently attracted crowds numbering into the thousands. As Europeans entered North America, their metal, glass, and textile objects all entered native commerce and were widely traded among the Indians.

Furs.

The trade in the Great Lakes area was the initial entry of North American goods into...