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Grafton Rendezvous October 16 - 17, 2010
Black Powder Shoot O
Hawk & Knife Throw O
Primitive Bow Shoot O
Artisans/Traders
Donna also likes taking history out of the text books and classrooms. Many of the participants enjoy the opportunity of illustrating and sharing the knowledge they have gained in researching their personas. Donna and Larry live in a teepee during the event and theirs is one of a large variety of primitive shelters that can be found at a typical rendezvous. Donna keeps hers open and invites those that are interested to check out the inside. The teepee and its cousins - the pyramid and the lean pee - are common sights at a rendezvous. A true teepee has a minimum of 17 poles, a pyramid has 1 pole supporting the center, and a lean pee uses several poles and is tilted towards one side. The most primitive shelter that can be seen is the diamond, which is basically a square piece of material staked down at three corners and propped up by a short pole, usually a canoe oar. This type of shelter was favored by those who were on the move. As more settlers ventured west they brought with them canvas which proved more durable than hides. They also brought different styles of portable shelters including the A-frame, the wall tent, and the marquee. The marquee tent and its variations proved popular with merchants due to the increased interior space its design provided. According to Larry, there is a trade off between comfort and work when choosing a type of shelter. The larger and more comfortable the shelter, the harder it is erect and take down.
Camping Trader and Sutler Information For more information contact: Photo credits: greatriverroad.com and Grafton Canoe & Kayak
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The
Grafton Rendezvous celebrates the French Fur Trading era which
began after Louis Joliet and Jacques Marquette journeyed through the area in 1673 and ended
around the time when Grafton was established in 1838. The fur trade was the primary
reason for the exploration of the American frontier and this enterprise was
spurred on by the demand for pelts which were used to make the very expensive
and extremely popular felt hats that were fashionable in Europe from 1550 to
1850. The fur trade began to decline when Europeans began to prefer silk hats
and the beaver population began to decline. Although its influence isn’t directly
apparent, the fur trade had a profound effect on the growth of the European
influence on North America. Routes trail blazed by fur trappers became the routes
followed by the pioneers and fur trading outposts like St. Louis became cities.
The
Rendezvous, adapted from the French word for a date or appointment, was the
event of the year for the fur trappers who would come out of the hills and
forests every summer with the furs they had collected throughout the year.
Coordinated by the fur trading companies, the Rendezvous was a specified time
and place where the trappers would meet with the fur trading monopolies and
traders of other goods.
It was at the Rendezvous that fur traders would sell or get paid for the furs
they collected throughout the year and buy the necessary supplies and luxuries
such as gunpowder, lead, new animal traps, tobacco, cloth, and coffee for the coming
year. A rendezvous was also a long raucous affair, lasting up to a month, that was a continuous
celebration that involved drinking, eating, gambling, carousing with women, and
competitions that involved shooting, wrestling, racing, and fighting.
Today
a rendezvous is a gathering of people interested in reliving the history of the
fur trade era. Teepees, tents, campfires, and costumed living history reenactors
adopt personas and carry on the day-to-day lifestyle as it would have been done 200 years ago.
Medicine Woman and Skunk Face (aka Donna and Larry Denman of Hazelwood, MO,
photo right) have been participating in these types of gatherings for years and
like the camaraderie and the sense of family and friendship that comes from seeing the same people
year after year. They also like the unstructured atmosphere and the individualism that exists at a rendezvous
compared to other types of Living History events. Participants at a rendezvous
portray a range
of characters including fur trappers, mountain men, Native Americans, settlers,
and merchants.
Each
rendezvous has its own set of rules governing what can be portrayed at the
event with some having very exacting standards as to what type of shelters can be used and what types of personas
can be portrayed. Although pre-1840's dress is required, the Grafton Rendezvous doesn’t have a strict "dress code" and this
allows for demonstrations such as bead making by John Mefford of Granite, IL
(photo left.) In this demonstration he recreates the making of wampum belts that
were used primarily by eastern Native American tribes such as the Iroquois and
Huron. These belts, made by beads fashioned from quahog clam shells, were used
to record treaties and grant authority. Mefford displays several handmade recreations
including the Covenant Chain between the Iroquois and the English, and belts
given by the Huron to the Jesuit Church and to the Frenchman Samuel Champlain.
Although wampum belts weren’t common in the Middle Mississippi region, the increased
manufacture of beads in the East after European contact caused the trade of
these beads to reach as far as the Great Plains.
The
Grafton Rendezvous is a great place to either participate in the
activities or just to experience some of America’s past firsthand. There are
plenty of demonstrators, activities, period traders and merchants, and good old
fashioned food to go around. If you have any questions about anything you
see, just ask one of the reenactors. They have spent much time researching their
persona, and most are happy to share what they know. The Grafton Rendezvous is located on the Grafton
waterfront at the confluence of the Mississippi and Illinois rivers. Parking is
plentiful and downtown
Grafton is an easy walk from the site.