ABSTRACT
The westward expansion of European domination was motivated primarily by the search for profits, in the form of furs obtained by trade from Native American people. Wisconsin Indians hunted for subsistence and for the fur trade - the Indians' primary introduction to European material culture and economy. The quality of hunting grounds depended on the character of wildlife habitats. Northern Wisconsin forests were mediocre game habitats; the Fox River Valley and southeastern Wisconsin were good; and the oak savanna ecotones, especially in the upper Mississippi Valley, were excellent hunting grounds. French missionaries also played an important role in changing the continental interior. They introduced Christianity to the Indians and established missions, some of which became forts. Lead-mining activities gradually replaced fur trading in the southwestern part of the state. Miners began arriving in 1822, and by 1829 the southwestern lead-mining district had been taken from the Indians.
