Viva La Voyageurs

The voyageurs were French Canadian indentured servants who worked in the large wilderness of Canada and the Northern parts of what would be the U.S.. They would transport furs using canoes along trade posts and to cities in what was called the fur trade.

Voyageur is a French word, meaning “traveler”. They were far more hospitable with Native Americans and the Native Americans mostly welcomed the wealth of trade to be had. Using the rivers as a highway for transportation they traveled hundreds of miles and mixed native cultures with their own. Their songs came from a place of white water rapids and picturesque scenery. The danger and profitability were drawbacks as well as draws to the lifestyle.

Their repertoire of songs included rounds, which most likely continue for a very long time. These songs would start where one man sang a verse and the others joined on a chorus. Song leaders could make up verses to extend a song. Songs could be invented for any occasion — the weather, spring, bravery, and very often, the women they loved. Some were sad songs but most were lively and fun to increase moral and stamina.

These songs included ones that were traditionals from France (the old country) — love songs, patriotic songs, dancing and drinking songs and work songs, something for every occasion. People who did hard labor in almost every country sang to help them do physical labor (coal mining, railroad work, hauling canal boats, prison chain gangs). So singing in the canoe was natural. Up to 13,000 song texts have been collected, though not all the music is known.

Keeping the spirit and songs alive are groups such as the Sons of the Voyageurs. Here is a link to their music. http://www.heartistrymusic.com/artists/sov.html

Alive as well are the Voyageurs in the pages of novels. Kathy-jo Wargin is an author who has written 45 books such as, The Legend of Sleeping Bear, The Legend of the Loon, The Edmund Fitzgerald: Song of the Bell, and many others. She has themes of folklore and nature dealing with, and its effect on all our lives. She lives in Minnetonka, Minnesota. Her book The Voyageurs Paddle deals with many of the cultural aspects of the group. When I was in elementary school, we read The Broken Blade and while being fictional mentioned references all throughout the book to our state. The songs they sang were also a crucial part of the journey.

I think the author, Nikki Rajala sums it up best. “One reason they sang was to paddle in unison. Can you imagine 10 or 12 paddlers, each dipping into the water with their own rhythm? With every stroke, their paddles would hit other paddles, and the paddlers would probably bop each other as well. Singing kept them in time. In fact, it’s pretty hard to sing with one tempo and do something (paddling, marching, dancing…) in an entirely different tempo. Singing together meant they could speed up a song if they had to paddle more quickly — like nearing a rapids.” (Nikki Rajala, p.1)