ONLINE: Robert Silbernagel

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Journalist and author Robert Silbernagel.

(2020 pick) There is a fascinating history of fur trading in Wisconsin and author Robert Silbernagel tells a slice of it in his new Wisconsin Historical Society Press book, The Cadottes: A Fur Trade Family on Lake Superior. Silbernagel, who studied journalism at UW-Madison and worked in newspapers in Colorado, focuses on the years 1760 to 1840 and on one family — the Ojibwe-French Canadian Michel Cadotte and his Ojibwe wife, Esquaysayway, who were traders on Madeline Island for nearly 40 years. Join a Facebook Live discussion with the author at 7 pm.

press release: The Great Lakes fur trade spanned two centuries and thousands of miles, but the story of one particular family, the Cadottes, illuminates the history of trade and trapping while exploring under-researched stories of French-Ojibwe political, social, and economic relations.

In his new Wisconsin Historical Society Press history,  The Cadottes: A Fur Trade Family on Lake Superior (ISBN: 978-0-87020-940-6, Hardcover: $28.95), author Robert Silbernagel explores how generations of one frontier family helped develop and lead the fur trade around Lake Superior, and in so doing, the world.

Readers will discover the French Canadian and Ojibwe clan whose peace-keeping, economic, and pioneering prowess dominated Madeline Island during the heyday of North America's fur trade, following the family and fur trade as the region passed from French to British to American control.

Focusing on the years 1760 to 1840, Silbernagel delves into the lives of the Cadottes, with particular emphasis on the Ojibwe–French Canadian Michel Cadotte and his Ojibwe wife, Esquaysayway, who were traders and regional leaders on Madeline Island for nearly forty years.

Robert Silbernagel studied journalism at the University of Wisconsin and spent his newspaper career in Colorado. He writes a bimonthly column for the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel and has published on Aldo Leopold and Colorado history.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Virtual Book Bite: 'Meet' The Cadottes & Rediscover Lake Superior's Fur Trade History

The Wisconsin Historical Society's Madeline Island Museum and the Wisconsin Historical Society Press welcome author Robert Silbernagel for a virtual highlight discussion of his new history, "The Cadottes: A Fur Trade Family on Lake Superior". The talk will take place live on the Society Press Facebook page at 7 p.m. May 19. Simply show up online at www.facebook.com/whspress to attend. The talk kicks off special summer hours for the site as well as launches the Society Press book in Wisconsin.

More Book Talks:  Discover author video discussions on the Society Press YouTube site: https://www.youtube.com/user/whspressbooks.

TO PURCHASE: Find this book at your favorite library or local bookseller, via indiebound.org or bookshop.org, or through our online store at www.wisconsinhistory.org/shop. The Cadottes is also available as an e-book.