Events

This is your chance to learn of the importance of New York’s first major industry and the vital role the Mohawk Valley played as a corridor of trade between the Native Americans and white settlers, and admission is free.

The Presentation by Ronald Ferguson will focus on the origins of the New York fur trade, how it affected international trade, and the rivalries between France and England for control of the North American continent. The Colonial NY fur trade became an international endeavor, underpinning the colonial New York economy. It led Europeans into close alliances with the Six Nations Iroquois people, and paid huge dividends in terms of defeating the French.  

The lecture will also explore Sir William Johnson and his important role as a trader, friend and ally to the Mohawks. This led to the Iroquois people being involved in the wars against the French in a vast and strategic rivalry between New France and the American British Colonies.

Ronald Ferguson, a resident of Cicero NY, and Delray Beach FL, holds an honors undergraduate degree from Trinity College Dublin (History& Political Science), as well as a graduate degree from the Maxwell School of Syracuse University and from Queens University Belfast. Mr. Ferguson operates an investment planning firm, and a fee-based investment advisory firm.

For more information contact the Rome Historical Society at 315-336-5870 or by email info@romehistoricalsociety.org.