“North America saw the earliest contacts between Native Americans and European settlers in the 1600s. The French were primarily interested in establishing commercially viable colonial outposts, so they created extensive trading networks throughout New France. They relied on native hunters to harvest furs and to exchange these items for French goods, like glass beads. During this period, furs were a highly profitable industry in Europe. Europeans viewed North America as a land of opportunity with vast natural resources. The fur trade resulted in many long-term effects that negatively impacted Native people throughout North America…” - Adapted from the Ohio History Connection