Deerskin trade

The deerskin trade between Colonial Americans, Europeans, and Native Americans was an important trading relationship between Europeans and Native Americans, particularly in the southeastern colonies, engaging the Catawba, Shawnee, Cherokee, Muscogee, Choctaw, and Chickasaw peoples. It began in the 1680s due to fashion changes in Europe and boomed in the 1800s when the beaver trade decline. It was a part of the fur trade, but less known since deer skins were not as valuable as furs from the north (such as beaver). Cherokee mainly traded their deer skins to the English, while the Shawnee traded deer skins to both the French and English colonies prior to 1760.

Deerskin was used to produce buckskin, as well as a chamois-like leather, used for the making of gloves, bookbinding, and many other things.

Causes
In the early 18th century, after King William's War, the beaver fur trade declined dramatically while the deerskin trade boomed. This was in part due to a shift in London fashions, where a new kind of hat made from leather became popular. This new hat required deerskin and South Carolina increased the scale of its deerskin exports dramatically. Trade in other furs fell sharply. The end of a diversified fur trade altered the relationship between colonists and Native Americans and, in many cases caused an increase in tension and conflict. For example, it was an important factor in the events leading up to the Yamasee War.

Effects
For Native Americans, the trade lessened independence and pulled hunting away from home for long periods, which led to change in family structure. The Catawba, Shawnee, Cherokee, Muscogee, Choctaw, and Chickasaw were mainly affected, because they lived around the main habitat for the white-tailed deer that were most popular for trading. This area has easy ocean access that simplified trading with Europe.

The focus on deerskin led to improved hunting techniques and the use of guns. Guns made hunting faster and easier. This accelerated hunting led to a rapid decline in White-tail deer populations. By 1750, deer were becoming harder to find in Cherokee territory. The trade nearly eliminated deer in the southeast.

The deerskin trade also led to the enslavement of some Native Americans. After the Europeans bought deerskin, they had to haul it to the coast, initially using pack horses, but this was expensive, so some English settlers encouraged Chickasaw to raid and enslave neighboring tribes to lower their costs.

Concurrently, Cherokee were increasingly adopting European trade goods. Since so many Native American families participated in the deer trade, they had access to the European economy and soon were completely reliant on it for goods. These events contributed to growing tensions and conflict between the tribes, as well as with the Europeans.