Moose rather than Deer were numerous in New Hampshire and were the characteristic ungulate in the region during colonial times..... The exact range of the Moose in New Hampshire is unknown but Byers(1946) states that they ranged south from the Boreal forests through the coniferous swamps in Pennsylvania, New England and Michigan............... Merrill(1920) states that their range since the coming of white men never extended south of the northern border of Massachusetts............. Wood(1634) tells us that there were not many in Massachusetts but 40 miles to the northeast were "great store of them"

A HISTORY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE GAME AND FURBEARERS


Helenette Silver; New Hampshire Fish and Game Dept-1957

NEW HAMPSHIRE AT THE TIME OF SETTLEMENT(EARLY 17TH CENTURY)

Whenever we think about wilderness and mountain men, most of us get a vision of 1800-1840 Rocky Mountains where fur trappers reigned supreme in the post Lewis & Clark era.

 

It tends not to register thatLjust as Western North America was wilderness in the early 19th century, so too was the eastern half of  North America  this same wilderness as the first Europeans set foot on Continent in AD 1500-------

 

New Hampshire's first village started to become a reality in 1623(123 years after white people entered the New World)............Only 4 towns existed in the state prior to 1700............The white populatrion in 1639 totaled 500 souls...............137 years later during the Revolutionary period 60,000 white people made their home there-----New Hampshire was at this time still an undevloped region with fur trapping very much in vogue..................However, once the Revolutionary war ended, the human population began to mushroom--It tripled to 184,000 white people by 1800----And with this tripling, the wildlife of the region retreated rapidly, to the point where in the mid 1850's, the carnivores were all but gone and a cloak of pastoral quietness blanketed the landscape.

 

 

According to Babock(1925), the bottom had dropped out of the New England fur trade by the late 18th century.. Except for Maine, by 1764, New England was done as  "Mountain Man" heaven , replaced by the better quality and quantity of Canadian Furs and the Hudson Bay Company to the north.

 

CARIBOU

 

The Caribou was never more than casual visitors to New Hampshire and most of New England, except for Maine according to the earliest colonial writings on the animal. They were mentioned in the northern reaches of New Hampshire as a periodic animal that the Indians would hunt when present............Weeks(1888) stated that "I have never seen one but it appears that some 60 or 70 years ago, a herd came down form the northeast and spread over Addroscoggin County, but did not come as far west as Connectitcut."

 

 

Caribou did appear on the State Law Books in 1878 with a closed season except in Coos County, where there might be a hope of coming across the creature.......By 1901, hunting of Caribou was prohibited. In 1885, 13 Caribou were spotted in the 2nd Connecticut Lake region.

 

 

 

MOOSE

 

It is difficult today to imagine the former abundance of Moose. They played a large part in the Indian economy of what is now New Hampshire. North of the St. Lawrence during the 17th century, the French hunted the Moose on the crust(ice) with dogs, after the manner of the Indians. Many took 30 or 40 in a season. The Sieru d'Aunay(first nations people), between 1645 and 1650  traded about 3000 skins annually.

Pierre Radisoon who co-founded the Hudson Bay company killed over 600 around AD1600. The Indians did not make serious inroads into the Moose poulation until the hides could be traded for European goods. From then on, Moose hides became 2nd in importance to Beaver in some sections of New Hampshire. By 1705, they were scarce in St Francis. On the other side of New Hampshire , Sebastian Rasle wrote in 1723 that there were no longer any Moose or Deer present.

 

The Pioneers arriving to settle Coos County come the close of the French & Indian War(1763), found Moose still plentiful.

 

Moose rather than Deer were numerous in New Hampshire and were the characteristic ungulate in the region.  The exact range of the Moose in New Hampshire is unknown but Byers(1946) states that they ranged south from the Boreal forests through the coniferous swamps in Pennsylvania and Michigan. Merrill(1920)  states that their range since the coming of white men never extended south of the northern border of Massachusetts. Wood(1634) tells us that there were not many in Massachusetts but 40 miles to the northeast were "great store of them."

 

The last Moose was killed in Peterboro in 1760......in Antrim 1790 and in Sanbornton as late as 18115-20. By 1820, Moose were scarce in southern Coos County. In northern Coos, Moose held on through the middle of the 19th century.