Interviewer
Diann Wiesner
Files
Description
Olive Hamilton tells of her two years trapping in Mineral County, Montana, in the mid-1920s. She describes trapping marten, mink, beaver, otter, coyotes, and other wildlife. She discusses the process of skinning different animals, including the difficulty of skinning certain ones. Hamilton recalls walking an eight-mile trap line on snowshoes in the wintertime with her husband and their pack dog, Pilot. She recalls how they would try to smoke bears out of hibernation on these trips and their encounters with those animals. Hamilton describes the trapping process for animals like mink or marten, including the location of the traps and the bait she used. She also talks about stretching hides out on a wooden board to preserve them, and she recalls being bit on the finger by an angry mink the first time she tried to pull one out of a trap.
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Document Type
Oral History
Subjects
Hamilton, Olive L., 1896-1992 – Interviews; Trappers -- Montana -- Mineral County – Interviews; Trapping -- Montana -- Mineral County -- History -- 20th century; Mink trapping -- Montana -- History -- 20th century; Coyote trapping -- Montana -- History -- 20th century; Beaver trapping -- Montana -- History -- 20th century; Trapping -- Montana -- Equipment and supplies – History; Traplines; Skinning Marten trapping; Women fur trappers
Original Date
7-16-1981
Time Period
Twentieth century
Geographic Coverage
Montana
Language
eng
Original Collection
Fur Trappers Oral History Project, OH 099, Archives and Special Collections, Mansfield Library, University of Montana-Missoula
Digital Publisher
University of Montana--Missoula. Mansfield Library
Rights
Copyright to this collection is held by the interview participants and by the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, University of Montana-Missoula. Permission may be required for use. For further information please contact Archives and Special Collections: (406) 243-2053 / library.archives@umontana.edu
Oral History Number
OH 099-013, 014
Media Type
Sound; Text
Original Format
2 sound cassettes (02:00:00 min.) analog + 1 transcript (29 p.: 28 cm.)
Digital Format
audio/mp3; application/pdf
Run Time
01:11:02 minutes
Local Filename
OH_099_013_014.mp3; OH_099_013_014.pdf
Citation
Hamilton, Olive, "Olive Hamilton Interview, July 16, 1981" (1981). Fur Trappers Oral History Project. 21.
https://scholarworks.umt.edu/montanafurtrappers/21