Canadian Designs: The Hudson’s Bay Point Blanket

There are few designs more iconically Canadian than the Hudson’s Bay point blanket. The design actually predates the confederation of Canada by nearly a century, and it has remained popular for over 230 years. Although blankets were long-known as an exchange good in the fur trade in Canada (it is said that blankets accounted for more than 60% of all goods exchanged in the fur trade by 1700), the Point Blanket was introduced by the Hudson’s Bay Company to develop its inland trade in 1780. M. Germain Maugenest, an agent for the Company, is believed to have been the first to suggest the sale of “pointed” blankets as a standardized method of telling the size of the blankets when folded in a stack. [caption id="attachment_4107" align="alignleft" width="300"] A four-point blanket. Source: The Canadian Design Resource[/caption][caption id="attachment_4108" align="alignright" width="191"] HBC point blankets at Fort Rupert, 1898. Source: HBC Archives[/caption] The points on a point blanket are indigo lines woven into the side of the blanket (either a full point or a half point). The name comes from the French weaving term “empointer” meaning to make stitches in cloth. Points ranged from 1 to 6, increasing depending on the size (and attendant weight) of the blankets. A popular misconception is that the points represent value in beaver pelts, but this is false. The blankets have been made available in many colours, but the most popular has been the “multi-stripe” pattern of green, red, yellow and indigo (blankets in this colour combination were sometimes known as “chief’s blankets”). The blankets are made of felted wool (a blend of British and New Zealand varieties), specially milled to resist hardening when exposed to severe weather conditions. During the War of 1812, British Captain Charles Roberts, at a loss for winter wear for his 40 men, requisitioned a supply of 3.5 point blankets and had them locally made into coats. This short double-breasted coat became known as the Mackinaw coat (for the US Mackinaw fort captured by Roberts’ troops). The blankets were not without controversy however, and although initially popular with First Nations and particularly Métis, the blankets were also a vector for deadly smallpox. Over the years, the blankets were widely used for coats. They also became popular as impromptu sleeping bags for camping. The original blankets were paired or doubled in length, and were cut at the time of purchase (by making a small nick on the selvage and ripping across the width to form two blankets). Uncut doubles were conveniently folded to make a sleeping bag. These uncut blankets are particularly collectible today. The Company seemingly never registered the design for the blanket, but the trade-marks POINT BLANKET and HUDSON’S BAY POINT BLANKET are registered. The long name of the company on the registrations hints at the storied history of this Canadian institution, The Governor and Company of Adventurers of England trading into Hudson’s Bay, also known as Hudson’s Bay Company. Summary by: Jennifer Jannuska