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In the 17th century, Montreal acted as a point of trans-shipment and a stopover on the passage to the interior.^ Due to the rapids upriver from Montreal, free sailing through the Saint-Laurence ended in Montreal. Portages inland were then taken. This effectively made Montreal a major distribution centre rather than a mere trading post.^ Pelts and merchandise were stocked for distribution inland and out. Montreal lacked moorings in the 17th century, forcing trans-Atlantic vessels with larger capacity to unload at Quebec. Goods from Quebec had to be transported by river between the two towns until the construction of a road in 1735.^ Montreal remained subservient to Quebec due to its isolation. Trade between Montreal and France remained indirect.

Not long after its establishment, Montreal provided for its own subsistence.^ However, the colony was still dependent on France for a range of finished products, iron, and salt.^ Montreal’s principal import, before the end of the 17th century, was finished fabrics. The seigneurs of Montreal who owned large flock organized the manufacture and sale of their wool to compensate for the imports. To the contrary, in the early 18th century, for peasants who kept their own sheep and grew flax, production was limited to their own needs. This led to few weavers and a left no more than 5% of textiles sold in Montreal to be manufactured locally. Louise Dechene states: “There was no market-oriented production of fabrics and, understandably no import of raw materials.”

Guns, shot, bullets, and powder represented 15% of imported cargo.^ The presence of guns meant that colonies retained the services of blacksmiths, or arquebusiers, to repair guns, manufacture bullets, and preform other duties to relieve dependence on imports. ^ 4-5% of inports were kettles. ^ The kettle at this time took the form of an “easily transportable large copper cauldron.”^ Knives, scissors, and awls had to be imported. Local production of these items did not begin until aproximately 1660. By 1720, all iron tools could be purchased exclusively from colonial blacksmiths. ^ Small stocks of glassware, procelain, and china were imported as well. ^

Soon after the founding of the Montreal, when the population numbered 8, the Company of One Hundred Associates gave the city’s trading rights up to the colonial merchants. The colonial merchants at Montreal formed the “CommunautE des Habitants”. Both Indians and Coureurs de Bois supplied furs.^ The company remained profitable until the Iroquois Wars, where it slipped into semi-bankruptcy. ^ In 1664, The CommunautE des Habitants” at Montreal was taken over by the French West India Company. ^ Table 18 shows the profits for each chain in the beaver supply from Montreal to Paris. ^

Very little information exists on how the colony of Montreal obtained foodstuffs before 1663.^ The town of Montreal was too small to act as an important internal market. Though habitants came to Montreal to sell their goods (such as eggs, chickens, vegetables, and other goods), it was never a regional distribution centre for grain.^ Furthermore, despite a surplus of unsold wheat at the colony, flour and lard were still regularly imported to feed French troops during the seventeenth century. ^ The ineffective use of the wheat surplus remained a contentious issue for the habitants in Montreal and the royalty in France.^ An intendant explained that

“The habitants do not grow hemp because they get nothing for it. Wool is plentiful, but there is no market. They have enough to ensure their subsistence, but since they are all in the same position, the cannot make any money, and this prevents them from meeting other needs and keeps them so poor in winter that we have been told that there are men and women who wander about practically naked.” ^

In the eighteenth century, Montreal was central to the illegal trade of furs.^ The illegal fur trade can be defined as the “export of furs to any destination other than France.”^ French merchants carried furs were carried down the Richelieu River to English, Dutch, and the converted Jesuit Iroquois at Albany. The contraband was buried outside the walls of Montreal at the request of merchants in order to avoid more loyal French eyes. ^ Furs were traded illegally between Quebec and Albany, however these instances were less extensive than the illegal trade between Quebec and France or Boston.^ Some estimates place the furs being illegally traded from Montreal to roughly half or two-thirds of total fur-production at the beginning of the 1700’s.^ Later in the century, records appear to be silent. The presence of English supplies amongst the Iroquois during the period, among other reasons, is given as proof of a continued existence of the illegal fur trade between colonies. ^