<P> In its trade with native peoples, Hudson's Bay Company exchanged wool blankets, called Hudson's Bay point blankets, for the beaver pelts trapped by aboriginal hunters . By 1700, point blankets accounted for over 60% of the trade . The number of indigo stripes (a.k.a. points) woven into the blankets identified its finished size . A long - held misconception is that the number of stripes is related to its value in beaver pelts . </P> <P> A parallel may be drawn between the HBC's control over Rupert's Land with the trade monopoly and government functions enjoyed by the Honourable East India Company over India during roughly the same period . Viewed as a major competitor, the HBC invested £ 10,000 in the East India Company in 1732 . </P> <P> Hudson's Bay Company's first inland trading post was established by Samuel Hearne in 1774 in Cumberland House, Saskatchewan . </P> <P> In 1779, the North West Company (NWC) was founded in Montreal as a seasonal partnership to provide more capital and to continue competing with the HBC . It became operative for the outfit of 1780 and was the first joint - stock company in Canada and possibly North America . The agreement lasted one year . A second agreement established in 1780 had a three - year term . The company became a permanent entity in 1783 . By 1784, the NWC had begun to make serious inroads into the HBC's profits . </P>

Where was the first hudson bay company post