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This paper will examine the major historical processes for the region representing the Interlake and Northern Manitoba from 1870 to 1900. It is apparent that the period reflected the efforts of Native Peoples to adjust to the declining mercantile fur trade. In contrast, the period after the signing of treaties is generally seen as a period when Indians were suddenly confined to reservations. In fact, the development of the reservation at particular locations for distinct Indian bands was a continuation of a settlement process, influenced by fur trade posts and missionaries, originating before the signing of the treaties. This paper will argue that t he ad justments made from 1870 to 1900 were a spatial and economic transformation of the Native economy, which had been largely dependent upon the fur trade, to a more diversified and a more commercialized economy.