Complex sentence: Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, both Britain and France claimed ownership of the Ohio Country, in competition with the Iroquois, and by the mid- 18th century had sent merchants and fur traders into the area to trade with local Indians.
Split into simpler sentences: Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, both Britain and France claimed ownership of the Ohio Country, in competition with the Iroquois. By the mid- 18th century, both nations had sent merchants and fur traders into the area to trade with local Indians.