Enlightened Zeal
Subtitle: The Hudson's Bay Company and Scientific Networks, 1670-1870
Publisher: University of Toronto Press
Published: 2014
Language: eng
Number of pages: 488
ISBN-13: 9781442614758
Subjects: Business enterprises, canada; Hudson's bay company
Description: Initially highly secretive about all of its activities, the HBC was by 1870 an exceptionally generous patron of science. Aware of the ways that a commitment to scientific research could burnish its corporate reputation, the company participated in intricate symbiotic networks that linked the HBC as a corporation with individuals and scientific organizations in England, Scotland, and the United States. The pursuit of scientific knowledge could bring wealth and influence, along with tribute, fame, and renown, but science also brought less tangible benefits: adventure, health, happiness, male companionship, self-improvement, or a sense of meaning.