Skip to main content

The Fort McKay Métis Nation: Index

The Fort McKay Métis Nation
Index
    • Notifications
    • Privacy
  • Project HomeThe Fort McKay Metis Nation
  • Projects
  • Learn more about Manifold

Notes

Show the following:

  • Annotations
  • Resources
Search within:

Adjust appearance:

  • font
    Font style
  • color scheme
  • Margins
table of contents
  1. Half Title Page
  2. Frontispiece
  3. Title Page
  4. Copyright page
  5. Contents
  6. Preface
  7. Acknowledgements
  8. Introduction: Steps Toward a Fort McKay Métis Community History
  9. 1 Early History of the Fort McKay Métis: Origins to 1899
  10. 2 Fort McKay, Treaty, Scrip and the Immediate Aftermath: 1899 to 1920
  11. 3 The Bush Economy and the Registered Trapline System
  12. 4 Land Tenure in Fort McKay: “Split Our Very Identity into Two”
  13. 5 A Community Turned “Upside Down”: Fort McKay’s Response to Extractivism
  14. Epilogue: From Community to Nation — The Evolving Relationship between the Métis Nation of Alberta and the Fort McKay Métis Nation
  15. Appendix: The Fort McKay Métis Nation Position Paper on Consultation and Self-Government
  16. Notes
  17. Bibliography
  18. Index

Index

Note: Page numbers in bold refer to photos and maps. Pages numbers followed by “n” refer to a numbered note in the endnotes.

A

Aboriginal consultation policy. See consultation policy

Ahyasou, Marcel, 110

Ahyasou family, 44

Alberta court cases, 7–9, 114–115, 144, 153–154

Alberta government

disqualifies Fort McKay from community improvement, 77–78

environmental monitoring and reporting criticisms, 115, 120

housing programs, 81–85, 93–94

land use policies, 86, 87, 88–90, 94–99, 101–105

and logging truck blockade, 118–119

meetings with Fort McKay community, 76, 77, 78–81, 112

Métis consultation and credible assertion, 7–8, 133, 135–136, 151, 154–155

natural resources legislation, 50–51

northern industrial development potential, 14, 107–108

sells reserve lands to federal government, 72

in trapline compensation negotiations, 60–63

trapping areas and trapline system, 13–14, 51–52, 54–56, 57, 58–60

Alberta Métis Study Task Force, 86, 89–90

Alberta Rural Development Administration, 77–78

Alsands project hearing, 112–113

Armstrong, G. J., 82, 84, 85–86, 88

Asensio, Manuel P., 129

Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation, 28

Athabasca Native Development Corporation, 125

Athabasca region. See also Indigenous northern communities

communities, 16, 21–22, 24, 30–31, 49

fur trade sites, 23

Athabasca Regional Issues Working Group. See Oil Sands Developer Group (OSDG)

Athabasca River

pollution, 76

settlement and posts along, 21–22, 24, 27, 67

travel on, 39, 43, 44, 69, 70, 74

water pollution, 113–114

water treatment, 84

Audibert, J., 79

B

Balazs, Dawn, 59

Barr, J.J., 60–61

Barr, John, 122–123

Barth, Jack, 129

Battle, R. F., 71–72

Beaver, Felix, 43–44, 45

Beaver, Marianne, 44, 45, 46

Beaver, Mary, 45

Beaver family, 33, 34, 43–45, 45, 46

Bechtel company, 76

Begin, Father, 69, 70

Bell, Catherine, 144

Beren’s House, 22

Bethune, W. C., 72

Bill C-31, 4, 100–101, 130, 168n50, 193n96. See also Indian Act

blockades, 118–121, 120

Bonko, Bill, 101

Botham, R. J., 81

Boucher, Adam, 26, 36, 38, 68

Boucher, Alex, 44, 81

Boucher, Clara. See Shott, Clara (formerly Boucher)

Boucher, Jim, 96, 110, 111–112, 116, 118, 124

Boucher, Theodore, 60–61

Boucher, Vincent, 60–61

Boucher (Bouché) family, 21, 24–26, 27, 34, 36, 38, 39–40, 43, 44, 81

bush economy

decline and destruction, 74–76

descriptions of, 24, 29, 30–31, 63–64

and fur trade, 13, 21

business ventures

Fort McKay First Nation, 1–2, 124, 125, 128

Fort McKay Métis Nation, 133, 156–157

Solv-Ex scam, 128–129

C

Calahasen, Pearl, 101

Canadian government. See also Bill C-31; Department of Indian Affairs; Indian Act; Supreme Court of Canada

First Nations consultation requirements, 126, 128

Lot 10 purchase, 71–72

maps and surveys commissioned, 31, 67–68

Métis nationhood mandate, 138–139

natural resources transfer to provinces, 50, 72

as project of rule, 11–12

Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, 142–143

treaty and scrip commissions, 10, 35–38

and UNDRIP, 141

capacity-building agreements, 126–128

Cardinal, James (Jimmy), 135

Cary, Bill, 114

census and population reports, 26, 27, 52, 54, 77

Charter of Rights and Freedoms, 104–105

Chartrand, Larry N., 141–142

chemical spills, 113–114

Chipewyan people

convergence with Cree, 24, 25–26

in Treaty 8 memoir, 37–38

clergy, 37

Constitution Act (1982), 104–105, 142

consultation policy, 2, 7–9, 126, 128, 135

Cowie, John, 39

Crawford, Neil, 119

credible assertion claims

and consultation policy, 7–9

criteria, 143

Fort McKay Métis Nation, 133, 135–136, 145–146

Cree people

intermarriages, 24, 26, 28

in memoirs and reports, 22, 35, 37–38

social organization, 24

Cree-Chipewyan Band, 67, 68–69

Crown land

government management of, 12, 147

and harvesting rights, 50–51

occupation on, 77, 86, 94–95, 98, 101

culture

bush vs. settlement, 24

in impact assessments, 59, 130

kinship and reciprocity, 29–30

northern Indigenous, 35–36

D

Daniels, Harry, 86

Daniels, Stan, 84, 90

Dant, Noel, 81–82

Dené laws, 28

Dené people, 21, 24, 26

Department of Indian Affairs. See also Indian agents

housing and land agreements, 79–81, 82, 85–86, 182n45

reserve land surveys, 67

schools and education, 69, 70, 71–72

and trapping policy, 13, 50, 53, 54–55, 56

Devine, Heather, 10, 12, 27

diseases and deaths, 76–77, 109, 113–114

Droege, Thomas, 104–105

Ducharme, Betty, 45

Ducharme, Jim, 82–84

Duckworth, Harry, 25

duty to consult. See consultation policy

E

economic development, 78–79, 126–127, 128–130, 156

editorial cartoons, 122

Edmonton Bulletin, 22

Edmonton Journal, 67, 73–74, 114, 115

education. See schools and education

Energy Resources Conservation Board (ERCB), 108–109, 111–112, 121–124, 122

The English River Book, 25, 26

Ens, Gerhard, 12, 138

environment

harms, 76–77, 109, 113–115

monitoring and reporting, 115, 120, 125

ERCB. See Energy Resources Conservation Board (ERCB)

Ewashko, Roy, 118

extractivism, 12, 14, 15, 107

F

Faichney, Emma (formerly Beaver), 44–45, 166n21

Faichney, Felix, 45, 103

Faichney, Glen, 45, 103

Faichney, Roger, 45, 128–129

Faichney family, 45, 58, 81

family groups

key historic, 24–28, 39–47, 49

trapping practices, 55–56, 58

First Nations. See also Fort McKay First Nation (FMFN)

consultations with, 126, 128, 196n18

game hunting preserves, 50

Fisheries Act violations, 114–115

fishing. See harvesting

FMFN. See Fort McKay First Nation (FMFN)

FMMCA. See Fort McKay Métis Community Association (FMMCA)

FMMN. See Fort McKay Métis Nation (FMMN)

Forest Reserves Act, Alberta (1931), 51

Fort Chipewyan, 7, 21, 22–23, 50, 51

Fort Chipewyan v. Alberta Government, 7–9, 153–154

Fort McKay community. See also Fort McKay First Nation (FMFN); Fort McKay Métis community; Fort McKay Métis Nation (FMMN); Fort McKay region

in Alberta government proposals, 81–86, 88–89

culture and land management, 28–31, 34

first school, 69, 70

GCOS intervention, 108–113

history project, 16–19

housing and land tenure, 65–69, 71–73, 78–79, 86, 89–95, 96–99

logging truck blockade, 118–121

meetings with government, 76, 77, 78, 79–81

Métis/First Nation cohesion and division, 1–3, 10–11, 105–106, 116–117, 127–128, 129–130, 156–157

movements toward prosperity, 123–125, 156–157

per capita income, 127

and Rural Development Program, 77–78

Syncrude intervention, 121–123

water contamination, 76–77, 113–115

Fort McKay Community Association, 76–78, 96, 105, 110

Fort McKay Community Committee, 110–113

Fort McKay First Nation (FMFN)

charges against Suncor, 114–115

in development initiatives, 124–125, 156–157

economic improvement, 1–2, 116, 130

housing and land tenure, 71–72, 79, 85–86, 96–99, 105–106

membership code, 4–5, 117

provincial and national memberships, 131

Teck Frontier Mine Project: Fort McKay Métis Integrated Cultural Assessment, 18

There Is Still Survival Out There, 18, 31, 42, 63

Fort McKay First Nation Group of Companies, 124, 125, 128

Fort McKay Housing Committee, 80–81, 106

Fort McKay Industrial Relations Corporation (IRC), 1, 15, 18–19, 126–128

Fort McKay Métis community

administration and governance, 3

authority and representation, 8–9

economic development, 126–130

genealogies, 24–28, 39–47

housing and land tenure, 4, 86, 90, 95, 99–105

and Métis Nation of Alberta, 131, 135, 146

Mihkwâkamiwi Sîpîsis: Stories and Pictures from Métis Elders in Fort McKay, 17, 42, 43

path to nationhood, 15–16, 130–133

self-government development and rights, 142, 143, 145–146, 150–158

traditional territory, 13, 31, 32, 54–56, 58, 69

Fort McKay Métis Community Association (FMMCA), 105, 131–133, 150–151, 154–155

Fort McKay Métis Corporation (Métis Corp), 128–129

Fort McKay Métis Local 63, 1, 4, 101–104, 129, 131, 151

Fort McKay Métis Local 122, 1, 4, 42, 91–92, 99–101, 128–129

Fort McKay Métis Nation (FMMN), 103

establishment, 43, 130, 132–133

Integrated Cultural Impact Assessment, 59

Position Paper on Consultation and Self-Government, 16, 149–158

Fort McKay region. See also Athabasca region; trapping areas

fort and trading posts, 22, 39

industrialization, 74–75

maps, 6, 31, 32, 53

population composition, 4–5, 52, 54

reserve assignments, 67–69

Fort McKay Specific Assessment, 18, 130

Fort McKay Sustainability Centre, 5, 18. See also Fort McKay Industrial Relations Corporation (IRC)

Fort McKay Tribal Administration/Council

on impact of oil boom, 74

land and identity, 28–29, 65

on trapping and trapline system, 55, 56, 58, 66

From Where We Stand, 18, 31, 49–50

Fort McMurray, 7, 22, 24, 38, 67, 73–74

Fort McMurray Today, 63, 73, 115, 124, 135

Fort McMurray v. Alberta Government, 7–8

Fort Pierre-au-Calumet, 21–22

Fort Wedderburn, 22, 25

Fortier, Billie, 40, 41

Fortna, Peter, 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 9

Fosseneuve, Louison (Shott), 39

Fox, M., 62–63

From Where We Stand: Traditional Land Use and Occupancy Study of the Fort McKay First Nation, 18, 31, 49–50

fur trade, 13, 21, 22, 23, 24, 31, 39, 49, 107. See also trapline system; trapping areas

Fyfe, G. W., 79, 80

G

Gallup, Lina, 40, 41

game preserve legislation, 50–51

Gareau, L., 77–78

GCOS (Great Canadian Oil Sands), 73, 74, 108–109, 110, 111–112. See also Suncor

genealogies

key historic families, 24–28, 39–47

study of, 12–13

Gooden, R. v., 145, 203n17

Gordon, Charles, 66

Grammond, Sébastien, 143, 144

Grande Cache Indigenous community, 16, 181n36, 183n57

Grandjambe, Theresa, 76

Green and White Zones, 86, 87, 88

Grew, J.L., 52, 54

H

Half-Breed Scrip Commission, 10, 36–37

Hanowski, Laura, 9

harvesting

decline and destruction, 74–76

rights, 3–4, 7, 30–31, 50–51, 142

seasons, 34

HBC. See Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC)

Head, P.W., 51, 52

high modernism, 14, 108

Hirsekorn, R. v., 145, 203n17

Historic Forts and Trading Posts of the French Regime and of the English Fur Trading Companies (Voorhis), 22

housing

and lease terms, 100–101, 102–104

in letters to the editor, 73–74

programs and proposals, 4, 79–84, 93–94

Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC)

journals, 31

posts, 22, 24, 39, 40, 67, 68

workers and traders, 25, 26

hunting groups and practices, 24, 25, 30–31, 34. See also harvesting

Hyde, Rod, 69, 110

I

impact assessments, 18, 59, 127, 130

impact benefit agreements, 1–2, 7

incomes, 127, 129, 130

Indian Act, 4, 116–117. See also Bill C-31

Indian agents, 52, 54, 71. See also Department of Indian Affairs

Indian blocks, 54–55

Indigenous northern communities. See also Athabasca region

industrial development impacts, 73–74

land claim rejections, 95–96

lifestyle and culture, 24, 35–36

studies, 12–13, 16

trapping industry vs. trapping way of life, 59–60

industrial development. See also oil sands development

Alberta government vision for, 14, 107–108

First Nations partnerships, 128

Innes, Robert Alexander, 13, 138

interventions

blockades, 118–121

hearings, 108–109, 110–113, 121–124

IRC. See Fort McKay Industrial Relations Corporation (IRC)

J

Jackson, Wayne, 102–104, 105

Janvier/Lacorde, Isadore and family, 34, 43, 44

jobs and training, 78, 83, 88, 111, 112, 124

K

Kemp, G. A., 59–60

Kennedy, Calvin, 101

Kerr, Gordon, 60–61

kinship networks. See also family groups

Fort McKay, 10, 39, 46–47, 133, 154, 157

and governance, 13, 34, 109

L

Lacorde, Ernest, 43, 44, 78, 81, 110, 119, 166n21

Lacorde, Howard, 43

Lacorde family, 34, 43, 58

land. See also trapline system; trapping areas

Fort McKay traditional territory, 31, 32, 52, 53, 54

Indigenous relationship with, 28–29, 30–31, 34

Provincial Lands Act (1931), 51

speculators, 66–67

strategic marriages for, 26

transfer of Indigenous, 11–12

land leases

management, 4, 89–90, 94, 99–100

terms, 94–95, 100–104

transfer to Fort McKay Métis Community Association, 104–105

land tenure

government policies, 77, 81–86, 87, 88–89, 95–99, 101–104

impact on community development, 78–79

reserve assignments, 67–69

Treaty 8 terms, 65–66

languages spoken, 24, 26, 35, 43, 46

Lavoie, Moira, 8, 154, 155

Linkletter, Clive, 79

Little Red River

community, 24–25, 26, 27, 31, 39, 46–47

post, 22, 24

Lizotte, R. v., 144

Loberg, Carmon, 88

Lot 10 assignment and management, 69, 71–72, 79, 86, 96, 106

Lougheed, Peter, 93

M

MAA. See Métis Association of Alberta (MAA)

Macdougall, Brenda, 12, 28

Maclean’s Magazine, 119, 120

Madden, Jason, 136

Mair, Charles, 37–38

Manitoba Métis Federation (MMF), 139, 142

Manning, Ernest, 76, 77

maps and mapmaking

Fort McKay traditional territory, 31, 32

trapping areas, 52, 53, 55–56, 57

marriages

and cultural convergence, 24, 26

and Indian status, 116–117

Matsui, Kenichi, 10, 26

McAndrews, C. J., 82

McCormack, Patricia, 10, 16, 24, 25, 26

McDonald, Dorothy

and Alsands, 112–113

family and status, 110, 116

and logging truck blockade, 118–120

and membership code, 117

and rejection of Fort McKay Community Plan, 97–99

and Suncor, 114–115

and Syncrude, 121, 123

McDonald, Phillip, 85, 110, 118

McDonald family, 39, 58, 81

McKay, Ian, 11

McKay Métis Group of Companies, 156

Métis Association of Alberta (MAA), 86, 89–94

Métis Corp (Fort McKay Métis Corporation), 128–129

Métis Government Recognition and Self-Government Agreement (MGRSA), 139–140

Métis Nation of Alberta (MNA)

attempt to represent Fort McKay, 135–137, 146

Local affiliates, 1, 104

mandate and operations, 130–132, 139–140, 150–152, 153

Métis Nation of Ontario, 153

Métis National Council, 139, 157

Métis people. See also Fort McKay Métis community

historical research, 12–13

identity and rights, 7–8, 25–26, 51–52, 137–139, 141–143, 146–147, 155–156

Métis rights cases, 143–145

Métis Settlements General Council, 144, 145, 152

Mihkwâkamiwi Sîpîsis: Stories and Pictures from Métis Elders in Fort McKay, 17, 42, 43

Mildred Lake Plant, 121–123, 125

MMF. See Manitoba Métis Federation (MMF)

MNA. See Métis Nation of Alberta (MNA)

Moore, Marvin, 96–98

Moose Lake Accord, 3, 130

Morgan, Kenneth, 16

N

Natural Resources Transfer Act, 50, 71, 72

Nelson, Ken, 115

Neufeld, Soleil Cree (formerly Fortier), 40, 41

Nicks, Trudy, 16

North West Company (NWCo), 21–22, 25

North West Mounted Police (NWMP) censuses, 26, 27

Northern Transportation Company Limited (NTCL), 43, 69, 70

Northland Forestry logging trucks, 118

O

Oberholtzer, J. E., 82, 88

Oil Sands Developer Group (OSDG), 125–126, 128

oil sands development

boom impacts, 73–74

government support for, 12, 14, 107–108

projects and proposals, 108–109, 110–113, 121–124, 128–129

Oliver, Bill, 114

Oliver, Frank, 66–67

Orr, Francis, 29–30, 60–61, 62, 80, 121

Orr, Johnny, 30

Orr family, 44

Otipemisiwak (the people who govern themselves), 131–132, 137, 151, 157

Otipemisiwak Métis Government Constitution, 139–140

P

Pahl, Milt, 119

Parker, James M., 34

Pearson, C. L., 76

Piché family, 21, 25–26, 27, 34, 36, 38, 39, 43

Piepenburg, Roy L., 81

Poitras, Audrey, 135, 136

Pond, Peter, 21

Powder, Alphonse, 41–42, 81

Powder, Modest, 41–42, 42

Powder, Zachary, 42, 81, 90

Powder family, 34, 41–43, 58, 94

Powley, R. v., 7–8, 142, 143–144, 145, 152

Provincial Lands Act (1931), 51

Q

Quickfall, Brian, 101–102

Quintal, Ron, 103

and Alberta government, 101–104

family, 40–41

and Métis Nation of Alberta, 131, 135, 146

and Solv-Ex, 129–130

R

R. v. Gooden, 145, 203n17

R. v. Hirsekorn, 145, 203n17

R. v. Lizotte, 144

R. v. Powley, 7–8, 142, 143–144, 145, 152

Ray, Arthur, 10, 26

RCAP. See Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP)

Red River Point Society

effectiveness, 116, 117

leases, 89, 90, 94, 99

representatives, 42, 110

Reddekopp, G. Neil, 10, 39, 68–69, 72

Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo, 103–104, 202n10

Registered Fur Management Areas (RFMAs), 13, 31, 55, 58, 63

Rendell, John S., 128

Renner, Rob, 101–102

reserve land assignment, 67–69, 71, 72, 79

Richards, Janice, 45, 103

rights

eligibility, 3–4, 50–51, 59–60

land tenure, 66, 68, 95, 99

local vs. collective authority for, 130–131, 132, 135–137, 139–146, 152

self-governance, 104–105

Roach, T. F., 86, 89–90

Robertson, Donald, 36

Robillard, Elzear, 39, 68

Robinson, Donald F., 67–68

Ross, James, 66

Ross, John, 25

Ross, W.A., 62–63

Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP), 142–143, 145

S

s.35 rights. See Section 35 (s.35) rights

Sanderson, George, 85

Sawchuk, Joe, 12, 138

schools and education, 69, 70, 71–72

Scott, James C., 14

scrip

records, 12, 25–26

vs. treaty offering, 10, 36–38, 41, 65–66

scrip speculators, 37

Seaman, Paul, 144

Section 35 (s.35) rights, 7–8, 142–143, 152, 155

Selby, Henry, 67

self-government. See also rights

Fort McKay Métis path, 15–16, 104–105, 106, 130–133

legal frameworks, 140–142

Métis Nation of Alberta position, 139–140

Seton, Ernest Thompson, 30–31

settler colonialism, 11–12, 14

Shields, Jack, 119

Shott, Clara (formerly Boucher), 40, 94, 110, 116, 118, 119–120

Shott family, 34, 39–41, 58, 81

Sifton, Clifford, 36

Sinclair, S. J., 78

Skead, W. B., 55–56

Smith, James G. E., 24

Solv-Ex scam, 128–129

Speaker, R. A. “Ray,” 84

St. Germain, Vincent, 21

St-Onge, Nicole, 10

Strom, Harry, 84

Suncor, 113–115. See also GCOS (Great Canadian Oil Sands)

Supreme Court of Canada, 140, 142, 143, 152

surveys, 67–69, 79

Syncrude. See also Oil Sands Developer Group (OSDG)

Mildred Lake projects, 121–124, 122, 125

trapline compensation, 60–61

Syncrude Expansion Review Group, 125

T

Tanner, N.E., 51–52

Tea Dances, 29–30

Teck Frontier Mine Project: Fort McKay Métis Integrated Cultural Assessment (FMFN), 18

There Is Still Survival Out There: A Traditional Land Use and Occupancy Study of the Fort McKay First Nations (FMFN), 18, 31, 42, 63

Thiesen, H.W., 51

Tourangeau, Ed, 80, 81, 85, 90–92, 94

Tourangeau family, 21, 26–27, 34, 36, 38, 39, 43, 58

training and jobs, 78, 83, 88, 111, 112, 124

transportation

Fort McKay region, 39, 43, 74, 75, 109

Northland Forestry logging trucks, 118

trapline system

disconnect with Indigenous practice, 55–56

erosion of ownership, 59–60

and Fort McKay way of life, 63–64

impetus for, 49–51

implementation, 51–55

mapping and administration, 56, 57, 58–59

trapping areas

competition from white trappers, 49–50

destruction and compensation, 60–63, 74–75

government policies and proposals, 13–14, 52, 54–55

Indigenous management of, 30–31, 34, 66

Treaty 8 Commission, 10, 35–38, 38

treaty status. See also Bill C-31

and Fort McKay way of life, 27

and housing, 100–101

vs. scrip offering, 10, 36–38, 65–66

Trudeau, Justin, 138

U

United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), 105, 141, 145, 153, 155

V

Van Dyke, Edward W., 27–28, 30, 88, 94, 99, 110

Voorhis, Ernest, 22

voyageurs, 21, 25, 26

W

wahkotowin, 28

Waquan, Loretta, 103

waste dumps, 121

water pollution, 76–77, 113–114

Water Resources Act (1931), 51

water treatment facilities, 84, 113, 114

Weiss, Norm, 119

white settlers and home-owners, 66–67, 94–95

white trappers, 49–50, 52

Wood, Charles, 119

Wood, Margie, 43

Wood Buffalo National Park, 50

Wood Buffalo Regional Municipality, 103–104, 202n10

Annotate

Previous
©2025 Peter Fortna
Powered by Manifold Scholarship. Learn more at
Opens in new tab or windowmanifoldapp.org