Half-Breed Commission at Duck Lake

Note: The title and description of this document uses wording that was common to mainstream society of that time period in history. As such, it contains language that is no longer in common use and may offend some readers. This wording should not be construed to represent the views of the Indigenous Studies Portal or the University of Saskatchewan Library. A close-up photograph of a large group of non-Aboriginal and Metis people standing in front of a building in Duck Lake, NWT at the time of the visit of the Half-Breed Commission, 1900.

Historical note:

Narcisse-Omer Cote (1859-1944) a civil servant for the Government of Canada, entered the department of the interior in 1879. In 1885, he was appointed secretary to the Royal Commission investigating and adjudicating Metis claims. In 1900 he became a Commissioner of the North-West Half-Breed Commission. The Commission was to enumerate and issue scrip to the Metis who qualified in the district of Saskatchewan and a small part of Manitoba. Their work lasted from May 16 to December 6 1900.