Hudson's Bay Company

A typescript of a newspaper article headlined "The stirring days of the 1885 Rebellion recalled by Prince Albert citizens who fought at the war centre in defence of their country." Includes a list of the Prince Albert volunteers who served and those who were killed or wounded. Item found within folder 1 of file Rebellion, 1885.

A typed transcription of the diary of George B. Murphy, Transport Officer in the Battleford Column, covering from 17 March 1885-16 July 1885. Short notations for dates. Item found within folder 1 of file Rebellion, 1885.

This essay examines reasons for unrest among the Aboriginal population of the old Northwest in the years leading up to the disturbances of 1885. The writer worked for the Indian Department of the Dominion Government during this time. Item found within folder 1 of file Rebellion, 1885.

This item describes the state of the infantry brigade stationed at Camp Fort Pitt on 2 July 1885. Categories include members absent with / without leave, hospital attendants and casualities. Item found within folder 1 of file Rebellion, 1885.

Historical note:

A typed transcription of a newspaper article (source unknown) in which W.B. Cameron recounts his experiences during the Frog Lake 'Massacre'. Item found within folder 1 of file Rebellion, 1885.

This chapter of Reginald Beatty's diary describes his experiences as a Free-Trader in the winter of 1884-1885(6 pp). He notes a general feeling of unrest among the Aboriginals he encounters as he travels in the Touchwood Hills - Nut Lake area, up to the Prince Albert district. Item found within folder 'Reginald Bird Beatty Papers.'

Historical note:

This chapter of Reginald Beatty's diary describes his experiences as a Free-Trader in the winter of 1884-1885. The Northwest Resistance is underway and Beatty, now travelling alone, arrives at Fort-a-la-Corne in the spring of 1885. Beatty offers a sympathetic view of the causes of the Resistance, based on his experiences with Aboriginals and Metis throughout Saskatchewan in his travels during 1884-1885.

Collage of sketches relating to the Northwest Resistance; subjects include a view of Fort Edmonton, the steamers 'Alberta' and 'North-West', and Louis Riel's capturer.

Looks at the historical merits of two Kashaya Pomo oral stories regarding the Hudson Bay Company's 1833 expeditions in California by comparing the stories with Russian and English written accounts from the era.

See:

Chapter Two: Compact, Contract, Covenant: The Evolution of First Nations Treaty-Making by J.R. Miller.

Chapter Six: Resisting Canada’s Will: Manitoba’s Entry into Confederation by Robert Wardhaugh and Barry Ferguson.

Chapter Eleven: “A More Accurate Face on Canada to the World”: The Creation of Nunavut by P. Whitney Lackenbauer and Andr&ecaute Légar&eacute.

History Thesis (M.A.)--University of Winnipeg/University of Manitoba, 1997.

Image of a person standing on a hill above the reconstructed Fort Carlton, Saskatchewan; summer scene.

Paper presents 3 objectives: to determine factors which encouraged the Hudson Bay Company and Church Missionary Society to offer education and Christian instruction to Indian children; to look at students experiences, acquisition and treatment; to assess changing priorities and focuses of educational programs in Rupertsland.

Description of the annual event, Festival du Voyageur, held in Winnipeg, Manitoba's French Quarter to celebrate the fur trade era.

Chapter in book: The Colonial Intelligencer; or Aborigines' Friend (Vol. II).

Looks at the back ground behind the acquisition of five Blackfoot shirts by Sir George Simpson and Edward Hopkins at Fort Edmonton.

Accounts include the experiences of Father Bigonesse, evidence of Fr. Cochin in the trial of Poundmaker, a biography of Fr. Cochin, and reminiscences in French.

Report includes appendices relating to reserves, schedule of leases, statutes of British Columbia relating to Aboriginals and missions of British Columbia.

Analyizes daily journals which reported on seasonal patterns of employment and Aboriginal interactions with the fur trading post.

Looks at how the epidemic impacted the fur trade and the native population in the region.

Book review of: Undelivered Letters to Hudson's Bay Company Men on the Northwest Coast of America, 1830-57 edited by Judith Hudson Beattie and Helen M. Buss.

Law Thesis (LL.M.)--University of Manitoba, 2013.

A brochure (en francais) put out by L'Union Nationale Metisse Saint-Joseph du Manitoba in commemoration of Louis Riel's contribution towards the birth of Manitoba. Contains historical information on the Red River Resistance of 1869-1870 from an early twentieth century Metis perspective as well as historical notes on the Metis of the North West by Judge L.A. Prudhomme.

Looks at American efforts to use Métis unrest to annex the British Northwest.

Entry from October 19th, 1820 concerning Fort Wedderburn and the close proximity of the rival North West Company's post.

An analysis of settler's farming activities.

Looks at the contributions made by women including trapping small animals, making moccasins and preservation of food.

Book review of: The Manager's Tale by Hugh Mackay Ross.

Transcription of legal documentation that provided "...grant unto the said Governor and Company and to theire Successors full Power and lawfull authority to seize upon the Persons of all such English or any other of our Subjects which shall saile into Hudsons Bay..."

RCAP 168 contains a transcript of a telephone consultation between Counsel for the Royal Commission on Aboriginal People, Nick Schultz and retired RCMP officer Ross Gibson who had been a witness to the relocation of Inuit to the High Arctic. The conversation focuses on the Gibson's recollection of events and their portrayal currently.

File contains an individual presentation by Mrs. Millicent Loder, oldest elder in the community. She describes her childhood, the infrequent visits by doctors, her father's employment with the Hudson's Bay Company, nursing training in the United States, raising her children in Labrador, and her role as a valued elder in her community.

File contains opening remarks by Tom MacCagno who provides the Commission with a history of the exploration and establishment of Lac La Biche. He notes the involvement of Metis people when Father Albert Lacombe arrived in 1852. MacCagno says that Portage La Biche, forerunner of Lac La Biche, is a Canadian national historic site but the government chooses not to designate and restore the site. MacCagno also comments on aboriginal language policy and how elders must pass down the language and traditions of Aboriginal peoples to the youth.

File contains a presentation by Amos Key, Sweetgrass First Nations Languages Council Inc. Key discusses the history of language loss due to colonization, and his groups efforts to promote Aboriginal language use in Southern Ontario. Key also makes a variety of policy recommendations with respect to languages, and following the presentation discusses these issues with the assembled Commissioners.

File contains a presentation by Cajetan Rich. Rich delivers a brief history of the community of Davis Inlet, Labrador. Rich discusses the community from the 1700s to contemporary times.

File contains a presentation by Chief Norm Wesley of the Moose Cree First Nation provides a brief history of the Moose Factory area, mentioning in particular the fur trade and the Hudson's Bay Company. Wesley states that Aboriginal peoples can't go back to their original way of life and calls upon the Elders in the community to keep the traditional ways alive by sharing their knowledge with the youth.

File contains a presentation by Johnny Inukpuk. Inukpuk relates some of the history of his Inuit people in the area from the time of Hudson's Bay Company contact, through contact with the police and up into the present era. He highlights as one of his primary concerns the preservation of Inuit culture and language. Commissioner Dussault thanks him for his presentation.

File contains a presentation by Peter Owl. Owl discusses the history of a specific land claim that his Sigma-Anishinabe First Nation is involved in in "the Hudson Bay lands" of the North Shore area of Espanola and Bine River, Ontario. Following his presentation Commissioners Wilson and Sillett discuss the claim with Owl.

The file contains a presentation by Reuben Ploughman. Ploughman discusses his perspective on the High Arctic Relocation as a Hudson's Bay Company employee at Inukjuaq (Port Harrison) and other locations in Northern Canada. Following the presentation Ploughman discusses some of his testimony with the assembled Commissioners.

This file contains a presentation by Rivard Larouche and Jean-Benoit Gagnon that first provides a history of the organization. The presentation focuses on the cultural, sociological and economic aspects of trapping activity in Quebec. Trapping is vital for survival for some trappers; it is also culturally significant with generations of trappers in families. A question-and-answer session with the Commissioners follows the presentation.

File contains a presentation by Roger Cousins. Cousins speaks on the topic of land claims in the Eastern arctic. He discusses Aboriginal land claims in Saskatchewan and British Columbia, and then the Nunavut claim in the Eastern arctic. In answerance to Commissioner Dussault's earlier question on where the Commission should start Cousins states "a good place to start would be to make sure that the Inuit have a land base in their home communities." Following the presentation Commmissioner Dussault discusses the topic with Cousins.

File contains a presentation by Rosie Okpik, Inuit artist who states that the Inuit have made everything they need to live in their own way. For Inuit people, "It was the art of making these things that was most important, not the thing itself that the white man admired." With European contact, the Inuit gradually no longer made tools, clothing and shelters, and thus they began to lose their culture "because our culture is the things we make." Okpik introduces Ed McKenna, Okpik's secretary and manager, and together they answers questions from the Commissioners.

File contains a presentation by Simeonie Weetaluktuk. Simeonie is an elder who corroborates the preceding presenters take on history in the region. Specifically she discusses the lack of assistance available from the police, and the hardships her people faced. Weetaluktuk discusses relations with the Hudson's Bay Company, the introduction of the snowmobile, and housing concerns in the context of her communities history.

This file contains a Wampum Belt Reading by Chief Oren Lyons that continues with the same topics discussed by Jake Thomas, the previous presenter who also did a Wampum Belt Reading. Lyons believes that the Commission's mandate should be focused on peace between all First Nations and non-Aboriginal people.