Indigenous Perspectives

Indigenous Peoples have lived, travelled, and cared for the land now known as Edmonton since time immemorial. Their deep seated past and resiliency continues to shape the history of this place. In this collection, uncover Indigenous perspectives historically excluded from the story of Edmonton. 

ECAMP commits to the continued work needed to grow this collection, with future collaborations that will increase and amply the stories of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit communities in and around Treaty 6.

Around fifty women gathered in front of a wooden building. Included in the crowd are young children, smiling mothers, and older women. They are dressed in simple but comfortable-looking clothes, with some women holding babies.

Making Home: The Role of Homemakers’ Clubs in Life on Reserve

Shayne Giles

Women like Emma Minde joined Homemakers’ Clubs to overcome isolation by doing work like sewing, canning, and charity drives together. Indian Affairs required its approval to start these clubs though, and used them to monitor members’ activities.

Part III – Marguerite Rowand-McKay: Matriarch, Naturalist, Armchair Traveler, Bison Ally

Jenna Chalifoux

When Marguerite reached the tiny house with the Assiniboine River ambling by and its thickets of linden and maple awash…

Part I – Marguerite Rowand-McKay: Matriarch, Naturalist, Armchair Traveler, Bison Ally

Jenna Chalifoux

The 1821 merger of the Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) and the North-West Company (NWC) harkened an era of unfettered commerce…

Part II – Marguerite Rowand-McKay: Matriarch, Naturalist, Armchair Traveler, Bison Ally

Jenna Chalifoux

At the height of summer in 1838, Roman Catholic priests François Blanchet and Modeste Demers visited L’Fort des Prairies (Fort…

A Residential School Survivor’s Story of Survival and Resilience: AUDIO INTERVIEW

Rayna Gopaul

“…first night for supper….he put a plate in front of me and I said “Mahsi!” In my language, thank you….

Tokens of Remembrance: Indigenous Faces in Edmonton’s Beaux Arts Architecture, 1907-1930

Cole Hawkins

Disclaimer: Due to the importance around the legal designation of Indian status, this article sometimes uses the term “Indian” to…

Louise Umphreville: The Shining Star

Jenna Chalifoux

In August  of 1782, Fort York was captured by the French. Edward Umphreville and some other HBC men were taken by…

Daughters of Shining Star

Jenna Chalifoux

There are many notable women in Edmonton’s history books. The ‘Famous Five’ may come to mind straight away, in addition to…

Gifting Indigenous Ward Names

Rob Houle

On December 7, 2020, following over a year of planning and work by the Edmonton Boundaries Commission, Edmonton City Council…

Pondering Pehonan

Rob Houle

In amiskwaciwaskahikan (Edmonton), when you examine the current state of Indigenous relations, initiatives and heritage, one cannot help but be…

In Dark Times, Go to the Garden: Part 1

Jenna Chalifoux

Plans are afoot for spring. Sunday was spent scouring the glossy pages full of roots and blossoms in a favourite…

The “Grand Lady of the Métis:” Dr. Anne Anderson’s mission to preserve the Cree language

Bruce Cinnamon

When Dr. Anne Anderson was born on a river lot farm east of St. Albert in 1906, she was so…

Nellie Carlson and the Indian Rights for Indian Women movement

Bruce Cinnamon

Disclaimer: Due to the importance around the legal designation of Indian status, this article sometimes uses the term “Indian” to…

The Curious Case of the 1908 Enoch Surrender

Rob Houle

At the time of Treaty No. 6, much change and settlement was taking place in the West, with displacement and…

Amiskwaciwâskahikan Ostêsimâwasinahikan Nikotwâsik

Rob Houle

Throughout Indigenous territories, histories, cultures and stories, there exist a number of locations that hold a special significance, apart from…

Richard Henry Secord and Métis Scrip Speculation

Rob Houle

When history is told, it largely reflects events, understandings and individuals who best serve the desires of the recorder. In…

Kisiskāciwani-sīpiy – Swift Flowing River

Jenna Chalifoux

Rising out of the Rocky Mountain glaciers, flowing ever eastward toward Hudson Bay, the North Saskatchewan River has meandered across…

Metis Matriarch – Thelma Chalifoux

Jenna Chalifoux

Our mothers are more than just a physical person, just as our houses are more than just a structure to…

Subverting Edmonton

Rhonda Kronyk

When you think of Edmonton you likely don’t think of subversive acts. After all, we are conservative prairie dwellers who…

Garneau: A Neighbourhood of Nations

Jenna Chalifoux

As we go about our daily lives, driving the kids to school or walking the dog, we often forget that…

Frank Oliver and Infantile Edmonton

Rob Houle

Traversing across the North Saskatchewan River on the Groat Road Bridge and climbing the Valley Road has little significance other…

Evidence and Story – Archaeology in Edmonton

Gareth Spicer

It has been said by many apt communicators that the grand, generalized and often repeated message is the most effective…