One of the Family

Metis Culture in Nineteenth-Century Northwestern Saskatchewan

By Brenda Macdougall
Categories: Social Sciences, Sociology, Indigenous Studies, Métis Studies, Anthropology, History, Canadian History, Regional & Cultural Studies, Canadian Studies
Publisher: UBC Press
Hardcover : 9780774817295, 320 pages, February 2010
Paperback : 9780774817301, 320 pages, July 2010
Ebook (PDF) : 9780774817318, 320 pages, January 2011
Buy Direct
View Table of Contents

Table of contents

List of Illustrations

Acknowledgments

Note on Methodology and Sources

Note on Writing Conventions

Introduction

1 “They are strongly attached to the country of rivers, lakes, and forests”: The Social Landscapes of the Northwest

2 “The bond that connected one human being to another”: Social Construction of the Metis Family

3 “To live in the land of my Mother”: Residency and Patronymic Connections Across the Northwest

4 “After a man has tasted of the comforts of married life this living alone comes pretty tough”: Family, Acculturation, and Roman Catholicism

5 “The only men obtainable who know the country and Indians are all married”: Family, Labour, and the HBC

6 “The HalfBreeds of this place always did and always will dance”: Competition, Freemen, and Contested Spaces

7 “I Thought it advisable to furnish him”: Freemen to Free Traders in the Northwest Fur Trade

Conclusion

Appendix

Glossary

Notes

Bibliography

Index of Names

Index of Subjects

An innovative exploration of the birth of Metis identity in northern Saskatchewan that will provide a model for future research and discussion.

Description

In recent years there has been growing interest in identifying the social and cultural attributes that define the Metis as a distinct people. In this groundbreaking study, Brenda Macdougall employs the concept of wahkootowin – the Cree term for a worldview that privileges family and values interconnectedness – to trace the emergence of a Metis community in northern Saskatchewan. Wahkootowin describes how relationships worked and helps to explain how the Metis negotiated with local economic and religious institutions while nurturing a society that emphasized family obligation and responsibility. This innovative exploration of the birth of Metis identity offers a model for future research and discussion.

Awards

  • Winner, Clio Prize for the Prairies, Canadian Historical Association 2011

Reviews

An impressive work that traces the emergence of the Metis community “as an expression of Aboriginality” (p. 56). One of the Family emerges as a welcome and much-needed contribution to the field and should serve as a valuable framework for future research. Both captivating and rigorous, this book is sure to engage scholars interested in Aboriginal-newcomer relations and Metis identity studies

- Venetia Boehmer-Plotz, Brock University

In a meticulously crafted study of the connections between the Metis families of the Sakitawak (Île à la Crosse) region of Saskatchewan, Brenda Macdougall adds richness to a familiar story by extending the focus of her study from the geographic, temporal, and cultural preeminence of Red River in historical discourse.

- Venetia Boehmer-Plotz, Brock University