Between 1880 and 1896, major changes were taking place in the North. Agricultural capabilities were being tested, missionaries and other settlers were moving into the Lesser Slave Lake Region and Peace River Country. The fur trade was being looked on as an economic driver. At the same time, the old ways of life, transportation and cultural activities were still taking place.
In 1883, an Edmonton newspaper published a description of the North to entice potential immigrants who have “the desire to find out and subdue the unknown.”
Farming, Gardening and Raising Animals
Fort Vermilion — the Hudson Bay Company’s (HBC) principal site between Fort Chipewyan and Dunvegan — was the most northerly point in Canada where people partook in agriculture as a private means of livelihood in the late 19th century.
Rev. Gough Brick, the Church of England missionary, was settling the issue of whether grain could grow in that region. To do this, he brought samples of wheat from Dunvegan and Old Wives Lake to Edmonton in 1886. Mr. Brick also made his own flour with a small hand mill from the wheat. The settlement established by Mr. Brick was said to be the largest on the river.
People at Shaftesbury Mission were growing hundreds of large pumpkins and cucumbers. Corn did not ripen and cutworms ruined the tomatoes in 1893. They also raised horses, cattle, pigs and poultry. They threshed and ground their grains — every six acres of wheat yielded 35 bushels.
When he retired from HBC, A. Mackenzie began farming in the same area as Shaftesbury Mission. He grew over 600 bushels of grain in 1893.
While the crops looked good in 1896, many people were lacking seeds due to a drought. At Lesser Slave Lake, large vegetables were being grown, including a 26 lb turnip! People were eating cauliflower and the vast number of potatoes that had grown that year.
Four Indigenous trappers settled around Brick’s mission on the Peace River. They sold their fur in 1895, making their first trip to Edmonton to buy a harness, plow and farm equipment.
Postal Service and Mail Delivery in Lesser Slave Lake and the North
The HBC had been providing a service twice a year between its posts, which were the centres of business and missionary work throughout the region. They would pick up and deliver mail for people in the community at the same time.
The Canadian postal service may not have noticed that the North existed. With more industry and business moving into the region, there was a call for the government to provide a mail service instead of relying on the kindness of the HBC. In 1896, the government had decided to have mail delivery to Lesser Slave Lake and Peace River as long as it cost less than $100.
Starvation and Sickness
Alex Kennedy, mail carrier for the HBC in the Peace River Area, confirmed several Indigenous people starved in the Upper Peace Region over the winter of 1889-90. There were few moose or other game. The HBC, traders and missionaries were also affected and could not help “relieve the stress.”
A charitable woman from England supplied Rev. Garrioch — a Church of England missionary at Dunvegan — with 400 cans of beef, allowing him to establish a soup kitchen. The vegetables for the soup came from his garden. He operated on a ticket system, where those with tickets could eat all they wanted and then take a pail home.
The government sent 300 sacks of flour to be divided between Dunvegan and Lesser Slave Lake to curb hunger. Rations were not given out at Lesser Slave Lake as they had plenty of fish. The moose, beaver and rabbits that used to be the principal food sources were becoming insufficient. The scarcity of food plus outbreaks of consumption, rheumatism and scrofula reduced the population of Indigenous people.
There was also a great deal of hunger at Peace River in 1888. The Hudson’s Bay Company was feeding many of the “more helpless” Indigenous people, as stated in the Edmonton Bulletin. Someone proposed moving those who were struggling to Lesser Slave Lake. They could catch and eat fish, which were plentiful there, though lynx and rabbits were scarce.
Indigenous Peoples Living in the Area
Before the arrival of the European fur traders, explorers and settlers, the entire region had been inhabited or visited by Indigenous, Métis and Inuit people. It is their traditional territory.
In 1887, 53 Indigenous families at Lesser Slave Lake wrote a letter in Cree. They sent it to Mr. W. Anderson, the Indian Agent in Edmonton. The letter — translated by Mrs. Tate — did not acknowledge government control or wish to make a treaty. The following year, the heads of 30 Indigenous families met with two HBC-respected traders and freighters to discuss treaty and scrip; a document used in place of legal tender entitling the bearer to certain rights. Twelve years later — in 1899 — Treaty 8 was signed.
Oil Discovery and Drilling in the Lesser Slave Lake Area
Mr. Vickers found oil seven miles up the Lesser Slave River from its junction with the Athabasca. It was a 320-acre parcel.
Between July and December 1883, professors analyzed samples from the area. The Winnipeg & Northwest Petroleum Company, based out of Minnesota, started seeking funds for development. In March 1884, they requested tenders for the boring of wells.
Prospecting, Panning and Mining for Gold
Inglis and Charles Lemoine went to Peace River in September 1885 to prospect for gold. Inglis went up the river to Fort St. John, frequently finding dirt that would yield three cents to the pan — higher than the Saskatchewan paying one to two cents per pan.
Two years later, John Hodgson and Dan Gould went north and began mining for gold near the same spot — collecting $104 (approximately $2,950 in 2021) before winter set in.
After word spread about gold on the Athabasca River, at least two teams were leaving for Lac La Nonne each day in August 1895 to prospect. By early October, there were about 25 men panning gold on the river between Fort Assiniboine and the mouth of the Lesser Slave River.
Settlement and Development is one of the main focuses or themes in Alberta History: Lesser Slave Lake Region: News Reviews Volume 1: 1880-1896. This book offers a few highlights of the events and changes during this period. To learn more, click here to check out our latest publication.