The beginnings

Before 1754

Roughly 15,000 years ago, the glaciers which covered Alberta melted, thereby allowing for complex indigenous societies to emerge and prosper. In the sixteenth century, driven by entrepreneurial spirit and a thirst for discovery, French and British explorers penetrated westward deep within the continent in search of illusive routes leading to the Orient. In growing numbers, explorers, guides, voyageurs, volunteers and interpreters made incursions into the vast inland river systems. The French were the first Europeans to set foot in Western Canada.

+ Indigenous Peoples
+ New France
+ Fur trade

Indigenous Peoples

Before 1754

As soon as the territory now known as Alberta became habitable, it became home to numerous indigenous societies. Their descendants created nations named Nehiyaw (Cree), Dené, Tsuu T’ina (Sarcee), Siksika (Blackfoot), Nakoda and Chipewyan, etc. Many of them witnessed the arrival of the French. They created and developed not only commercial and diplomatic ties, but also, in many cases, family relationships. The 19th century was an important period of massive European settlement in Alberta and the Prairies leading to the signing of several numbered treaties between the indigenous nations and the Canadian government. Alberta is on the lands of treaties 4, 6, 7, 8, and 10. These treaties allowed the new Government of Canada to easily obtain new lands destined for colonization. Colonization was strongly supported by a policy of cultural assimilation, acculturation and economic coercion of the local indigenous nations. This high level of violence was utterly devastating. However, with the recent recognition of indigenous rights as well as the acknowledgement and redress of past wrongs, these nations are now reasserting themselves and reestablishing ancestral cultural practices.

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1754 – Indigenous peoples

New France

Before 1754

Europeans have been harvesting primary resources along the North American Atlantic coast for the past millennium. Permanent settlements on Canadian and American soil date back to the seventeenth century. These were the product of military and commercial alliances with local indigenous nations. The French settled in New France, Acadia and Louisiana. As early as 1731, La Vérendrye was the first to lead an expedition to explore the West and, in all likelihood, may have reached what is now Montana and Wyoming. France’s geographical sphere of influence stretched from the Laurentian valley and the Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico and the southern limits of Alberta. The Seven Years’ War put an end to their ambitions of discovery forcing them to retreat towards the Laurentian valley. The loss of Quebec City in 1759 and Montreal in 1760 definitely ended France’s ambitions in Canada. Henceforth, the French born in Canada and those who decided to stay were known as “Canadiens”. This name was subsequently also adopted by the English living in the country.

MINI QUIZ

1754 – New France

Fur trade

Before 1754

Prior to the establishment of the first trading posts in what is now Alberta, furs were transported by indigenous peoples to commercial trading posts established further east and south. They were able to familiarize themselves with European business practices and learn the basics of the language of traders. Although the Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) established a monopoly on trade in 1670, it was not until 1754 that it commissioned Anthony Henday to explore the commercial potential of North Saskatchewan River. He met the Maskwacis nehiyaw chief named Wapinesew, who he nicknamed “French Leader”. After the Conquest, Canadian merchants formed companies and resumed their journeys westward. Their predominantly French-speaking Canadian voyageurs quickly spread by the thousands to every waterway of the vast Western Canadian river systems. In 1778, the powerful North West Company challenged the HBC’s monopoly by building trading posts on the Athabasca, Peace, North and South Saskatchewan rivers. In response, the HBC established Fort Edmonton (1795), Rocky Mountain House (1799) and Fort Dunvegan (1805). Competition became fierce and highly detrimental to the two large companies, forcing them to merge in 1821 under the HBC banner. The HBC retained its monopoly until 1870 when the area known as Rupertsland was sold to the new Canadian confederation.

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1754 – Fur traders

The beginnings

Before 1754

Indigenous Peoples

Before 1754

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New France

Before 1754

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Fur trade

Before 1754

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