A. Creating Canada, 1850–1890 · Creating Canada, 1850–1890

The Numbered Treaties, 1871–1877

A3 A2 A1About 50 minutes

Learning goals

I can explain why the Crown and First Nations made Treaties 1 to 7 between 1871 and 1877.
I can describe the main terms of the treaties, including the Treaty 6 medicine chest clause.
I can compare First Nations and government understandings of the treaties.
I can explain why the treaties still matter today.

Words to know

treaty
A formal agreement between nations. The numbered treaties are agreements between First Nations and the Crown that are still in effect.

reserve
Land set aside by treaty or law for the use of a First Nation.

annuity
A yearly payment. Treaty annuities are still paid to treaty members today.

spirit and intent
What the treaty-makers meant and agreed to, including oral promises, not only the written words.

homestead
Land given to a settler, under the Dominion Lands Act of 1872, in return for a small fee and for living on and farming it.

bison
Large animals of the Plains that were central to the food, clothing, shelter and culture of many Plains nations. By about 1880 they had almost disappeared from the Canadian Prairies.

Let's start with a question

When two people make a promise, what counts more: the exact words written on the paper, or what each person understood they were promising?

That question is at the heart of the numbered treaties, signed between First Nations and the Crown from 1871 to 1877 across what are now northwestern Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta.

Remember from Grade 7

In Grade 7 you studied treaties made before 1850, including the Robinson Treaties of 1850 on the north shores of Lakes Huron and Superior. Those treaties set a pattern: land shared for settlement and resources in exchange for reserves, annual payments and continued hunting and fishing rights. The numbered treaties followed a similar pattern on a much bigger scale.

Why make treaties in the 1870s?

Canada's reasons:

Canada wanted to open the West for settlers (the Dominion Lands Act of 1872 offered 160-acre homesteads) and for the railway promised to British Columbia.
British law, including the Royal Proclamation of 1763, recognized that First Nations had rights to their lands that had to be dealt with by agreement with the Crown.
Canada wanted to avoid the costly wars happening in the US West.

First Nations' reasons:

The bison were disappearing fast. Nations that depended on them faced hunger.
Diseases such as smallpox had hit many communities hard.
Settlers, surveyors and traders were arriving. Leaders wanted to secure a future for their children: land, help with farming, schools, and protection of their way of life.
Many leaders saw treaties as sacred agreements to share the land and live as relatives, sealed with ceremonies such as the pipe ceremony.

Treaty	Year	Where signed (examples)	Today's region
Treaty 1	1871	Lower Fort Garry	Southern Manitoba
Treaty 2	1871	Manitoba Post	Manitoba
Treaty 3	1873	North-West Angle, Lake of the Woods	Northwestern Ontario and part of Manitoba
Treaty 4	1874	Fort Qu'Appelle	Southern Saskatchewan
Treaty 5	1875	Berens River and Norway House	Northern Manitoba (and parts of Ontario and Saskatchewan, through later additions)
Treaty 6	1876	Fort Carlton and Fort Pitt	Central Saskatchewan and Alberta
Treaty 7	1877	Blackfoot Crossing	Southern Alberta

Treaties 1 to 7. Treaties 8 to 11 came later (1899 to 1921).

A rough sketch of where Treaties 1 to 7 are, with today's provinces underneath. Along the south, from west to east: 7, 4, 2, 1, 3; Treaties 6 and 5 lie further north. Real boundaries are irregular; this is not a map and is not to scale.

What the written treaties said

The treaties were similar, with some differences:

Reserves: in Treaties 1 and 2, 160 acres per family of five; in Treaties 3 to 7, generally one square mile (640 acres) per family of five.
Annuities: yearly payments (for example, $5 per person), plus payments and uniforms for chiefs and headmen.
Hunting and fishing rights on lands not taken up for settlement (written into Treaties 3 to 7; in Treaties 1 and 2 they were promised out loud but not written down).
Farming help: tools, seed and animals; schools on reserves.
Treaty 6 also included a medicine chest clause (a medicine chest kept at the Indian agent's house) and help in times of famine or pestilence, because Cree leaders, including Pîhtokahanapiwiyin (Poundmaker), pushed hard for protection against hunger and disease.

The written English text said First Nations would "cede, release, surrender and yield up" their rights to the land.

Treaties 1 to 7 on a timeline drawn to scale, with where each was signed. Notice that the later treaties (4, 6 and 7) reached further and further west, ahead of the planned railway and settlers.

Two understandings

Many First Nations leaders and Elders say the treaties were agreements to share the land, not to give it away. In the oral promises made at the negotiations, government commissioners promised help and a lasting relationship ("as long as the sun shines, the grass grows and the rivers flow" is a phrase often remembered).
Negotiations happened through interpreters, sometimes with poor translation. Ideas like "surrender" and private land ownership did not match First Nations laws about land.
Some promises made out loud were not in the written text, or were not kept, or were kept years late. For example, the agricultural help promised in Treaties 1 and 2 was slow to arrive.
Some leaders refused to sign at first. Mistahimaskwa (Big Bear) refused Treaty 6 in 1876, arguing for better terms and for keeping his people's freedom. Facing starvation, he signed in 1882.

Courts in Canada now say treaties must be understood the way the First Nations signers would have understood them at the time, including oral promises.

Worked example

Modelled example: Reading the medicine chest clause

Treaty 6 says a medicine chest shall be kept at the Indian agent's house for the use of the people. In 1876, what did this mean, and what does it mean today?

Context (cause): smallpox and other diseases had hurt Plains nations badly, and the bison were disappearing. Cree leaders wanted protection for the health of future generations.
Government's narrow reading: a box of medicines kept at one house.
First Nations' understanding: a promise that the Crown would provide health care to their people.
Today (continuity): many Treaty 6 Nations point to this clause as the foundation of a treaty right to health care, and courts have considered it in that light.
Lesson for historians: the same words can be read narrowly or broadly. Understanding the context and the signers' intent matters.

The medicine chest clause shows why historians look at spirit and intent, not just the words. It also shows First Nations leaders negotiating hard for their people's future.

We are all treaty people

If you live in Ontario, you live on land covered by treaties or on unceded territory. Treaty 3, Treaty 5 (with later additions) and Treaty 9 cover much of northern Ontario, and many other treaties cover the south. Treaties are not just history: they are still in effect, and annuities are still paid. They are agreements that both sides are responsible for keeping.

Just for fun

Try this "spirit and intent" test at home: promise to share your fries, then hand over one fry. Technically you shared. But did you keep the promise? 🍟 That's why courts look at what both sides understood, not just the exact words.

Hands-on activity

Whose treaty land is my home on?

You need: an internet connection with a grown-up, paper and a pencil.

With a grown-up, search for your town or city plus the word "treaty", or look at your school board's or municipality's land acknowledgement.
Write down: the name of the treaty (or say if the land is unceded), the year, and the First Nations whose territory it is.
Find out one thing about that Nation today (a school, a festival, a business, its language, its leaders).
Write two sentences: one about the treaty and one about the Nation today.

Look for: a correct treaty name (for example, Toronto lies on the land of the Toronto Purchase, Treaty 13, with the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation), and present-tense facts that show a living Nation. Use official First Nation, school board or government websites.

Your turn

Between what years were Treaties 1 to 7 signed?

Give two reasons Canada wanted to make treaties in the 1870s.

Give two reasons First Nations leaders agreed to treaties.

Which treaty covers much of northwestern Ontario?

What special clause did Treaty 6 include?

Who refused to sign Treaty 6 in 1876, and when did he sign?

What does "spirit and intent" mean?

More practice: warm-up

Where was Treaty 7 signed?

What is an annuity?

How big was a homestead under the Dominion Lands Act?

Are the numbered treaties still in effect?

Which animal's disappearance put Plains nations at risk of hunger?

More practice: on your own

Why might First Nations and government officials have understood the treaties differently?

Explain how the disappearance of the bison affected the treaty negotiations.

Why did Big Bear refuse to sign at first?

How do courts in Canada now interpret treaties?

Give one example of continuity connected to the treaties.

Challenge

Were the numbered treaties fair agreements? Use evidence from both perspectives.

Compare the purpose of a treaty from the Crown's view with the purpose from a First Nations view, using one word for each and explaining.

Why is the phrase "we are all treaty people" used, and do you agree?

Check your understanding

Quiz

When were Treaties 1 to 7 signed?

Which treaty included a medicine chest clause?

Which was a major reason Plains nations sought treaties?

Which treaty covers much of northwestern Ontario?

How do courts in Canada now say treaties should be read?

Who refused to sign Treaty 6 in 1876?

Which statement is accurate?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Students describe the numbered treaties and their impact (A3), compare First Nations and government understandings (A2), and connect treaty relationships to life today (A1).

How to help: Do the "whose land" activity together using an official source. Many school boards have land acknowledgements on their websites. If you can, attend a public powwow or Treaty Day event, or visit a First Nation's cultural centre.

Sensitive points: Hunger and disease are part of this story. Keep the focus on leaders' foresight and negotiation, and on the fact that First Nations are living nations that continue to hold treaty rights.

Common difficulties: Thinking treaties were "sales" with no ongoing obligations; thinking treaties are only history; ignoring oral promises.