Moose-Deer island house people: a history of the native people of Fort Resolution

Smith, David Merrill

Book

Moose-Deer island house people: a history of the native people of Fort Resolution

National Museums of Canada • (82) • Published In 1982 • Pages: ix, 202

By: Smith, David Merrill.

Abstract
This a major historical ethnography of the Fort Resolution Chipewyan. Smith reconstructs the Chipewyan's aboriginal way of life and discusses their gradual assimilation during the contact period, which he divides into three phases. In the Early Contact-Traditional Phase (1786-1890), the Chipewyan participated in the fur trade, yet were able to maintain a traditional way of life, with some adjustments. The major adjustment was a shift in the territory they exploited from the transitional forest, where they hunted the Caribou, to the boreal forest, where the fur-bearing animals lived. The Late Contact-Traditional Phase (1890-1950) saw the intensification of commerce and trapping as a result of the loss of the Hudson Bay Company monopoly. This change led to a more sedentary life as more time was spent on the trap line. Following the terrible epidemics in the 1920s and 30s, more Chipewyan sought refuge in Fort Resolution. In the Micro-Urban Phase (1950-1975) the fur trade has all but disappeared and the Chipewyan have become dependent on wage employment and welfare.

Ethnic stratification

External relations

Disasters

Religious denominations

Chipewyans

HRAF PubDate

2000

Region