This fonds consists of approximately 1600 photographs. The majority of the images are 35 mm black and white negatives, however there are some colour slides. The images feature people and scenes in Fort Simpson, Snowdrift, Fort Norman and Fort Franklin. Many of the images are portraits of Dene people. There is also a series of colour slides showing a caribou being butchered. The fonds also includes a number of images of the Dene National General Assembly, held in Fort Good Hope, from July 22 to July 30, 1980.
Blondin, JohnThis fonds consists of audio reels, audiocassettes, microfilm and textual records that were created by linguist Dr. Robert Howren beginning in the late 1960s to 1982. The textual material is comprised of 28 notebooks containing his field notes. They are in several series: 1967, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1977, and 1982. The sound recordings, recorded mainly in Tlicho (Dogrib) but also in Chipewyan, Gwich'in, and North Slavey, include 114 audiocassettes and 231 audio reels, which, in the majority of cases correspond directly to the sound recordings. The audio reels range in date from the late 1960s to the late 1970s; the audiocassettes date mostly from 1982. The languages on the tapes and in the notebooks is mostly Tlicho (Dogrib), however, Dane-zaa (Beaver), Slave, North Slavey (Hare) and Sarcee are also included. The speakers on the tapes are mostly Vital Thomas, but also include: Madeline Ayah, Harry Bearlake, Alphonse Eronchi, Susie Abel, Rosa Mantla, Ernie Camsell, Elizabeth Mackenzie and John Mackenzie, among others. There are 6 reels of microfilm, five of which relate to Slave language grammars and lexicons that likely date from the 1950s or 1960s. The other reel, dated 1971, is marked only with the title Golla, V. Hupa.
Howren, RobertThis fonds consists of 96 copy photographs and slides taken by Bill Stewart of the Mooseskin Boat Project in 1981. The photographs were selected out of 180 of Bill Stewart's photographs. The images include the different phases of the boat under construction, the people involved in the project and views of the boat's trip from the point of construction at the head of the Keele River to Fort Norman.
Stewart, BillThis fonds consists of 10 DAT audio cassettes, 24 audio cassettes and 2 cm of textual material. The original 24 audiocassettes were copied to DAT in December 1995; the DAT audiocassettes now constitute the archival masters. The recordings are of Dene elders and other residents of the Nahanni area. The textual material includes correspondence and some transcribed material from the project. People interviewed include Elsie Marcellais, George Matou, Charlie Yohin, Harry Tesou, Joe Koniseta, Ted Trindell, Laura Vital and Philip Howard.
White, WendellThis fonds consists of 163 photographs (47 colour and 11 black and white copy negatives and 105 copy colour transparencies), 111 maps and map fragments and 20 cm of textual material. The 58 copy negatives and Simmons's journal document the construction of a mooseskin boat and its use. The boat was constructed between May 22 and 28, 1968, on the Gravel (Keele) River and taken down to Fort Norman (Tulita). People identified in the images include George and Vivian Pelissey, Gabe Etchinelle, Madeline Karcaji, Fred Andrew, and Jonas McCauley. The 105 colour transparencies date from 1967 through 1980 and depicts aboriginal life in the Mackenzie Mountain region including: caribou hunting, work on a moose hide boat, drying meat, fishing, camps, and Simmons's work with Dall's Sheep. The images includes views of the Moose Horn (Mountain) River, Caribou Flats by the Gravel River, Drum (Wrigley) Lake, and Punk Mountain. Included in the images are views of Gabriel Etchinelle, Jonas McCauley, Vivian McCauley, George Pelissey, Perry Linton, Leon Andrew, Jimmy Mendo, Maurice Mento, Cecile Hatchelle, Madeline Karkagie, Stella Mendo, Joe Blondin, David Yallee, Alfred Lennie and Gordon Yakelaya.
Also included in this fonds are a handwritten and typed English translation of the French article "Les Chitra-Gottineke" by Jean Michea, published in the National Museum of Canada Bulletin No. 190, "Contributions to Anthropology, Part II", 1960. Muriel Cooper, wife of Steve Cooper, Park Warden at Nahanni Butte, did the translation. The 111 maps and map fragments feature communities, lakes, rivers, canyons and mountain ranges from Fort Simpson up to the Mackenzie Delta region, and including the Yukon - NWT border. The field notes that accompany the maps include a 32 page typewritten gazetteer, as well as the handwritten notes for the gazetteer. There are also handwritten lists recording information about traditional place names of features in the Mackenzie Mountains. Simmons informants included Gabriel Etchinelle, Madeline Karkagie, George Pellissey, Vivian McCauley,and Maurice and Stella Mendo. The place names were written in a 'folk' phonetic form but a few are written by the elders are in syllabics. Files include research notes, field notes, drafts of papers and correspondence related to his studies of Dall's sheep in the Mackenzie Mountains in the 1970s, and correspondence with anthropologists such as Beryl Gillespie.
Simmons, Norm, 1934-2016This fonds consists of one DAT audio cassette and 5 cm of textual material. The DAT audio cassette contains a recording of Dr. Cass in early 1980, dictating letters for her secretary. She discusses her health and her recent trip to Brazil with the International Society of Geographic Opthalmology. The textual material consists of transcripts that contain Dr. Cass' personal observations on the Gwich'in. These observations were made in 1959. Her recollections cover such topics as puberty, religious beliefs, burial customs, personal hygiene, marriage, music and dancing. She has also recorded many of the Gwich'in stories and legends that were related to her by such individuals as Paul Bonnetplume (Aklavik), Annie McPherson (Fort McPherson), Peter Lord (Old Crow, Yukon), Lazarus Sittichinli, Peter Moses and Edward Snowshoe. Although many of the legends relate to medicine men, Dr. Cass also recounts stories about the Willow Man, the Ungrateful Indian, Sakeethuck the "Trickster," the Crow Who Lost His Beak, the Lazy Boy, three stories about Bushmen [Hare and Slavey Indians] and a two hour saga about two brothers as told to her by Edward Snowshoe. The remaining textual material consists of reports written by Dr. Elizabeth Cass. The reports examine blindness and eye problems amongst children and adults in the Northwest Territories. There are charts and graphs included in the reports.
Cass, ElizabethPhotographs include images of Inuit constructing igloos, a confirmation ceremony at the Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Yellowknife, a plaquing ceremony in Fort McPherson, the visit of Governor General Lord Tweedsmuir (John Buchan) to Aklavik in 1937, the communities of Aklavik, Fort Simpson, Coppermine (Kugluktuk) and Hay River, and images of Chief Johnny Kay [Kyikavichik], Chief Johnny Charlie, Andrew Kunnizzi, Terry Buckle, Robert Simpson, R. P. Malis, Bishop Archibald Fleming, and Bishop Stringer.
The textual material includes a typed manuscript by Henry G. Cook of the prayers, creeds and blessings translated into the Slavey language, dated 1938 and a handwritten dictionary of the Slavey translations of English words, compiled by Bishop J.R. Lucas in 1914, and an 11-page typescript manuscript written by Mr. Cook entitled "Early Education in the North". Also included are ephemera collected by Rev. Cook including a program of a Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada plaquing ceremony held in Fort McPherson on July 7, 1977; programs, booklets, and correspondence related to Anglican clergy in the NWT; and booklets related to the history of the North, as well as copies of the Captain Al Cohol comic books produced by the Government of the Northwest Territories.
Cook, Henry G.This fonds consists of 92 photographs and 70 audio reels (original master) copied from records loaned to the NWT Archives by Nick Sibbeston and 71 sound CDs (archival master). The original Sibbeston family photographs believed to date from the 1930s to the 1960s, feature the Fort Simpson area although few of the images have identifications. The original audio recordings probably all date from the 1970s and include episodes of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) program "Dene Gonde" and recordings of the General Assembly of the Metis Association of the Northwest Territories in Fort Providence during the fall of 1976.
Sibbeston, NickThis collection consists of copies of 282 photographs in print and negative format, 107 audio recordings and one folder of textual material collected by the Gwich'in Language and Cultural Project in 1983 and 1984. The photographs were loaned to the project by Fort McPherson residents: Effie Thomas, Doris Lester, Mary Wilson, Laura Firth, Mary Jane Kunnizzi, Mary Francis, Louise Snowshoe, Tabitha Nerysoo, and the Chief Julius School. The original images appear to date from the 1940s to the 1970s and feature people and locations in the Fort McPherson area. Most of the audio recordings are from the Committee for Original Peoples' Entitlement (COPE) collection, except for 18 recordings identified as "Land Research Series." All recordings date from 1972 to 1977. The two items of textual material were collected from the Chief Julius School, and along with photographs, made up part of a booklet produced for a class history project. The items are a copy of a 1918 letter from Reverend Alfred J. Vale, and a copy of the poem "The Mackenzie River Band." A photocopy of the booklet is available
Gwich'in Language and Cultural ProjectThis fonds consists of two identical posters titled "Our Land, Our Life", and 2 cm of textual material. The material is made up of two copies of the "Dene Declaration: Statement of Rights" on broadsides, and one "Public Notice" from the Chiefs in Council. There is also one illustrated calendar produced by the Dene Nation for the 12-month period from May 1979 to April 1980. Included are chronologies of important events in the history of the Dene, descriptions of Dene culture and images of Dene people.
Dene NationThis collection consists of copies of books, articles, maps, photographs and other materials, created by or about Father Emile Petitot. The material was accumulated by Donat Savoie in the 1970s during his employment with the federal Department of Indian and Northern Affairs. The materials include approximately 2 meters of textual records, over 150 photographs, 13 maps and other ephemera. The textual materials consist of photocopies of writings of Petitot and articles, notes and bibliographies on Petitot's works by other authors. There are copies of letters by Father Jean Sequin, who was at Fort Good Hope with Father Petitot, and Donat Savoie's notes on the Metis taken from Petitot's works. The photographs consist primarily of images of engravings and drawings by Petitot, and a few by other artists, depicting the Dene, Metis, Inuit, and their cultures. Many of the illustrations appear in Petitot's and Savoie's books. Also included are photographs of Petitot and the Fort Good Hope church. There are additional images of a 1975 plaque ceremony honouring Emile Petitot at Mareuil-les-Meaux, France and Anglican Church photographs collected by Savoie. The maps consist of copies of maps by Emile Petitot, 5 maps produced for Annexe 2 'Inventaire toponymique: Cartes geographiques d'Emile Petitot' of "L'Occupation territoriale chez les amerindiens du nord-ouest canadien au XIXe siecle selon Emile Petitot: Land Occupancy by the Amerindians of the Canadian Northwest in the 19th Century, according to Emile Petitot" by Rachelle Castonguay and another 4 maps related to volume two of that publication. The latter represent Petitot's interpretation of native land use and occupancy in the Athabasca-Mackenzie region up to the 1880s and illustrate: Indigenous toponymy; land occupancy; native activities and native groups in various areas. Additional materials in this collection include copies of birth certificates for Emile Petitot and members of his family and copies of newspaper clippings on Petitot.
Father Emile Petitot Research CollectionThis fonds consists of 299 colour slides, 19 colour prints and 273 black and white prints. The majority of the photographs are of Frank and Grace McCall's time spent in the Mackenzie Delta (Aklavik - Reindeer Station) in the 1940s, Yellowknife (1940s - 1970s) and Ft. Smith in the (1950s and 1960s). The series of print photographs focussing on Yellowknife include images relating to transportation, recreation, mining, and scenery. Negus Mine, Con Mine, Jolliffe Island, the Wildcat Café, water taxis, floatplanes, and cat trains are featured, along with Yellowknife residents Tom Doornbos and John Anderson Thomson. The series of print photographs focussing on Aklavik include images relating to reindeer herding, transportation, and aerial photographs. A third series of print photographs, entitled Northern Miscellaneous, covers various subjects, including a trip Frank McCall took in his capacity as Regional Administrator to communities such as Banks Island, Holman Island, Coppermine (Kugluktuk), Spence Bay (Taloyoak) and Pelly Bay to talk to residents about a Resource Program. The two textual documents are programs for the official openings of the Yellowknife United Church in 1958 and Bristol Memorial Park in 1970.
McCall (family)This fonds consists of materials related to a project undertaken by the Lac La Martre Senior Room for the 1978 Explore Our Northern Heritage competition. Under the guidance of elders from the Lac La Martre Community Education Council, the students made a bush canoe and a caribou skin jacket and documented the process for the competition. The material in this fonds consists of 1 cm of textual material, 31 photographs, 1 DAT audiocassette, two original master audio cassettes, two 8mm films and 1 Betacam videocassette. The textual material and the photographs (:0005 - :0035) are part of a book created by the students entitled "Picture Book on Making a Bush Canoe." The DAT audiocassette contains a recording of Francis Moosenose interviewing Joe Zoe Fish on "How to make a Bush Canoe (:0001) and a recording of Eva Nitsiza's interview with her mother Dora on "How to Make a Fancy Caribou Jacket" (:0002). The original two audiocassettes were reformatted to DAT in 1993. The DAT audiocassette is now the archival master. There are two 8mm films and one Betacam copy of the films, which is the archival master. The films document "Making a Bush Canoe" (:0003); "Making a Fancy Caribou Jacket" (:0004).
Lac La Martre Community Education CommitteeThis fonds consists of 10 cm of textual material, 1 microfilm reel, 2 film reels, and 1 Umatic video. The textual material includes dictionaries and grammars compiled by Father LeMeur and Father Metayer. In addition, there are two reels of the film "Arctic Missions of the Mackenzie," and a copy of the film on one Umatic videocassette. This fonds also includes one reel of microfilm containing a volume of Dene family genealogies.
Oblates of Mary ImmaculateThis fonds consists of approximately 51 meters of textual records, approximately 116 photographs, and 31 maps created and accumulated by the Northern Administration Branch and its various predecessors, from 1920 to 1978. The material was generated by the Federal government's activities in administering the Northwest Territories. Most of the records (over 34 m of textual records) are composed of files transferred from Ottawa to Yellowknife beginning in 1967, and include administrative and operational files. The majority of these files date between 1949 and 1967 and incorporate: correspondence, reports, vital statistic information, financial data, minutes, and a wide variety of reference material kept by the department. The files were classified via a numerical block system. The block system consisted of primary, secondary and tertiary levels such that a composite file number (for example 311-105-93) would represent a progression from general subject matter to a specific subject and/or location. The following primary blocks arrange the files:
100 - Administration;
200 - Economic and Industrial Development;
300 - Engineering Projects;
400 - Forests and Game;
500 - Public Service;
600 - Education;
1000 - General files on settlements, associations, companies, provinces, foreign countries, Inuit affairs, and resources;
20 - Individual case files;
3 - Personnel and organizational files.
None of the 700, 800 or 900 block files were forwarded to the NWT Archives. Moreover, at the time of transfer from Ottawa, it appears that other records from the file blocks brought to Yellowknife were culled in Ottawa. In addition, not all government functions were transferred in 1967, and some files contain records generated after 1967 from the continued administration of a function either by the federal government or from the use of the files by the new Territorial Government. A small number of photographs were located in the files during processing, however, these images have been left in their original files.
Additional accruals to this fonds make up another 10 meters of textual records and include the Northern Administration Branch records from the Fort Churchill district office dating from 1960 to 1970, and Western Arctic education records from 1964 to 1969. Another accrual of 7 meters of textual records documents the administration of trapping and hunting in the Northwest Territories, including correspondence, Superintendent of Game daily journals, game officer daily diaries and monthly reports, meeting minutes and materials, wildlife publications and reports, procedures, registered trapping area files, licence applications and licences, hunting and trapping returns, and fur export tax returns.
Other records of this fonds consist of: four ledgers kept between 1920 and 1967 documenting fur trapping and fur trading activities, four ledgers documenting fur and game take and value on registered trap lines, various licensing, and scientific research work; budget papers including estimates, expenditure statements and capital substantiation reports for 1966 to 1969; 2 supplementary readers, "Nuna" and "The Story of Papik an Eskimo Boy" compiled by the Curriculum Section of the Education Division from the journals of young Inuit children; and a 1954 report produced by C.C. Johnson, a Resident Engineer from Fort Smith. This report, entitled "Preliminary Report, Mackenzie Highway - Mills Lake Road" includes 31 corner mounted photographic prints and 16 black and white negatives. The report discusses plans to build a road to Mills Landing. In addition, there are copies of the Eskimo Bulletin dated from 1953-1959. The Eskimo Bulletin was produced by the Northern Administration and Land Branch in order to teach Inuit the English language.
Canada. Northern Administration BranchThis fonds consists of one reel of colour 8 mm film (original master) of what was likely the Native Women's Association of the NWT first conference, held in July 1977. The film, approximately 175 feet in length, runs ten minutes. The film was transferred to Betacam (archival master) in 1997.
Native Women's Association of the NWTThe fonds consists of 343 photographs (b&w negatives) of various Northwest Territories communities and events, taken by Tom Alföldi during the summer of 1971. The images include ground views and aerial views of Inuvik, Tuktoyaktuk, Hay River, Yellowknife, and Tsiigehtchic. There are also images of the Northern Games which were held in Inuvik, showing dancing, drumming, rat skinning, seal skinning, tea making, blanket toss, and spectators.
Alfoldi, TomThis fonds consists of 217 colour slides taken by Dr. Norris Hunt in 1968-1969. The photographs include images from Tuktoyaktuk, Aklavik, Arctic Red River (Tsiigehtchic), Holman Island, Cape Parry, Inuvik and the surrounding area. There are photographs of the DEW Line site and geological features such as pingos. There are images of nurses and physicians, medical evacuations, facilities and hospital patients, including images of Dr. Hunt instructing students in a classroom setting. There are photographs of the ski team and cross country skiers in Inuvik. There are photographs depicting events at the Miss Ice Worm pageant. There are aerial images of the area and photographs of typical housing and utilidors in Inuvik. There are unidentified photographs of people from the communities.
Hunt, NorrisThis accession consists of 7.5 cm of textual records comprised of academic publications authored by Miriam Leith, as well as a large number of draft and research notes produced by Ms. Leith in her research on northern food and nutrition as well as housing programs. Files also contain correspondence and reports concerning northing housing programs. Related to Ms. Leith's work with the Adult Housing Education Program. Also included in the collection are copies of diet information and recipes distributed to the local people. Some of these materials are written in syllabics.
Leith, MiriamThis fonds consists of approximately 35 cm of textual material comprised of correspondence and field research related to Nancy Lurie's ethnographic research with the Tłı̨chǫ (Dogrib) in Behchokǫ̀ (Rae) and Wha Ti (Lac La Martre), NWT. The correspondence dates from 1959-1963 and includes letters to and from June Helm, Susan Messerly and Nancy Lurie regarding fieldwork in Lac La Martre and Rae, as well as correspondence between Nancy Lurie and her husband Edward Lurie, written while she was doing fieldwork in 1959. In addition, there are letters from Alexis Nitsiza and Elsie Simpson that were written to Nancy Lurie while they were attending residential school in Yellowknife and in Fort Smith, as well as several handwritten notes requesting items such as sugar, tobacco and flour that were delivered to Nancy Lurie and June Helm by children in Lac La Martre. The remaining textual material consists of Lurie’s field notes and research papers from her ethnological research that was undertaken in Lac La Martre and Rae in 1959 and 1967. There are also index cards arranged by subject containing handwritten notes and observations made during Lurie’s field research.
Lurie, Nancy Oestreich