Beaverhouse First Nation is an Indigenous first nation located on the banks Kirkland Lake in the

Misema River The Misema River is a river in Timiskaming District and Cochrane District in Northeastern Ontario, Canada. It is in the Saint Lawrence River drainage basin and is a left tributary of the Blanche River. Course The river begins at Sullivan Lake ...

system. After initially being excluded from the

Treaty 9 ''Treaty No. 9'' (also known as ''The James Bay Treaty'') is a numbered treaty first signed in 1905–1906 between Anishinaabe ( Algonquin and Ojibwe) and Omushkegowuk Cree communities and the Canadian Crown, which includes both the gov ...

agreement between Indigenous nations and Canada, the government of Canada officially recognized Beaverhouse First Nation in April 2022.

Nomenclature

The name comes from the

Algonquin Algonquin or Algonquian—and the variation Algonki(a)n—may refer to: Languages and peoples *Algonquian languages, a large subfamily of Native American languages in a wide swath of eastern North America from Canada to Virginia **Algonquin la ...

name of the

''Maaseema Qweesh'' whereby ''Queesh'' means the home of a beaver.Hedican, E. J. (2017). The First Nations of Ontario: Social and Historical Transitions. Canada: Canadian Scholars. p161

Location

Beaverhouse First Nation is located on a

peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

the banks Kirkland Lake in the

system and lacks easy road access. Access is usually done by boat in the summer season and by snowmobile in the winter.

History

Beaverhouse First Nation was excluded from the

agreement between other Indigenous nations and Canada, resulting in it being designated a "non-status" first nation, until 2022 Historically, much of the land around where Beaverhouse First Nation people live was claimed by

Timiskaming First Nation Timiskaming (former official designation Timiskaming 19) is a First Nations reserve in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region of Quebec, Canada, just north of the head of Lake Timiskaming. It belongs to the Timiskaming First Nation, an Algonquin ...

. Beaverhouse First Nation is a member of the Wabun Tribal Council. In May 2016, Chief Brown Martel criticized government minister David Zimmer for what she described as a failure of the Canadian government to provide land to the nation. In 2018, Beaverhouse First Nation Community submitted a claim to the Government of

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, asserting that it is a distinct First Nation and did not sign

, or any other treaty. The claim was supported by the Nishnawbe-Aski Nation regional association and the Wabun Tribal Council. In April 2019, the government advised the nation that it will complete an assessment of the claim submission. The Government of Canada officially recognized Beaverhouse as a First Nation as defined by Section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982 in April 2022.

Leadership

Roy Meaniss was the chief in the 1980s, followed by Gloria McKenzie. Marcia Brown Martel (later known as Sally Susan Mathias-Martel) became the chief in 2011 until at least 2018 and from 2021 the chief has been Wayne Wabie.

Demographics

The population was about 285 in 2017.

References

External links

Wabun Tribal Council web page on Beaverhouse Nation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beaverhouse First Nation First Nations in Ontario Algonquin