The Bigstone Cree Nation () is a First Nations

band government In Canada, an Indian band (), First Nation band () or simply band, is the basic unit of government for those peoples subject to the ''Indian Act'' (i.e. status Indians or First Nations). Bands are typically small groups of people: the largest in ...

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

, Canada. As

Woodland Cree The ''Sakāwithiniwak'' or Woodland Cree, are a Cree people, calling themselves Nîhithaw in their own dialect of the language. They are the largest indigenous group in northern Alberta and are an Algonquian people. Prior to the 18th century, ...

, they are a western branch of the larger

Cree The Cree, or nehinaw (, ), are a Indigenous peoples of the Americas, North American Indigenous people, numbering more than 350,000 in Canada, where they form one of the country's largest First Nations in Canada, First Nations. They live prim ...

nation, and are a party to

Treaty 8 Treaty 8, which concluded with the June 21, 1899, signing by representatives of the Crown and various First Nations of the Lesser Slave Lake area, is the most comprehensive of the eleven Numbered Treaties. The agreement encompassed a land m ...

with Canada. The Bigstone Cree Nation was divided into two bands in 2010, with one group continuing under the former name, and the other becoming the

Peerless Trout First Nation The Peerless Trout First Nation is a First Nations band government in northern Alberta, Canada, that is based out of Peerless Lake. It is part of the Treaty 8 Confederacy and was formed as Alberta's forty-fifth First Nations in Canada, First ...

History

The forerunners of the Bigstone Cree signed onto Treaty 8 in 1899 and were provided with reserved lands based on a population survey. The Bigstone claimed that the lands they were assigned were not large enough based on the 1913 and 1937 population surveys. Band members settled into five communities all named after nearby lakes: Calling Lake, Chipewyan Lake, Peerless Lake, Trout Lake and Wabasca. The band has six reserves totalling . These included 166 A, 166 B, 166 C, 166 D, all in the vicinity of the Hamlet of Wabasca (also known as Wabasca-Desmarais), 166 south of the Hamlet of Sandy Lake, and Jean Baptiste Gambler Reserve 183 surrounded by the Hamlet of Calling Lake. All of these reserves are surrounded by the Municipal District of Opportunity No. 17. In 2007, there were 6,781

registered Registered may refer to: * Registered mail, letters, packets or other postal documents considered valuable and in need of a chain of custody * Registered trademark symbol, symbol ® that provides notice that the preceding is a trademark or service ...

Bigstone Cree, of which 2,397 were living on

reserve Reserve or reserves may refer to: Places * Reserve, Kansas, a US city * Reserve, Louisiana, a census-designated place in St. John the Baptist Parish * Reserve, Montana, a census-designated place in Sheridan County * Reserve, New Mexico, a US v ...

. The people living at Chipewyan Lake, Peerless Lake, and Trout Lake and lived off-reserve on

Crown land Crown land, also known as royal domain, is a territorial area belonging to the monarch, who personifies the Crown. It is the equivalent of an entailed estate and passes with the monarchy, being inseparable from it. Today, in Commonwealth realm ...

and did not have access to the same services available to those at Wabasca. The Canadian government accepted the claim in 1998 and negotiations began which resulted in a settlement in 2010, the largest land settlement in Alberta's history. The agreement ended with the separation of the Peerless Trout First Nation from the Bigstone Cree, and new reserve lands for both bands. The Calling Lake reserve was slightly enlarged and a new reserve was created at Chipewyan Lake.

Annual events

The Bigstone Cree First Nation host the annual Treaty Days Festivities in August of each year, celebrating their culture, language and achievements.

Reserves

Indian Reserves In Canada, an Indian reserve () or First Nations reserve () is defined by the ''Indian Act'' as a "tract of land, the legal title to which is vested in Her Majesty, that has been set apart by Her Majesty for the use and benefit of a band." R ...

under the administration of Bigstone Cree Nation are: * Wabasca 166 () 8452.40 ha * Wabasca 166A () 682.10 ha * Wabasca 166B () 2413.40 ha * Wabasca 166C () 3502.60 ha * Wabasca 166D () 5817.40 ha * Jean Baptiste Gambler 183 198.70 ha *Desmarais Settlement

Notable people

Lance Cardinal, a visual artist who hosts the APTN children's art education series ''

Indigenous Art Adventures ''Indigenous Art Adventures'' is a Canadian children's television series, which premiered in 2024 on Aboriginal Peoples Television Network. Hosted by Lance Cardinal, a two-spirit visual artist and educator from the Bigstone Cree Nation, the series ...

'', is a member of the Bigstone Cree Nation.Sav Jonsa
"New children’s show on APTN a full circle journey for Two-Spirit host"
''

APTN News ''APTN National News'' is a Canadian television national news program broadcast by the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The program produces a single half hour of news each day, broadcasts at 6 and 11:30&nbs ...

'', September 14, 2023.

References

External links