by Mary Simpson, Old River Farm, Mosa Township, Treaty 21.
Attending Mark French’s presentation at the Glencoe and District Historical Society (18 March 2026) felt like waking up to a responsibility I had never fully acknowledged. Mark, an Elder from Deshkan Ziibiing (Chippewas of the Thames First Nation) and husband of our G&DHS treasurer Diana Jedig, spoke about treaties not as dry legal relics but as living relationships.
As a farmer and settler whose family names – Simpson, Moorehouse, Pearce, McEachran, Stalker – are written into this land, his words left me moved. We begin meetings with a land acknowledgement, yet what follows? Learning about the treaties themselves, understanding how they were made in good faith, and recognizing the complex histories and losses Indigenous peoples have endured are our next steps. This piece is my attempt to articulate what I learned.
Mark French explains the significance of this wampum belt. March 18, 2026. Read more →
It’s been called the Indigenous Magna Carta and the Indigenous Bill of Rights. But what exactly does that mean? In this episode Falen and Leah dive into the history of the Royal Proclamation, a document that is often spoken about when discussing the history of Canada and Indigenous land rights. But what do we really know about it? link to podcast
Incudes detail from Rick Hill about wampum belts and the canoe analogy.
Allen Deleary of Bkejwanong (Walpole Island First Nation) speaking recently at a special Indigenous Lifeways Workshop locally. Allen shared teachings and insights from Anishinaabe traditions, exploring how Indigenous lifeways continue to guide relationships with the land, water, and one another. The evening included a community discussion, offering space for reflection, dialogue, and shared understanding:
Allen Deleary of Bkejwanong
And then there are the Elders:
Simon Winchester:
They keep a steady hand upon the tiller. That, in essence, seems to be the greatest and most enduring strength of aboriginal peoples around the world. The frantic pace of modern life, the endless bursts of technological advance, the alarums and excursions, and our various political and military adventures all come and go, but all the while and in the background, keeping their wary and watchful eyes upon us, are the wise ones…
Dr. Cody Groat shared a deeply personal and powerful presentation about the Sixties Scoop through the story of his late father, Bill Groat. About 45 people attended this moving presentation. Thank you staff of Glencoe Library for working with the historical society to build a wonderful partnership.
A survivor of this dark chapter in Canadian history, Bill was a Kanyen’kehaka (Mohawk) child raised in a foster home in Newbury, Ontario, before returning to his biological parents—survivors of the Indian Residential School System—in London, Ontario.
Patrick Johnston, a researcher for the Canadian Council on Social Development, first used the term “Sixties Scoop” in his 1983 report on Indigenous children in the child welfare system, entitled Native Children and the Child Welfare System. In the report, Johnston describes the large-scale apprehension of Indigenous children in the 1960s from their homes, communities and families of birth — often without their parents’ or band’s consent — and their subsequent adoption into predominantly non-Indigenous families across the United States and Canada. The Sixties Scoop was not an isolated event propelled by inferior Indigenous parenting, but rather an extension of paternalistic policies in Canada that sought the assimilation of Indigenous cultures and communities. Ref: The Canadian Encyclopedia
Dr. Groat is an Assistant Professor in the Department of History and Indigenous Studies at Western University, and a citizen of the Kanyen’kehaka nation and Six Nations of the Grand River Reserve. In 2025, he received the King Charles III Coronation Medal for his work promoting Canadian heritage.
Check out Dr. Groat commenting on the return of items from the Vatican: https://youtu.be/MBx30UPx2jM?si=yb779M12tfELPxil. He talks with APTN’s Creeson Agecoutay about the Indigenous artifacts coming into Canada from the Vatican.
What happens when the story gets twisted? The story keeper and the storyteller got their wires crossed. Bunny, the story keeper, decided to tell a different story about her son. And the extended family all colluded. Eventually the son found out his true story – ‘the last man standing’. Tom Wilson discovered he is a descendant of mohawk warriors, hunters and chiefs …but he was denied the truth until he was in his 50s. You can see his artwork at the TAP Centre of Creativity until December 21st. Now he gets to tell his story – his story can be viewed here on film.
Everyone has a story. And all our stories are compelling and amazing. Why not write yours down for your descendants? Our children want to know about their ancestors and our ancestors want us to tell their stories. Truth preferred – the truth as we know it and have experienced it. Story keepers and story tellers. – Mary Simpson
Art by Tom Wilson
TAP Centre for Creativity presented Mohawk Warriors, Hunters and Chiefs, a solo exhibition of the artwork of Tom Wilson tehohåhake (two roads). Tom is a musician, writer and visual artist based in Hamilton, Ontario. Tom’s art exhibition ended December 21, 2024
Reverend Enos Montour (1898-1985) was a United Church minister and writer from Six Nations of the Grand River Territory.
Over the course of his retirement, Rev. Montour wrote a collection of stories about Mount Elgin Industrial School at the time he attended (ca.1910-1915). Mount Elgin is one the earliest United Church-run Indian Residential Schools and was located on the Chippewas of the Thames First Nation. With the help of Dr. Elizabeth Graham, Montour finished and titled his book Brown Tom’s Schooldays.
With no publisher in sight, photocopies were made and distributed to family members in the early 1980s. This important book is difficult to find today, so Professor McCallum, worked with the University of Manitoba Press, Dr. Graham, and Montour’s two granddaughters Mary I. Anderson and Margaret Mackenzie, to issue a new edition.
