A Tragic Battle on the Red River near Pembina (1840)
In the early 1900s, an account of a battle between the Ojibwe and Mandan was recounted by Flying Nice – a warrior of the Pembina (Turtle...
Dibaajimowin Blog
- 6 days ago
- 1 min
Venison Wild Rice Stew
Wild Rice season is here, and hunting season is fast upon us, so here is a simple recipe for using your Wild Rice and your Venison in a...
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- Sep 15
- 1 min
Wild Rice Season: 1915
Ricing season is upon us. So in honor of this important time of the year, here are some unique, early historical photos of Wild Rice...
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- Aug 29
- 3 min
The Unique Red River People
In the 1885 book “The Indian sign language”, a very detailed description of the Red River Half-breeds is given by the author, with a...
644 views1 comment
- Jul 25
- 3 min
The Rules of the Hunt
One of the most important roles of the okitcita (or warriors) was to regulate the tribal buffalo hunt of the Anishinaabek. Their main job...
646 views0 comments
- Jul 13
- 3 min
Ojibwe Lacrosse (1804)
When assembled in the summer season at the Company's forts, or at any other general rendezvous, it is customary with them [the Ojibwe],...
447 views0 comments
- Jul 8
- 2 min
Pseudo-Science to steal land
In 1906, Congress passed an Act (amended in 1907), authorizing mixed-blood Indians on White Earth Reservation, Minnesota, to sell the...
252 views0 comments
- Jun 10
- 3 min
Allotments and Inherited Wealth
The Homestead Act was passed on May 20, 1862, and signed into law by Abraham Lincoln, providing up to 160 acres of land free of cost. An...
237 views0 comments
- Apr 13
- 6 min
Bear Woman: A Tragic Tale
There once was an Ojibwe girl who lived a very tragic life. She was one of three surviving members of a family of seven, the others...
130 views0 comments
- Mar 28
- 4 min
Enfranchisement of Women
Beginning with the Gradual Enfranchisement Act, and replicated in the Indian Act of 1876, Indian women who married non-treaty Indian men,...
320 views0 comments
- Mar 23
- 10 min
A Year in the Life
A narrative covering the entire cycle of the year was recorded by anthropologist Frances Densmore, in 1929, which provides a unique look...
510 views1 comment
- Mar 22
- 3 min
Strange Deaths after 7 Oaks
Sixty-five men accompanied Cuthbert Grant during the Battle at Frog Plain (aka Seven Oaks). Of this number, only one man was killed and...
190 views0 comments
- Mar 22
- 3 min
No Love for the White Man
While relations between European settlers and the Metis were generally amicable -- Metis often serving as employees of fur posts, as...
196 views1 comment
- Mar 21
- 2 min
Indigenous Super-Food
By almost any account you read regarding the subsistence of the indigenous people of the prairies, it is indisputable that Pemmican was...
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- Mar 21
- 3 min
Blending and Benefit
How did the Métis become such a large part of the Turtle Mountain Band? The answer is complicated, but it is one that is based on...
1,139 views1 comment
- Mar 21
- 2 min
A Search for the Hunters
In 1856, Colonel C. F. Smith led a military expedition to the Pembina area, to find out where a military post might be erected to serve...
114 views0 comments
- Feb 10
- 3 min
Metis Remembrances
Below are two stories found in an old copy of the Bureau of Indian Affairs news sheet "Indians at Work" - a publication that was printed...
1,426 views1 comment
- Dec 31, 2021
- 2 min
A Very Michif New Year
In his book, "Indian Boyhood", Charles Eastman (Sisseton Dakota) described the events of his first New Years celebration at a winter camp...
1,198 views4 comments
- Dec 20, 2021
- 2 min
Dashing through the snow
For the Ojibwe and other northern people, snow shoes (or aagime) were essential to winter travel, survival, and hunting. The wooden frame...
290 views0 comments
- Dec 12, 2021
- 3 min
About Ojibwe Fishing
Fishing was an industry which happened throughout entire year. In the late spring, the people would usually move directly from their...
327 views0 comments