Tidbits to Know

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• The Blackfoot used the Buffalo Jump to slaughter large numbers of buffalo. Women and children would be positioned behind piles of stones arranged in a ‘V’ shape that narrowed to a point at the edge of a steep cliff. Buffalo were enticed to enter the wedge by a hunter disguised in a buffalo robe. Other people would follow the buffalo, yelling and flapping robes and waving the scent of burning cedar in the air. The buffalo were tricked into thinking there was a fire, and they would stampede over the edge of the cliff. Hunters would then shoot arrows down to make sure there were no survivors.
  
  
• In 1772 a smallpox epidemic swept through the prairie regions, killing large numbers of people, most of whom were Aboriginal.
  
  
• The Crowsnest Pass received its name from the Blackfoot People who discovered ‘the nest of the crow’ close to the Stony Mountains on a horse stealing raid. While they were hiding in the pass, they killed every crow, hence the name ‘crowsnest pass.’
  
  
• Treaty 6 was signed in 1876 and covers central Saskatchewan and Alberta. It was signed at Fort Carlton by the Chipewyan, Wood Cree, Plains Cree and Assiniboine.
  
  
• Treat 7 was signed in 1877 and covers southern Alberta. It was signed by the Blackfoot, Blood, Peigan, Sarcee, Stony, Chipewyan and Assiniboine.
  
  
• Treaty 8 was signed in 1899 in northern Alberta and northwestern Saskatchewan. The treaty was signed by Cree, Chipewyan and Beaver.
  
  
• Out of the 11 treaties signed in Canada, the Ojibwa Nation signed nine.
  
  
• By 1888 the Great Plains were totally cleared of buffalo, including their bones. It was if the estimated 50-100 million buffalo had never existed.
  
  
• By 1900 it is believed that just over 1,000 buffalo remained. It is also believed that close to 70 million buffalo were slaughtered, representing the largest animal slaughter known to date. At the beginning of the 21st century, there are only 350,000 buffalo in existence.
  
  
• It wasn’t until 1960 that Aboriginal People in Canada won the full right to vote in provincial and federal elections.
  
  
• The Kainaiwa or Blood Reserve is the largest in Canada. It is located 200 km south of Calgary, near Cardston and Lethbridge.
  
  
• Early in the 1800s, the Bloods lived and hunted primarily in southern and eastern Alberta. Some of their favorite hunting grounds were located near Drumheller and Lethbridge. They often spent winters along the Belly, Highwood and Battle Rivers.
  
  
• The Peigans were the smallest band to sign Treaty 7.
  
  
• The Peigans were the first band in Alberta to demand the right to vote in provincial elections.
  
  

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