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Category: First Nations

Leonard Marchand

Posted on by Vernon Museum

 

A black and white photo of a man wearing a suit jacket and tie, sitting in a chair with his legs crossed. Beside him, a man in a pinstripe suit is speaking into a microphone.
Len Marchand, left, in 1978; seated next to him is Pierre Trudeau, speaking to CKOV Radio during his visit to the Okanagan.

National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

The solemn occasion of National Day for Truth and Reconciliation provides an opportunity to revisit the legacy of Leonard Marchand, a Vernon-born politician who was the first First Nations person to serve as a parliamentarian.

Marchand was born on November 16, 1933. As a child, he attended the Okanagan Day School and the Kamloops Residential School, before graduating from the University of British Columbia with a Bachelor of Science. In 1964, he completed a Master’s in Range Management at the University of Idaho.

Indigenous Activism

Marchand worked as an agronomist until the mid-60s, when he began working with the North American Indian Brotherhood, a national lobby group founded in 1945. One major factor which motivated Marchand to become an activist was the denial of the Indigenous Right to Vote. Although this was granted in 1960, Marchand voted for the first time in 1958, illegally, as a form of protest. His Indigenous activism took him to Ottawa, where he was elected to the House of Commons in 1968.

Throughout his political career, Marchand frequently advanced the goals of Reconciliation. As parliamentary secretary to Jean Chrétien, who was then serving as Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, he helped convince Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau to begin land settlement negotiations between the Federal Government and First Nations. Marchand later described this as the action of which he was most proud in all his career, alongside forming and chairing the Standing Senate Committee on Aboriginal Peoples.

PARLIMENTARIAN

In 1976, Marchand was appointed to Cabinet as Minister of State for Small Business. A year later, he was promoted to the position of Minister of the Environment, which he held until 1979. In 1984, Marchand was appointed to Senate, the second First Nations individual to hold this role. Marchand retired in 1998 at the age of 64 and passed away on June 3, 2016.

Leonard Marchand paved the way for other Indigenous individuals to pursue a career in politics, ensuring that their voices would remain at the forefront of national affairs, and that Reconciliation and its goals would stay in the public spotlight.

 

To explore more of Vernon’s history, check out our other blog posts!

Gwyneth Evans, Head of Archives

 

 

 

The Poet Passing Through

Posted on by Vernon Museum

 

For the summer months, we are thrilled to present a series of blog posts by Collections Intern Rebeka Beganova. Rebeka (she/her) is a post-secondary student with a passion for research, literature, and history. Having completed an Associate of Arts Degree at Okanagan College, she is glad to be joining the MAV team during her last summer in Vernon before heading off to UBC Vancouver. There is no better way to say goodbye to her hometown than to explore its local history!

A young woman wearing a necklace of bear claws and a traditional Indigenous outfit is staring away from the camera.
E. Pauline Johnson, photographed ca. 1895. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons (Public Domain).

“Unforeseen audacities”

In April of 1899, a shining star passed through Vernon that turned many curious heads. Emily Pauline Johnson, Indigenous poet and reciter, came to town for a week of performance and thrilling sensation. Her appearances quickly became the center of local attention. Johnson was indeed already a figure of well-known talent. Her stay in Vernon earned her a spotlight in the papers and praise from an audience self-reportedly “not the easiest persons in the world to please.” Her likeableness stemmed – for this city’s folk – from her eloquence, captivation, humour, and humility. In one sitting, she could put her audience in stitches, then minutes later mesmerize them with heart-stopping lyrics.

Her popularity may be surprising to us now, knowing what we do about the social dynamics in 1899. We may wonder what it was like for Johnson, as an Indigenous woman, to stand alone before an overwhelmingly white audience holding, at best, thinly-veiled racist attitudes. Reports about Johnson bear the mark of white bias; her style is described as “full of unforeseen audacities” and at the same time, “a lofty strain of the purest patriotism.” Especially compared to Johnson’s own self-image, these interpretations call into question whether the audience, who so adored E. Pauline Johnson, really understood her messages at all.

Tekahionwake

Johnson was half Indigenous and half English. Her father, G.H.M. Johnson, was Chief of the Mohawk Tribe, part of the Iroquois Six Nations. Her mother, Emily S. Howell, hailed from Bristol. Much of Pauline Johnson’s writing centered around her Indigenous background and emphasized the relationship – the violence and disrespect – spearheaded by white settlers toward her people. She went by her Mohawk name, Tekahionwake, just as her father had his: Onwanonsyshon.

Her pride in her Indigenous identity further muddles Vernon’s reaction to her performances. It is hard to imagine the population of 1899 welcoming with open arms a public figure that challenged so many of their social, political, and religious convictions. Much of her poetry was not subtle, either. “A Cry from an Indian Wife,” for example, concludes with the lines: “By right, by birth we Indians own these lands, / Though starved, crushed, plundered, lies our nation low. / Perhaps the white man’s God has willed it so.” Her meaning is unmistakable.

Message not received

The prolific poet passed away in Vancouver in 1913 after battling cancer. News of her death reached Vernon to much despair and grief. An article was published in the Vernon News detailing her passing, an article that spanned two entire page-long columns. The account included a short description of her early life as well as her accomplishments as an artist. It was undeniably a heart-felt tribute.

It is left for us to ponder, then, the paradox of E. Pauline Johnson’s impact and the simultaneous persistence of unchecked anti-Indigenous racism in Vernon. Her words pierced so deeply, yet her message was somehow lost in translation – ignored, as is very likely the case. Johnson’s denunciation of colonialism must be remembered now, even if it was not then. The introduction to her book, The Shagganappi, quotes of her: “Never let anyone call me a white woman. There are those who think they pay me a compliment in saying that I am just like a white woman. My aim, my joy, my pride is to sing the glories of my own people.”

 

To explore more of Vernon’s history, check out our other blog posts!

Rebeka Beganova, Collections Intern

 

 

The Gregoire Family Cowboys

Posted on by Vernon Museum

 

Vernon's Okanagan Indian Band Mural. An older indigenous man with gray hair wearing a cowboy hat is located on the left of the image. He is smiling and wearing a blue plaid shirt. Next to him is a woman, smiling slightly, and wearing an orange head scarf, and a white and orange scarf around her neck. To her right is a blue stylized eagle, wolf, and sea serpent design. The background shows a blue, multicoloured lake, with green forests and blue mountains in the background. The blue-black sky is doted with pink clouds.
Tommy Gregoire is immortalized on the left side of Vernon’s Okanagan Indian Band mural, which was completed by Michelle Loughery and her team in 2001. If you are interested in learning more of the stories behind the murals, take a tour! 

This weekend marks the 2022 Historic O’Keefe Ranch’s Cowboy Poetry and Music Festival.

Considering that the first non-Indigenous settlements to emerge in the Okanagan Valley were cowtowns—communities that appeared at the junction of railroads and livestock trails—Vernon has long boasted a healthy population of cowboys.

Men like Cornelius O’Keefe are often remembered for participating in the Okanagan Valley cattle drives of the 1860s, but even during their time, it was known that the best ropers and riders belonged to the Okanagan Nation. For instance, the Gregoire Family alone included several generations of talented equestrians.     

As told in the book Q’Sapi: A History of Okanagan People as told by Okanagan Families, Francois Gregoire (1865-1944) was a successful rancher who owned a large herd of horses, some of which were used for racing and others for farming. By 1915, he owned a threshing wheat separator which he rented out to other ranchers.

Francois’ son Tommy (1901-2000) also went on to become a well-known rodeo rider. A celebrated Traditional Knowledge Keeper, Tommy was an adamant advocate for Indigenous rights and freedoms, who, along with his wife Mary, ensured that his children learned nsyilxcən.

Tommy’s son Leonard (1929-2013) was a self-proclaimed cowboy from the start who began exercising his grandfather Francois’ horses at only eight years old. He later worked as a rodeo contractor with his father, and learned to ride broncos and bulls. He even went on to earn six track records in Canada and the U.S. racing quarter horses and thoroughbreds.

Like his father and grandfather, Tommy was proud to be fluent in nsyilxcən, and passed along his teaching to his own grandchildren and other little ones at the Okanagan Language Nest.

 

To explore more of Vernon’s history, check out our other blog posts! 

Gwyneth Evans, Research and Communications Coordinator

 

 

Long Lake Reserve #5

Posted on by Vernon Museum

 

A black and white view over a lake. The lake stretched to the horizon. On the right is an exposed mountain with desert-like shrubbery. The left side is more lush with tall trees and shrubbery. The sky is dotted with puffy white clouds.
Looking south from Middleton Mountain over what used to be Long Lake Reserve #5 circa 1950.

Ancestral Territory

It comes as a surprise to many that one of Vernon’s most popular summer destinations, Kal Beach, is located on what used to be reserve land.

Needless to say, the ancestral territory of the Syilx People of the Okanagan Nation comprised much of Kalamalka Lake; the lake, which bore the name Long Lake up until 1953, is named after Chief Kalamalka after all. Moreover, members of the OKIB still reside on land around the lake where historical villages once stood.

A document with the words "Minutes of Decision" along the top. It is page 215.
An image from the Final Report of the Royal Commission’s decision in regards to reserves in the Okanagan region. The full report can be viewed online.

However, little evidence remains to mark the bounds of Long Lake Reserve #5, which once stretched from approximately Kal Beach to what is now the Kalavista subdivision. The reserve was allotted in 1877 by the Joint Indian Reserve Commission, established two years earlier by the Federal and Provincial Governments to set the boundaries of reserve land in B.C.

In 1909, Hlakay (also known as Pierre Nequalla), Chief of the Nk’maplqs (Head of the Lake) Band, opposed a sale of the land, suggesting that grave irregularities had occurred in obtaining proper surrender permissions; this was later confirmed by the Federal Government and the sale was set aside. However, in 1913, the land was “cut-off” under the McKenna McBride Royal Commission.

Mckenna mcbride royal commission

The stated goal of this commission (named after the two men who signed it into effect, federal commissioner Joseph McKenna and BC Premier Richard McBride) was to adjust the acreage of reserves in B.C., based on gathered evidence from both Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples as to their adequacy. As a result of the commission, an additional 87,000 acres of reserve land were added to most bands, while 47,000 acres of far more valuable land was removed from 54 bands. This included the 128 acres of Long Lake Reserve #5.

This “cut-off” land was later sold to a Mr. John Kennedy, who then released portions of it to the City of Vernon for beachfront access, and to the Canadian National Railway Company.

To explore more of Vernon’s history, check out our other blog posts! 

Gwyneth Evans, Research and Communications Coordinator

 

 

Frank Marchand

Posted on by Vernon Museum

Happy Father’s day!

An Indigenous man wearing a blue ball cap is looking off to the left. He is wearing a black shirt and camouflage jacket. The background shows a wintery landscape.
Frank Marchand. Photo by Athena Bonneau, courtesy of https://thediscourse.ca/okanagan/frank-marchand-okanagan-changemaker.

Traditional and contemporary Indigenous culture emphasizes the importance of learning from one’s elders and passing along knowledge to younger generations. Frank Marchand, a member of the Okanagan Indian Band, epitomizes this cultural value in both the relationship he shared with his father and Elders, and in the role he has played as an educator to dozens of local students.

From Father to son

Frank Marchand’s late father, Gordon Marchand, was a Master Carver, a practice and designation he passed along to his son. Now, Frank has followed in Gordon’s footsteps in emphasizing the importance of dugout canoes and traditional waterways to the syilx and secwepemc people through public education.

A large trunk of a tree which is half-carved into a rounded, dugout shape. The legs of two people standing nearby are also visible, as well as a red chain saw. Wood chips cover the floor, but the far background shows that it is a winter's day.
A photo of the in-progress canoe constructed by Frank and students from SD22 in 2022. 

CANOE CULTURE REVITALIZED

In 2020, Frank and his apprentice William Poitras spent the summer working with youth from the Westbank First Nation. Together, the group took 21-days to construct a dugout canoe, which was inaugurated at a blessing ceremony at kłlilx’w (Spotted Lake), located near Osoyoos. Frank also worked with students in Kamloops’ School District 73 to create three other canoes.

That same year, Frank was nominated as a community changemaker, one of several individuals identified by IndigiNews as having a positive impact on his or her community.

Now, in 2022, Frank has spent several months working with students from Vernon’s Alternate Learning Program, Open Door Education Center, and Kal Secondary School to create another dugout canoe which will be unveiled at a ceremony at Canoe Beach. The canoe will then be on display at the Vernon Museum for summer 2022. 

In addition to revitalizing canoe culture across the Valley, Frank is also a member of the Okanagan Nation Response Team, a group of community members with extensive training in suicide education, community mobilization, and critical incident response.

FOOTAGE OF FRANK AND STUDENTS WORKING ON A CANOE IN 2018

To explore more of Vernon’s history, check out our other blog posts! 

Gwyneth Evans, Research and Communications Coordinator

 

 

 

The Sen’Klip Native Theatre Company

Posted on by Vernon Museum

 

An outdoor camp setup. In the background is a wooden roofed structure, as well as a teepee. In the foreground is four children and an adult. The four little boys have dark hair. Three are watching the adult, while one is looking at the camera. The adult is wearing leather clothing, and his face is panted in black and white. He has a wolf skin over his head and hanging down his shoulders. He is looking down at a rock in his head. In front of him are two woven baskets.
The Sen’Klip Native Theatre Company’s Indigenous summer encampment re-creation at Head of the Lake circa 1997.

Indigenous Theatre in Canada

June is National Indigenous History Month, and an opportunity to highlight the history of the Sen’Klip Native Theatre Company and their contributions towards the advancement of Indigenous theatre in Canada.

When the Sen’Klip Native Theatre Company was founded in Vernon in 1988, they were one of only a handful across the entirety of Canada. The company was based on ancestral storytelling practices, and provided an outlet for the expression of Indigenous cultural values and social concerns.

SEN’KLIP = COYOTE

The company’s founder, Lynn Phelan, had previously worked with an Indigenous theatre company in Vancouver before returning to her hometown of Vernon. In 1987, she started the Native Youth Summer Theatre with Ruby Alexis, a member of the Okanagan Indian Band.

The company later changed its name to the Sen’Klip Native Theatre Company, after the nsyilxcen word for “Coyote.” To both the Syilx and Secwepemc People, Coyote is considered a trickster, creator, teacher, and entertainer.

In 1989, the company produced its first professional play, “Shadow Warrior,” which toured B.C. Around that time, the company also began developing its “Coyote Tales” series, based on the legends of Sen’Klip. This series was on-going throughout the years, and explored themes of respect for the Earth and its creatures.

The Power of performing arts

The next few years witnessed the continued growth of the company, in both size and popularity. 1992 was a particularly successful year, and saw the company embark on a valley-wide elementary school tour, develop an experimental traditional summer camp (later featured at the PNE), and attend an Ecotourism conference in Whistler.

The Sen’Klip Native Theatre Company ran for a decade, and during that time, they continuously demonstrated the power of performing arts to serve as a major method of cross-cultural communication.

Celebrating SEN’KLIP at the MAV

There will be a display of costumes from the Sen’Klip production of “How Turtle Set the Animals Free,” based on the Syilx captikʷł, at the Vernon Museum in June. Costumes and masks were created by Sen’klip founding director, and renowned Syilx artist, Barbara Marchand.

Music in the Museum performer and local singer-songwriter, Duane Marchand, is also an alumni of the Sen’Klip Native Theatre Company.

 

To explore more of Vernon’s history, check out our other blog posts! 

Gwyneth Evans, Research and Communications Coordinator

 

 

 

Tekahionwake Visits Vernon

Posted on by Vernon Museum

 

A photo of Pauline Johnson, taken shortly before her death in 1913, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons (public domain).

Talented Wordsmiths

Vernon has long been home to a plethora of talented wordsmiths, which a humble binder in the Vernon Archives titled “Writers” reveals. The binder is full of information about several of Vernon’s many authors and poets, arranged alphabetically from Thomas Andrews (author of Type: Writer) to Mark Zuehlke (author of Scoundrels, Dreamers, & Second Sons). The Vernon Museum is even lucky enough to have its own award-winning author and poet on staff, Laisha Rosnau.

In addition to these gifted locals, Vernon has also played host to several traveling writers over the years. One that caused a particular stir during her turn-of-the-century visit to the city was Tekahionwake (Pauline Johnson).

Tekahionwake (Pauline Johnson)

Tekahionwake, born in 1861, was a member of the Six Nations of the Grand River, and daughter of Chief Onwanonsyshon (G. H. M. Johnson) and Emily Howells. Tekahionwake began writing poetry in her mid-teens, after a childhood of poor health largely confined her to indoor pursuits like reading.

Sometime after 1884, following the death of her father, Tekahionwake began a career as a public orator and embarked on a series of speaking tours in Canada, the United States, and England. Her poems were largely patriotic in nature, but she also incorporated elements of Mohawk culture into her performances.

A visit to Vernon

Tekahionwake visited Vernon in 1907, where she offered a poetry recitation in the second-floor hall of the W. F. Cameron general store. By then, she had published two volumes of poems, “The White Wampum” (1894) and “Canadian Born” (1903), and the crowd was large and appreciative.

When she passed away in 1913, the Vernon News dedicated several pages to describing Tekahionwake’s life and many cultural contributions. Despite what her critics might have said during her lifetime and beyond it, this remarkable woman paved the way for other Indigenous female voices to be heard. 

The documentary Why We Write: Poets of Vernon, by Hannah Calder and Curtis Emde, delves into the world of poets and bookmakers living in and around Vernon, British Columbia. It will premiere at the Vernon Museum on April 29 and 30. Click here to learn more.

 

To explore more of Vernon’s history, check out our other blog posts! 

Gwyneth Evans, Research and Communications Coordinator

 

 

 

Marie Houghton Brent

Posted on by Vernon Museum

 

Marie and William Brent circa 1910.

Okanagan Women’s Voices

A recent publication, edited by Jeannette Armstrong, Lally Grauer, and Janet MacArthur, explores the lives of, and relationship between, seven Syilx and settler women.

Okanagan Women’s Voices: Syilx and Settler Writing and Relations 1870s-1960 was the result of hours spent digging through archives across the Okanagan (including the Vernon Archives) to highlight the voices of Susan Moir Allison (1845-1937), Josephine Shuttleworth (1865-1950), Eliza Jane Swalwell (1868-1944), Marie Houghton Brent (1870-1968), Hester Emily White (1877-1963), Mourning Dove (1886-1936) and Isabel Christie MacNaughton (1915-2003).

Marie Houghton Brent Fonds

One collection in the Vernon archives that proved to be particularly useful to Armstrong, Grauer, and MacArthur was the Marie Houghton Brent fonds (for those unfamiliar with the term, in archival science a fonds refers to a records group). This fonds, which was donated to the Vernon Archives by the Ferry County Historical Society in 2000, contains a wealth of Brent’s correspondences, personal writings, and certificates.

Her Story

Marie Brent was the daughter of Charles Frederick Houghton and Sophie N’Kwala. Houghton, who was originally from Ireland, established the Coldstream Ranch in 1863, which he later sold to Charles and Forbes Vernon. Sophie N’Kwala was a granddaughter of the Grand Chief Hwistesmexe’qen, known commonly as N’Kwala or Nicola.  

Sadly, Sophie passed away when Marie was young, and she was raised by her great-aunt Thérèse (Teresa) N’Kwala Laurence, who raised her to be the family’s historian and taught her the stories and traditions of the Okanagan Nation. As a young women, Marie lived for a time with her father, Charles, in Montreal. She later returned to the Okanagan, where she married William Brent in 1908. Throughout her life, Marie continued in the mission ordained by her great-aunt to preserve and share her ancestral teachings, and between 1935 and 1966 wrote a series of articles which were published in the Okanagan Historical Society (OHS) reports. As Robert Hayes of the Kelowna Branch of the OHS aptly stated, “Thérèse N’Kwala Laurence chose well. We owe her and Marie Houghton Brent a debt of gratitude.”

To learn more about Marie Houghton Brent, and the other six women featured in Okanagan Women’s Voices, grab a copy of the book or join the Vernon Museum for Learn + Connect: Reading for Reconciliation, a virtual book club from April to June 2022 featuring this incredible new publication.

 

To explore more of Vernon’s history, check out our other blog posts! 

Gwyneth Evans, Research and Communications Coordinator

 

 

 

The Doctrine of Discovery

Posted on by Vernon Museum

  

 

Print of the painting entitled “Discovery of Okanagan Lake” by George H. Southwell. GVMA 2186.

The Doctrine of Discovery was a late-medieval philosophy that provided early Christian European explorers with the spiritual, legal, and political grounds for the seizure of land inhabited by non-Christians. It was used in Africa, Asia, New Zealand, and the Americas.

The Doctrine stemmed from a series of Papal Bulls, particularly Romanus Pontifex (1455), and Inter Caetera (1493). 

Romanus Pontifex “granted” King Alfonso V of Portugal a monopoly of trade and colonization with all lands south of Cape Bojador in Africa. It also encouraged the seizure of land from Saracen Turks, and the enslavement of non-Christians. 

Inter Caetera “granted” King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castille sovereignty to any “unclaimed” lands west and south of the Azores and Cape Verde islands. It resulted in the colonization of the Americas.

The Doctrine of Discovery in CANADA

Romanus Pontifex

1455

“We [therefore] weighing all and singular the premises with due meditation, and noting that since we had formerly by other letters of ours granted among other things free and ample faculty to the aforesaid King Alfonso — to invade, search out, capture, vanquish, and subdue all Saracens and pagans whatsoever, and other enemies of Christ wheresoever placed, and the kingdoms, dukedoms, principalities, dominions, possessions, and all movable and immovable goods whatsoever held and possessed by them and to reduce their persons to perpetual slavery, and to apply and appropriate to himself and his successors the kingdoms, dukedoms, counties, principalities, dominions, possessions, and goods, and to convert them to his and their use and profit — by having secured the said faculty, the said King Alfonso, or, by his authority, the aforesaid infante, justly and lawfully has acquired and possessed, and doth possess, these islands, lands, harbors, and seas, and they do of right belong and pertain to the said King Alfonso and his successors.”

 

 

The Documentary “Doctrine of Discovery: Stolen Lands, Strong Hearts,” was produced by the Anglican Church of Canada* and reflects on the implications of Inter Caetera on the Indigenous People of Canada. *The Museum and Archives of Vernon (MAV) is not affiliated, associated, authorized, endorsed by, or in any way officially connected with the Anglican Church of Canada, or any of its subsidiaries or its affiliates.

The Doctrine of Discovery undoubtedly informed Canada’s earliest European explorers, whose voyages to the “New World” paved the way for France and England to lay claim to the land.

In looking at Canada’s more recent history, the Doctrine of Discovery has never been explicitly cited in a Land Title Claim case; however, many argue that its implications continue to inform Canadian Law and negatively impact Indigenous Peoples. For instance, during the 1990 Supreme Court of Canada R. v. Sparrow case, the following was stated:

“It is worth recalling that while British policy towards the native population was based on respect for their right to occupy their traditional lands, a proposition to which the Royal Proclamation of 1763 bears witness, there was from the outset never any doubt that sovereignty and legislative power, and indeed the underlying title, to such lands vested in the Crown.”

Actions like the introduction of Bill C-15 into the House of Commons in 2020, an attempt to establish a process for implementing the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous People (UNDRIP), which includes a complete rejection of colonialism and the Doctrine of Discovery, demonstrate that this medieval philosophy is not merely an artifact of the past. 

aDDITIONAL rESOURCES

Join the conversation! Learn + Connect: Towards Reconciliation is a free online program that has been developed so participants can explore colonial perspectives of history, reflect on how they influences our understanding and actions, and discuss ways we can move forward.

The first session, which explores the Doctrine of Discovery via the “Stolen Land, Strong Hearts” documentary, will take place on January 20, 2022, from 7:00-8:30 PM via Zoom. All are welcome to join!

 

SIGN UP

 

A Mysterious Collection of Rocks

Posted on by Vernon Museum

As we get closer to the Vernon Lapidary Club’s Holiday Rock and Gem Market event at the Vernon Museum (December 11 from 10 AM to 3 PM), we wanted to take a critical look at one of our own rock collections.

 

Nothing Constant, but Change Itself

Changing policies and practices over time have result in some mysteries among the Vernon Museum’s artifact collection. One example is a seemingly innocuous collection of rocks that habour a troubling secret. While no paperwork appears to exist to explain why and when they were added to the museum’s collection, a small note tucked among the rocks suggests they are connected to the St. George’s Residential School in Lytton, BC. 

St. George’s Residential School in Lytton, BC. Photo courtesy of the Indian Residential School History & Dialogue Center.

Links to a Dark Past

In 1941, Reverend Charles Hives was appointed principal. The note suggests that it was Hives and a group of students who collected the rocks. An additional piece of paper, yellow with age, identifies them as opal, lead, iron, agate, and jasper, and states that they were gathered from places as far off as Idaho, Texas, and Oregon. It is not known what brought Hives and the children to the United States, but records from Library and Archives Canada suggest that some students did learn to make jewelry from jasper while attending St. George’s Residential School.

The residential school operated from 1901 to 1979. It was originally a boys-only institute, but after the All Hallows School for Girls in Yale closed in 1920, the girls were transferred to St. George’s. Throughout the years, the school experienced problems with sanitization, fire safety, and overcrowding. In 1926/’27, a flu epidemic led to the death of 13 children.

How Did They Come to Be Here? 

The presence of this collection of rocks in the Vernon Museum raises many questions: how did they come to be here? Is it appropriate for us to have them? Are we able to repatriate them to the Lytton First Nation? Despite their humble nature, it is essential that artifacts like these rocks are treated respectfully to honour all who attended residential schools across Canada. 

To explore more of Vernon’s history, check out our other blog posts! 

Gwyneth Evans, Research and Communications Coordinator

 

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