Teacher Information

Historic and Land Use

Historical, ethnographic, and archaeological sources show that the ’s traditional territory includes modern day southern Ontario, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan, as well as Wisconsin, Minnesota, North and , and northern .

The Dakota describe their traditional territory as including the and Missouri Coteau, the Lake of the Woods area, the , and areas along the Missouri, Minnesota, Mississippi, Souris and Red Rivers. The North and South Saskatchewan Rivers, Assiniboine River, and Qu’Appelle river valley were also important travel routes.

Historically, Dakota peoples’ land use followed a seasonal pattern. Generally, they wintered in smaller groups in these eastern woodlands, at which time they would hunt fur-bearing animals. In the spring and summer, the Dakota would move north onto the Missouri Coteau to hunt buffalo, travelling in larger groups on the plains. However, there were also Dakota communities who occupied seasonal summer village sites where they would grow corn and harvest wild rice. Oral history evidence shows that the Dakota travelled into Saskatchewan for numerous purposes, including buffalo hunting.

At times, the traditional territory of the Dakota was shared or contested by other Indigenous groups. During the summer, both friendly encounters and conflicts with other Indigenous groups were common. Through these interactions, the Dakota showed that they saw themselves as rightful occupants of the territory, and were asserting their title to the lands that they considered Dakota territory.

Misinterpretation of Dakota Traditional Territory:

The full extent of the Dakota traditional territory has historically been misunderstood. The Dakota Nations in Canada have long asserted that their traditional territory includes lands in both Canada and the .1

However, government authorities deny the recognition of the full extent of their traditional territory in Canada. In some instances, this has resulted in the mischaracterization of the Dakota as “refugees”—a term that insults and overlooks the Dakota perspective on their history. The Dakota were not fleeing their homeland; they were simply moving into areas that they had always considered part of their traditional territory. This mischaracterization has had grave consequences for the Dakota Nations in Canada, including the Dakota being denied the opportunity to negotiate treaties in Canada.

Written sources from European newcomers cannot be relied upon as accurate descriptions of Dakota territory, as areas such as the Great Plains and the Missouri Coteau were unoccupied by settler presence until the 1870’s. Since much of the research on the Dakota has relied on written European sources, this has skewed the perception of Dakota patterns of land use.

1 Sarah Carter, Analysis of Oral History Sources, p 1-2, in Morrison, James, Final Report of Phase Two Research: Historical Use and Occupancy and Dakota/Lakota Crown Relations, 2004. Although the Dakota have been labelled “nomadic” by ethnographers and historians, this term is inaccurate and restrictive, as it implies that such groups lacked formal or organized settlements. In fact, the Dakota followed specific routes and returned to specific locations annually. For example, in the late eighteenth century, other Indigenous groups warned explorers to avoid the area near Ash House (which is present day Manitoba) until August of each year, due to the expected Dakota presence at this location until this time.2

Whitecap Traditional Territory and Land Use Today

Dakota land use and occupancy has generally shifted north and westward since contact, primarily due to colonization and increasing settlement by newcomers. This pattern continued up to the negotiation of the numbered treaties and the forced settlement of First Nations on reserve lands beginning in the 1870s. However, the Dakotas’ shifting land use patterns did not mean that the Dakota relinquished claim to territory that they used less frequently. It is important to note that because they have not signed treaty, Whitecap Dakota First Nation has not ceded any of their Aboriginal rights and title.

For the Dakota in Canada and the United States, current land and resource use patterns follow the traditional territory historically claimed by Dakota peoples. Locally, current land and resource use take place into areas well outside of the formal reserve boundaries, particularly along the South Saskatchewan River, as well as north to include Beaver Creek and Saskatoon, south to the Lake Diefenbaker area and Elbow, and east to the Blackstrap reservoir. The major watersheds used by the Dakota throughout history remain important, including the North and South Saskatchewan Rivers, the Assiniboine River, and the Qu’Appelle valley.

The following map shows points of Dakota land use and territory areas from 1750-1900

2 Thompson, David. "The First Years with the North West Company: 1797-1798." Page 201-202 in The Writings of David Thompson Volume 1: The Travels, 1850 Version. Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press, 2009.