Colonialism, Capitalism, and the Rise of State Schooling in British Columbia, 1849-1900 Trent University
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COLONIALISM, CAPITALISM, AND THE RISE OF STATE SCHOOLING IN BRITISH COLUMBIA, 1849-1900 A Thesis Submitted to the Committee on Graduate Studies in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Faculty of Arts and Science TRENT UNIVERSITY Peterborough, Ontario, Canada, Anishinaabe Territory © Copyright by Sean Carleton 2016 Canadian Studies Ph.D Graduate Program May 2016 ABSTRACT Colonialism, Capitalism, and the Rise of State Schooling in British Columbia, 1849-1900 Sean Carleton This dissertation examines the historical relationship between settler colonialism, capitalism, and the rise of state schooling in what is now known as British Columbia between 1849 and 1900. It aims to “unsettle” conventional views of Canadian schooling history by bringing accounts of Indigenous and non-Indigenous education into one analytical frame, and it shows how the state used different forms of schooling for both Indigenous and non-Indigenous children—company, common, public, mission, day, boarding, and industrial schools—to assist colonial-capitalist social formation in the Pacific Northwest. In combining interdisciplinary insights from Indigenous studies, historical materialism, political economy, and critical pedagogy, the dissertation highlights the ways in which state-supported schooling facilitated capitalist accumulation by colonial dispossession. The central argument of the dissertation is that between 1849 and 1900, colonial, provincial, and federal governments strategically took on greater responsibility for schooling as a way of legitimizing the state and supporting the emergence of a capitalist settler society. KEYWORDS: Settler Colonialism; Capitalism; Education; Indigenous Peoples; Violence; Indian Residential Schools; History; Political Economy; British Columbia; Canada. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I gratefully acknowledge the funding I received from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) to complete this dissertation. As well, I thank SSHRC for awarding me a Michael Smith Foreign Study Supplement to support my stay as a visiting scholar at the London School of Economics (LSE) while conducting research in London, UK. I also greatly appreciate the financial support I received from the Ontario Graduate Scholarship (OGS) Program, Trent University, the Frost Centre for Canadian Studies and Indigenous Studies, the Symons Trust Fund for Canadian Studies, and the History Education Network. A number of generous scholars, colleagues, and friends enriched my doctoral studies in different ways. I thank numerous Trent faculty members for their support, including Dimitry Anastakis, James Conolly, Chris Dummitt, Caroline Durand, Michael Eamon, Julia Harrison, Marg Hobbs, Janet Miron, Kirk Niergarth, Jim Struthers, and John Wadland. Cathy Schoel and Jeannine Crow made Kerr House a warm work environment. Thank you also to the staff at the School of Graduate Studies, Trent University Library, BC Archives, Library and Archives Canada, and the National Archives at Kew Gardens. Chris Minns, my supervisor at LSE, was gracious and supportive during my time in London. I am grateful to Wallace Clement for sharing his passion for political economy and to Ann Laura Stoler, Frederick Cooper, and David Harvey for giving me their time and expertise while I spent a semester in New York City. My fellow Trent students sustained my studies at different times; I thank Phil Abbott, iii Kristi Allain, Meaghan Beaton, Troy Bordun, Matthew Davidson, Michelle Desveaux, Stephanie Dotto, Karen Everett, Caitlin Gordon-Walker, Matthew Hayes, Mary Anne Martin, Ted McCoy, Jon Lockyer, John Marris, Kris Millett, James Onusko, David Rapaport, Melissa Sharpe-Harrigan, Peggy Shaughnessey, Waaseyaa’sin Christine Sy, Diane Therrien, Kate Viscardis, and others. Colleagues such as Kristine Alexander, Penney Clark, Jason Ellis, Liam Haggarty, Megan Harvey, Jarett Henderson, Laura Ishiguro, Mary-Ellen Kelm, Madeline Knickerbocker, Erica Violet Lee, Mark Leier, Kristina Llewellyn, Michael Marker, Eryk Martin, Mark McLaughlin, Sarah Nickel, Alison Norman, Thomas Peace, Adele Perry, Lisa Pasolli, Helen Raptis, Timothy Stanley, Veronica Strong-Boag, and David Tough offered support and guidance at crucial times. I especially thank Jean Barman, Anne Toews, and Erin Stewart Eves who provided timely and constructive feedback on earlier drafts. I also thank Patrick Nelson and Shirley Williams for sharing their knowledge and experiences in residential schools, which shaped my thinking and writing in important ways. I could not have asked for a better supervisory committee. Peter Kulchyski and Don McCaskill were excellent examiners, and John Milloy and Hugh Shewell were generous with their time and enthusiasm. Joan Sangster was an inspirational instructor as well as a constant confidant and advocate. Bryan Palmer was an exceptional supervisor. The depth of his knowledge and expertise as an activist, educator, researcher, and writer shaped my intellectual development and political commitments immeasurably. I am profoundly grateful for his support. Most importantly, my friends and family sustained me and kept me laughing and enjoying life. Thank you. Finally, I dedicate this work to Julia Smith with love. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract .............................................................................................................................. ii Acknowledgements .......................................................................................................... iii Table of Contents ...............................................................................................................v List of Images ................................................................................................................... vi Chapter 1: Unsettling Canada’s Schooling History ........................................................1 Chapter 2: Education on the Edge of Empire: Company and Common Schooling in Vancouver Island and British Columbia, 1849-1871 ..............................46 Chapter 3: The Invasion of God’s Armies: Colonial Anxiety and State Support for Missionary Schooling, 1849-1871 ............................................................109 Chapter 4: Schools for the People: Public Schooling in the Pacific Province, 1871-1900 ........................................................................................................................190 Chapter 5: “Established for their benefit”: New Schemes for Schooling Indigenous Children, 1871-1900 ...................................................................................254 Chapter 6: Conclusion ...................................................................................................327 Bibliography ...................................................................................................................334 Archival Collections .................................................................................................334 Newspapers...............................................................................................................335 Published Primary Sources .......................................................................................335 Unpublished Papers and Theses ...............................................................................338 Published Books and Articles ...................................................................................338 v LIST OF IMAGES Page 51. “Map of Part of the British Possession to the West of the Rocky Mountains,” circa 1858. The National Archives (TNA), CO 700/5. Page 62. “Bird’s-Eye View of Victoria, Vancouver Island, BC, 1878.” TNA, CO 1069/273. Page 110. “The Colonial Office, Victoria, British Columbia,” circa 1858. Photograph by Frederick Dally. TNA, CO 1069/271, 1. Page 111. “The Government Buildings and Government Street,” circa 1858. Photograph by Frederick Dally. TNA, CO 1069/271, 2. Page 125. “Map Showing the Distribution of Indian Tribes of British Columbia,” circa 1883. TNA CO 700/16. Page 142. “British Columbia,” circa 1862. TNA, MPG 1069/273. Page 223. “Lower Nicola School, build in 1875; Kamloops.” Kamloops Museum and Archives (KMA), Photo 534. Page 223. “Hastings Sawmill School, first school, 1873, whites and Indians. Mr Palmer, teacher on walk, approx date 1886.” British Columbia Archives (BCA), D-05546. Page 224. “Hazelton Public School.” BCA, B-01336. Page 294. “Mission Residential School,’ circa 1880s. BCA, D-08840. Page 297. “St. Boniface Industrial School, Ready for Fatigue,” circa 1890s. Annual Report 1899-1900, 352. Page 298. “Carpenter’s Shop, Qu’Appelle Indian Industrial School, (showing instructor and Indian Boys).” Annual Report 1894-1895, 132. Page 303. “Doing Fancy Work at Williams Lake Industrial School, BC.” Annual Report 1899-1900, 400. Page 303. “Teachers and Girls of the Williams Lake Industrial School, BC.” Annual Report 1899-1900, 416. Page 322. “Port Simpson Mission schoolchildren; also girls from Crosby Girls’ Home,” circa 1889. BCA, A-04182. Page 325. “Thomas Moore, as he appeared when admitted to the Regina Indian Industrial School” (Left); “Thomas Moore, after tuition at the Regina Indian Industrial School” (Right). Annual Report 1895-1896, preliminary pages. vi CHAPTER 1: UNSETTLING CANADA’S SCHOOLING HISTORY On 9 June 1847, James Edward FitzGerald, an advocate of British colonization working for the British Museum, wrote to the Colonial Office in London, England to propose a scheme for colonizing