Fort Walsh National Historic Site of Canada Management Plan
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© Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, represented by the Chief Executive Officer of Parks Canada, 2005 Government of Canada Catalogue No. R64-316/2005E ISBN: 0-662-40758-X Aussi disponsible en français Fort Walsh National Historic Site of Canada Management Plan May 2005 Foreword Canada’s national historic sites, national parks and national marine conservation areas represent the soul of our country. They are a central part of who we are and what we are. They are places of beauty and wonder and heritage. Each tells its own story. Together, they connect Canadians to our roots, to our future and to each other. We see a future in which each of the national historic sites of Canada, whether federally owned or not, enjoys sound commemorative health, and in which our system of sites evolves as our country evolves. Our national historic sites will be places for all Canadians to experience and learn from. They will help our communities to be vibrant and creative, and contribute to our efforts to revitalize Canada’s cities. Together, we will hold these places in trust for this and future generations, while ensuring they contribute to Canada’s sustainable economy and environmental health. Our vision is also for each of Canada’s unique terrestrial and marine regions to be represented by at least one national park or national marine conservation area, for all national parks to be in sound ecological health, for all NMCAs to promote the ecologically sustainable use of our marine resources in a way that harmonizes conservation practices with human activities, and for both national parks and NMCAs to be places for all Canadians to experience and enjoy. These principles form the foundation of the new management plan for Fort Walsh National Historic Site of Canada. May I offer my appreciation to the vast range of thoughtful Canadians who helped develop this plan. I am especially grateful to our very dedicated team from Parks Canada and to all those local organizations and individuals who have demonstrated such good will, hard work, spirit of co-operation and extraordinary sense of stewardship. In that same spirit of partnership and responsibility, I am pleased to approve the Fort Walsh National Historic Site of Canada Management Plan. Stéphane Dion Minister of the Environment Fort Walsh NHSC Management Plan i Fort Walsh NHSC Management Plan ii Recommendation Statement Fort Walsh National Historic Site of Canada Management Plan Recommended for Approval by: Alan Latourelle Chief Executive Officer Parks Canada Cheryl Penny Field Unit Superintendent, Saskatchewan South Parks Canada Fort Walsh NHSC Management Plan iii Table of Contents 1. Introduction... ...................................................................................................................1 1.1 Fort Walsh and the Family of National Historic Sites.................................................2 1.2 Commemorative Integrity...............................................................................................3 2. Fort Walsh 1992 - 2003 .....................................................................................................5 2.1 Cultural Resource Management ....................................................................................5 2.2 Heritage Presentation Program ......................................................................................7 2.3 Visitor Services and Facilities .........................................................................................8 2.4 Visitors ...............................................................................................................................8 2.5 Environmental Stewardship ...........................................................................................8 2.6 Partnerships.......................................................................................................................8 2.7 Administration and Operations .....................................................................................8 3. The Vision: Fort Walsh 2010 ...........................................................................................9 4. The Management Plan ..................................................................................................10 4.1 Heritage Protection ........................................................................................................10 4.1.1 NWMP Fort Walsh.........................................................................................................11 4.1.2 RCMP Remount Ranch..................................................................................................12 4.1.3 Cypress Hills Massacre Site ..........................................................................................13 4.1.4 Cemeteries .......................................................................................................................14 4.1.5 Burial Sites .......................................................................................................................14 4.1.6 Aboriginal Sites...............................................................................................................15 4.1.7 Town Site .........................................................................................................................16 4.1.8 Wood-Anderson Ranch .................................................................................................16 4.1.9 Landscape........................................................................................................................17 4.1.10 Archaeological Collection and Historic Objects.........................................................17 Fort Walsh NHSC Management Plan iv 4.2 Heritage Presentation ....................................................................................................18 4.2.1 Site Messages...................................................................................................................18 4.2.2 Target Audiences............................................................................................................19 4.2.3 Visitor Experience...........................................................................................................20 4.2.4 Outreach...........................................................................................................................23 4.3 Visitor Services and Facilities .......................................................................................24 4.3.1 Basic Services ..................................................................................................................24 4.3.2 Special Events..................................................................................................................24 4.3.3 Recreation ........................................................................................................................25 4.4 Environmental Stewardship .........................................................................................26 4.5 Public Involvement and Partnerships .........................................................................28 4.6 Administration and Operations ...................................................................................29 4.7 Environmental Assessment Decision Statement........................................................30 5. Management Plan Implementation and Evaluation..................................................31 Fort Walsh NHSC Management Plan v Fort Walsh: A Place of National Historic Significance Established in 1875 Fort Walsh would quickly become the most important, largest and most heavily armed police post the North West Mounted Police garrisoned during their early years in Canada’s North West Territories. In their time at Fort Walsh, the police would chase whiskey traders and horse thieves; counsel and control First Nation peoples dispirited by the disappearance of the buffalo, and supervise the thousands of Lakota refugees whose influx from the United States during the Great Sioux War of 1876-1877 would stretch their resources, and the fragile resources of the Canadian prairies, to the point of crisis. The story of Fort Walsh is one of fascinating detail and larger-than-life characters. James Walsh, Sitting Bull, Jerry Potts, Big Bear, Crowfoot, James Macleod, Alfred Terry, White Bird, Little Pine, Chief Lucky Man, Sam Steele, Spotted Eagle, Rain-in-the-Face, Gall, Nelson Miles, Chief Joseph, Lief Crozier, John A. Macdonald, George Armstrong Custer - all these and more are part of the story of Fort Walsh. Fort Walsh National Historic Site of Canada was designated a place of national historic significance in 1924. The site was designated because the fort served from 1878 to 1882 as the headquarters of the North West Mounted Police; and the fort played a key role: in imposing Canadian law from 1875 to 1883; in implementing Canada's Indian policy; and in supervising the Lakota who fled to Canada under Tantanka Iyotanka (Sitting Bull) after the Battle of the Little Bighorn. Cypress Hills Massacre: An Event of National Historic Significance In the spring of 1873, a group of Cree Indians stole horses from a party of wolf hunters while hunting in the Montana Territory. The wolfers attempted to follow the Cree, but lost their trail and ended up at the trading post of Abe Farwell where three bands of Nakoda were camped. The wolfers, fueled with alcohol, believed that the Nakoda had stolen their horses and on the morning