Full Description
Explores the integral roles that Métis women assumed to ensure the survival of their communities during the fur trade era and onward
Métis Matriarchs examines the roles of prominent Métis women from across Western Canada from the late 19th to the mid-20th century, providing a rare glimpse into the everyday lives of these remarkable women who were recognized as Matriarchs and respected for their knowledge, expertise, and authority within their families and communities.
This edited collection provides an opportunity to learn about the significant contributions made by Métis women during a transitional period in Western Canadian history as the fur trade gave way to a more sedentary, industrialized, and agrarian economy. Challenging how we think about Western Canadian settlement processes that removed Indigenous peoples from the land, this collection of stories examines the ways Métis matriarchs responded to colonial and settler colonial interventions into their lives and livelihoods and ultimately ensured the cultural survival of their communities.
Contents
Acknowledgements
Introduction. Métis Matriarchs: Agents of Transition
One. Marie Rose Delorme Smith
"Buckskin Mary—Queen of the Jughandle" (1861-1960)
by Doris Jeanne MacKinnon
Two. Remembering and Retelling the Legacies of Métis Women in Alberta
The Life and Memories of Victoria Belcourt Callihoo
by Madalyn Mandziuk
Three. Josette Lagacé Work
Strong and Elastic as Steel
by Vanessa Winn
Four. Caroline McNabb and Culturally Adaptive Practices of Métis Kinship
by Jade McDougall
Five. "She Did Lead a Rough Life, but She Lived a Good Life"
The Life of Julia Lamotte
by Gabrielle Legault
Six. On Becoming Sovereign
Generations of Métis Matriarchal Resistance
by Janice Cindy Gaudet
Seven. Métis Matriarchs in kāministikominahikoskahk (Cumberland House)
mîkisistahikêwin—Beading Together the Generations
by Allyson Stevenson
Eight. Activating Lessons of Care from Family Matriarchs
The Social and Political Work of Nora Cummings
by Cheryl Troupe
Conclusion
About the Contributors
Bibliography
Index
