Constance Brissenden
For South Peace News

A new local book, Memories of a Metis Settlement, shares 80 years of East Prairie Metis Settlement to prove that history is worth remembering.

The earliest settlers to East Prairie began arriving in the late 1930s. Their family names are well known in the north: Andrews, Bellerose, Harvey, Auger, L’Hirondelle, and Johnston. Today, East Prairie has a membership of around 900 people.

Metis colonies [as settlements were first called] were launched in 1939. The creation of a land base for Metis in Alberta was a long struggle. The settlements provided a place for Metis to live, work, and practice their Aboriginal rights. Twelve originally existed; eight took root and are still home to more than 6,500 people, one-tenth of Alberta’s Metis population. East Prairie Metis Settlement, along with Paddle Prairie, Peavine, Kikino, Gift Lake, Buffalo Lake, Elizabeth, and Fishing Lake continue to thrive.

In 2017, a group of East Prairie Elders was determined to make the history and struggles of their ancestors better known to the younger generation. With economic development officer Joan Haggerty, they applied for a New Horizons for Seniors Grant to write an updated history. With the grant in place, they formed a planning committee to make the book a reality.

“When we first started this project, I didn’t really think it was going to happen. We all got together and worked on it. Then I knew we were going to make it happen somehow,” recalls Eliza [Sawan] Big Charles.

The Elders met regularly to plan and write their own stories for the book, including Dennis Andrews, Marcel Auger, Dorothy Bellerose, George Bellerose, Eliza [Sawan] Big Charles, Murielle L’Hirondelle, Richard Patenaude, and Mildred Supernault.

A longtime friendship helped make the book a reality. Marcel Auger, son of Solomon and Lucy Auger, arrived in the settlement at the age of five. Marcel’s life took him down many professional roads, often involving heavy equipment and hauling. A proud Metis, past jigging champion, and traveler, Marcel and his friend Florence Beaudry met Cree author Larry Loyie and his partner, Constance Brissenden, at a medicine wheel ceremony in Mission, BC, in 1994. Loyie, who lived in a log house with Constance north of High Prairie, passed away in 2016. Constance, a freelance book editor, remained a friend.

In February 2018, Marcel called Constance to ask for assistance with the book. Inspired by her visits to East Prairie since the mid-1990s, Constance enthusiastically took on the role of editor and publication coordinator. She was able to get Theytus Books of Penticton, B.C., onboard as co-publisher with East Prairie Metis Settlement. Theytus is Canada’s first and oldest Indigenous publisher.

On June 6, Memories of a Metis Settlement arrived from the printers in Edmonton. As the colourful book was taken out of boxes at the East Prairie Community Hall, the Elders felt a sense of well-deserved accomplishment.

Memories of a Metis Settlement includes first-hand accounts of the earliest settlers, as well as the vivid memories of today’s Elders. Forty-three photos, from the early years to more recent, are included.

Many personal stories make for fascinating reading. The former Dorothy Laboucan married George Bellerose at 18 years of age, and has lived in East Prairie for more than 60 years.

“Before I came to East Prairie, I used to see this long stretch of road. I often wondered what was up there. I saw people coming out of there on horseback or a wagon team…I didn’t know that I would be one of them coming in and out of that road…I came to love this place,” says Dorothy.

Says Marcel Auger, “This book is for the younger generation. We did it for them, so they would know what came before. Today we have everything we need. Back in the early days, the settlers had next to nothing. They lived in tents, then built their own shacks or log houses. No money, no running water, no electricity, no stores, a mudhole of a road, and no bridges.”

Editor Constance Brissenden admits she learned a lot about Metis history while she worked on the book.

“I encourage everyone to read Memories of a Metis Settlement,” she says. “Life was tough, but the people were tougher. They had little in the way of money and possessions, but they helped one another. They brought courage, determination, and the capacity for hard work to make a secure place for themselves and their descendants.”

A book launch and signing for Memories of a Metis Settlement will be held at the High Prairie Municipal Library, Tuesday, June 19, from 2-4 p.m. Drop by the library and congratulate the Elders!

Copies of the book will be on sale at $10 [a $3 savings]. Books are also available at the South Peace News office.

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