Liard River First Nation

The Liard First Nation or Liard River First Nation is a Canadian First Nations in the Yukon. The traditional territory of the Kaska five groups, which include the Liard, covered approximately 240,000 square kilometers in the southeast of the Yukon and northern British Columbia. The five strains were first created by the Canadian Indian Act, the Kaska fragmented by it. In addition to the Yukon Ross River Dena Council of the Liard part of the Ross River to the Kaska in British Columbia, the Dease River First Nation at Good Hope Lake, the Daylu Dena Council to Lower Post and Kwadacha First Nation at Fort Ware, north of Prince George.

Most members of the Liard live in Upper Liard and Watson Lake on the Alaska Highway. They belong to the Athabascan language family, more precisely the Kaska. In March 2010 1.092 Indians were recognized as members of the Liard First Nation, of which 121 lived on the reserve, 347 on Crown, 594 outside the reserve, and 27 in other reserves. Your nine reserves comprise slightly more than 1480 hectares.

145 of the 178 inhabitants of Upper Liard belonged to 2006, the Liard First Nation. 88 inhabitants (2006) pointed to the " Indian settlement " (Indian settlement) Two Mile Village, belonging as well as 95 residents of Two and One- Half Mile Village the Liard.

History

Early History

The Liard among the Kaska Dene, whose territory extended from the Liard, Frances Hyland and from the River to the area of ​​the Upper Pelly in the north and to the Dease River in the southwest.

Earliest livelihoods were the caribou herds, but also elk, sheep and marmots, hares, and pikas Alaska. Then there were birds and fish, especially salmon. The harsh climate required a semi-nomadic life, where families in spring and summer camps for fishing came together, but also in the short autumn to hunt.

Clothing and dwellings were adapted to the climate and the nomadic way of life. Accordingly, they lived in shelters made ​​of twigs, branches and skins. Shamans were considered healers and made ​​contact with spiritual powers. They also helped in finding game animals.

First fur trading post

First post of the Hudson's Bay Company built around Lower Post. where the settlement of the nomadic Liard focus shifted, then at Watson Lake and the Upper ( Upper) Liard. As John McLeod in 1831, the area explored at the upper Liard on behalf of the HBC, he noted that the local residents possessed Russian goods. Robert Campbell tried to oppose dominated by the HBC to intra- Indian trade. Therefore he built 1839-1840 forts at Frances Lake and the upper Pelly River. 1843 but not dared his men to go westward, fearing conflict with the Chilkat Tlingit, who had monopolized the trade towards the Pacific. Nevertheless, he established another trading post in 1848 at the confluence of the Pelly and Yukon ( Lewes ). The Chilkat destroyed in 1852 his trading post at Fort Selkirk. Further difficulties offered the hard -to-navigate Liard River. But the pressure of the HBC leadership, the prices and conditions of the customs of the Mackenzie and do not adapt to the Pacific, made ​​a successful trade impossible.

Klondike Gold Rush, Contract No. 11

Canada tried since 1871 to the conclusion of contracts with numerous Indian tribes. The groups at the Liard River were the only ones who were affected in the Yukon it. Thus, they were included in Contract No. 11 of the so-called Numbered Treaties, signed on 27 June 1921. Thus, they were also the only group to which the Federal Government in principle conceded a right to land.

Assimilation, Residential School in Carcross

The Anglican Bishop William Bompas had a school for Indian children decorated in Carcross, there was strong opposition to the visit of the public schools in the white population and the Church felt obliged to keep the Indians from the bad influence of the whites. So opened Bompas 1911 Choutla School, which existed until the early 60s. But most parents were not interested, so you focused on orphans and very poor families. Stringer took beyond his good contacts, such as the Liard. Exceptionally, therefore, allowed you to children from mixed marriages, as the daughter of the merchant Poole Field, to attend school, because it was hoped that the father would use his great influence at Liard and Pelly to attract more children.

Alaska Highway, land claims and self-government

During the Second World War, the USA built after 1942 the Alaska Highway to forestall a possible Japanese invasion. The 195 m long Upper Liard River Bridge, which connected with Upper Liard Watson Lake was formed. This infrastructure changed the lifestyle of Indians and most of them were sedentary. They were kept away from the settlements of the whites. So the Indians lived on the upper Liard or near Lower Post, British Columbia, while the whites lived in Watson Lake.

Over the 80 years, several strains have been holding talks with the government, which in 1981 the Kaska Dena Council was created, which represents the interests of the five Kaska tribes of the province boundaries. The Yukon groups reached that they were removed from the authority of the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development. Thus they received self-government rights and negotiated over land claims or compensations. 1998 according to the contract, four members of the then 800 Liard were hired as police officers of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. 2000 reached chief Daniel Morris through negotiations in Ottawa that logging licenses were revoked that affected Labiche area. In 2004, the government involved in a housing program with $ 619,382.

Signed in 2001, the Liard an agreement with the territory of the Land Use and consultation requirements of the resource companies that wish to operate in their area. But the Liard saw under the leadership of their chief (Chief ) Liard McMillan cheated out of compensation, so he announced such actions in January 2008. Background was a dispute with the Ross River First Nation, which should negotiate with mining companies compensations agreed, while the Liard should the same cause with oil and gas companies. However, the Liard announced on this procedure that should have on hand for the entire traditional territory of the Kaska groups.

Current Situation

2007 acquired the tribe three of the four hotels in Watson Lake, to an apartment block. In September 2008 due to the global economic crisis broke, the demand for raw materials a. Therefore, the applications were for the Liard First Nation Development Corp.. in Watson Lake through guided assembly of all Rohstoffexploratoren sharply.

Erbhäuptling ( hereditary chief) is Dixon Lutz, elected Chief Liard McMillan.