For the first time since 1876, the original Treaty Six manuscript is back on the land where it was initially negotiated and signed. Inside the walls of Fort Carlton, Sask., crowds of people lined up to catch a rare public viewing of the historic papers. “Being that close to it was a very powerful moment for me,” said Kevin Okemaysin after viewing the manuscript. “That is a piece of history that I am never going to see again. Not in my lifetime.” This weekend marks 150 years since the historic agreement between the British Crown and Indigenous leaders was signed at Fort Carlton on Aug. 23, 1876. The 10-page manuscript is on display as part of the commemoration events. Most recently, the document was housed at the Library and Archives Canada Preservation Centre in Gatineau, Quebec. It is the first time it has made its way back to Saskatchewan. “It felt like it was coming home to us,” said Ardis Petit, who travelled to Fort Carlton to see the document. Beardy’s and Okemasis Cree Nation Chief Edwin Ananas was responsible for bringing the document back home. He started the process more than a year ago. “It is awesome that people get to see such history in its entirety,” he said. Ananas first viewed the manuscript when he visited Library and Archives Canada in Ottawa last year. “It was definitely an honour to witness it firsthand,” he said. The treaty outlines the relationship between the Crown and Indigenous groups and how to move forward together. The Crown promised land, education, hunting rights, agricultural benefits and health care to the Indigenous leaders and their people. Chief Ananas said First Nations communities are still fighting for some of those rights 150 years later. “It is up to us to continue to fulfill those treaties and the government,” he said. “But the first thing we need to do is learn to work together.” Spirit and intent The manuscript is only one part of the treaty. Eli Worme, a summer student with the Office of the Treaty Commissioner, said the spirit and intent behind the negotiations played a major role. “It was their agreement to reaffirm these relationships and to move forward in a good way that we can both live off this land together,” he told CTV News. Worme said his ancestors who negotiated the treaty were thinking about the impacts it would have on the next seven generations. Now, it is his responsibility to pave the way for future generations. “How can I work to implement the treaties today so my great grandkids, my nieces and my nephews are able to actualize treaty and are able to practice their self-determination as sovereign nations?” he said. Worme said that in order to implement the treaty, everyone needs to remember that “we are all treaty people,” whether they are Indigenous or not. “Being treaty people means affirming those relationships with one another and making sure we all move forward as equals,” he said. Preserving history After receiving special permission, the manuscript was shipped to Saskatchewan in a humidity and temperature-controlled truck, according to Office of the Treaty Commission research director Sheldon Krasowski. Krasowski, who is helping care for the manuscript while it is in Saskatchewan, brought the papers to Fort Carlton 24 hours before they went on display to help the pages acclimatize. “It is very delicate,” he said. Krasowski said the most damaging element to the treaty is light, which could cause the writing to fade. “So we keep (the papers) in the dark for 99.9 per cent of their travels through Treaty Six Territory,” he told CTV News. Two RCMP officers are also following the manuscript on its travels. Once the public viewings wrap up at Fort Carlton, the manuscript will be on display at the Beardy’s campsite and Fort Pitt, which are the other two sites where Treaty Six negotiations took place.
