57-551: The Cypress Hills Massacre occurred on June 1, 1873, near Battle Creek in the Cypress Hills region of Canada's North-West Territories (now in Saskatchewan ). It involved a group of American bison hunters , American wolf hunters or " wolfers ", American and Canadian whisky traders, Métis cargo haulers or "freighters", and a camp of Assiniboine people. Thirteen or more Assiniboine warriors and one wolfer died in
114-571: A federal plaque of the same style, but the markers do not indicate which designation a subject has been given. For example, the Rideau Canal is a National Historic Site, while the Welland Canal is a National Historic Event. Emerging Canadian nationalist sentiment in the late 19th century and early 20th century led to an increased interest in preserving Canada's historic sites. There were galvanizing precedents in other countries. With
171-506: A more ambitious program with more attention paid to architectural preservation. In 1955, the Historic Sites and Monuments Act was amended to allow the designation of buildings due to their age or design, resulting in a new focus on the designation of Canada's built heritage. The 1950s also marked the beginning of the "big project" era, which reached its apogee in the 1960s, in which the federal government invested significant funds in
228-718: A noted authority on the War of 1812 and the history of Ontario , was chosen as the Board's first chairman, a post he held for twenty years. The first place designated and plaqued under the new program was the "Cliff Site" in Port Dover, Ontario , where two priests claimed sovereignty over the Lake Erie region for Louis XIV of France in 1670. Due to a lack of resources, the HSMBC limited itself to recommending sites for designation, and
285-733: A park. Fort Anne in Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia was also designated in 1917. In 1919, William James Roche , the Minister of the Interior, was concerned over the fate of old fur trade posts in Western Canada, and he was also being lobbied by historical associations across Canada for federal funds to assist with the preservation and commemoration of local landmarks. At the same time, the Department of Militia and Defence
342-630: A portion of the Govenlock-Nashlyn-Battle Creek Grasslands Important Bird Area (IBA) of Canada. Fort Walsh was established on the river on the Saskatchewan side of Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park. Fish species commonly found in the river include northern pike , rainbow trout , brook trout , brown trout , burbot , common carp , white sucker , and shorthead redhorse . The Battle Creek, along with Lake Diefenbaker , are
399-633: A second time, and started towards Little Soldier's camp, insisting that the rest of the wolfers join him to retrieve his horse. The wolfers, along with the Métis, followed Hammond to the Assiniboine camp. Historical accounts differ on what happened during the skirmish, as there were no reliable testimonies. The best information states that: Both Little Soldier's and Hammond's parties were intoxicated, and negotiations between them fell through. Little Soldier offered Hammond two of his horses as hostages until
456-490: A sign in the centre of the square thus uncovered." In the early years of the program, National Historic Sites were chosen to commemorate battles, important men, the fur trade and political events; the focus was on the "great men and events" credited with establishing the nation. Of the 285 National Historic Sites designated by 1943, 105 represented military history , 52 represented the fur trade and exploration, and 43 represented famous individuals (almost entirely men). There
513-513: A survey of historic sites in Canada, with the objective of creating new recreational areas rather than preserving historic places. Fort Howe in Saint John, New Brunswick was designated a national historic park in 1914, named the "Fort Howe National Park". The fort was not a site of significant national historic importance, but its designation provided a rationale for the acquisition of land for
570-663: Is the source of the Frenchman River and can re-supply Battle Creek during dry years. Battle Creek and the other tributaries of the Milk River watershed in Alberta and Saskatchewan, is one of only three watersheds in Canada where the water ultimately flows into the Gulf of Mexico . The other two watersheds are Poplar River and Big Muddy Creek . Near the community of Nashlyn in Saskatchewan, Battle Creek flows through
627-711: Is very difficult to measure the impact that the Cypress Hills Massacre had on Canada and the United States. The creation of the NWMP was introduced partially as a result of the massacre. Around this time, the Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba , Alexander Morris , was concerned about perceived threats of violence to uniformed Canadians and Americans conducting geological surveys. As a result, Morris had to call off any further surveying until there
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#1732776101219684-587: The Milk River in Blaine County, Montana . Battle Creek begins in the Cypress Hills and Palliser's Triangle region of Alberta, is 203 kilometres (126 mi) long, has a drainage area of 2,600 square kilometres (1,000 sq mi), and flows through Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Montana en route to its mouth at the Milk River. The landscape it runs though is semi-arid with rolling hills, deep-cut valleys, coulees , badlands , and grasslands. Due to
741-493: The North-West Rebellion has gone through at least three phases to date. In the 1920s, plaques erected at these sites trumpeted the expansion of Canada and western civilization across North America. Due to local pressures, changes at the HSMBC and evolving historiography , texts introduced in the 1950s avoided the previous triumphalist version of events, but also avoided any analysis of the causes or consequences of
798-568: The St. Lawrence ", and in Niagara, promoting a loyalist doctrine of imperial unity with Britain, while commemorating resistance to "Americanism". Proposals to designate sites related to the immigration of Jews , Blacks and Ukrainians to Canada were rejected, as were attempts to recognize patriots of the Rebellions of 1837 . Such was the view of Canadian history by the Board in the first half of
855-504: The 20th century. The HSMBC at the time has been described by historian Yves Yvon Pelletier as a "Victorian gentlemen's club", made up of self-taught historical scholars, whose decisions were made without public consultation and without the benefit of a secretariat to further investigate the recommendations of Board members. The following have served as members of the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada: As time passed and
912-678: The American commissioner refused the extradition request as there was far too much conflicting testimony. The Canadian Commissioner (Macleod) was subsequently charged with false arrest, but this charge was soon dropped. In June 1876, shortly after they were released from custody in the United States, two traders and a wolfer crossed the border into Canada and were subsequently arrested and put on trial in Winnipeg . The Crown's case against them failed, however, once again weakened by insufficient or contradictory evidence. The three men were acquitted, and
969-636: The Americans committed such a crime in their country, but now the media was putting an increased negative view on Americans. Canadians believed that Americans would continually murder people on Canadian soil. This fear was summed up by General Philip Sheridan 's infamous statement to Tosawi of the Comanche, "The only good Indians I ever saw were dead." Although Canadians also took part in the Cypress Hills Massacre, their role remains overlooked in western Canadian history . Even though it took place in Canada,
1026-537: The Branch's park improvements were incompatible with the heritage attributes of Fort Anne, the second historic park. On Harkin's recommendation, the government created the Advisory Board for Historic Site Preservation (later called the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada) in 1919 in order to advise the Minister on a new program of National Historic Sites. Brigadier General Ernest Alexander Cruikshank ,
1083-596: The Land, Governing Canada, Developing Economies, Building Social and Community Life, and Expressing Intellectual and Cultural Life. To be commemorated, a site must meet at least one of the following criteria: Designation as a National Historic Site provides no legal protection for the historic elements of a site. However, historic sites may be designated at more than one level (national, provincial and municipal), and designations at other levels may carry with them some legal protections. Most National Historic Sites are marked by
1140-640: The NWMP. Battle Creek (Milk River tributary) Battle Creek is a river that begins in the south-eastern region of the Canadian province of Alberta , near the border with Saskatchewan , in the Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park . From Alberta, Battle Creek flows east and across the border into Saskatchewan. It flows south out of Saskatchewan across the Canada–United States border into Montana , where it joins
1197-464: The United States and tried for murder, causing confrontation between Canada and the United States. The case languished for some time and then was taken up by the newly created North-West Mounted Police (NWMP). The NWMP at this time was still establishing itself; the battle between the Assiniboine warriors and Hardwick's group of wolf-hunters at Cypress Hills was one of the catalysts for its creation. In December 1874, Assistant Commissioner James Macleod
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#17327761012191254-578: The actual event, the novel attributes the cause of the massacre to one Tom Hardwick, the "lead" wolfer. The book was made into a miniseries that first appeared on CBC Television in March 2008. The movie The Canadians was another fictionalized version. The Cypress Hills Massacre is also used as the plot centrepiece for the Terrance Dicks novel Massacre In the Hills which charts the beginning of
1311-439: The border in pursuit of the stolen horses. They eventually arrived at Abe Farwell's small trading post in the Cypress Hills . While there, they encountered George Hammond, a friend of both Evans and Hardwick, who had been selling whisky in the area. Hammond subsequently joined Hardwick's group in the search for the missing horses. Farwell had assured Evans that Little Soldier, the leader of a small band of Assiniboine camped near
1368-476: The case was finally dropped in 1882. W. E. Cullen, the American commissioner, said at the extradition hearing at Helena: although the "preponderance of testimony is to the effect that the Indians commenced the firing... they were doubtlessly provoked to this by the apparently hostile attitudes of the whites... An armed party menacing their camp, no matter for what purpose, was by no means slight provocations." It
1425-548: The class of larger National Historic Sites operated by Parks Canada and deemed to be of "extraordinary value to Canadian history", was phased out. Changes were not limited to new designations, as the interpretation of many existing National Historic Sites did not remain static and evolved over time. For example, the commemoration of National Historic Sites on the Prairies related to the Red River Rebellion and
1482-617: The conflict. The Cypress Hills Massacre prompted the Canadian government to accelerate the recruitment and deployment of the newly formed North-West Mounted Police . The incident began in the spring of 1873 when a small party of Canadian Red River Métis and American wolfers, led by Thomas W. Hardwick and John Evans, was returning from their winter hunt. While they were camped on the Teton River , their horses disappeared overnight. Presuming that their horses had been stolen by ' Indians ',
1539-495: The designations accordingly. Saoyú-ʔehdacho in the Northwest Territories was designated in 1997, becoming the first National Historic Site both designated and acquired on the basis of consultation with Aboriginal peoples, and the largest National Historic Site in land area (approximately the size of Prince Edward Island ). It was at this time that the use of the term "National Historic Park", then still used for
1596-406: The dry months, water can be released from Adams Lake to help prevent Battle Creek from dying up, which allows for irrigation throughout the growing season. Another project involved the building of two dams that created Cypress Lake . Cypress Lake, while not along the course of Battle Creek, is supplied by Battle Creek plus other nearby creeks. Cypress Lake is an interbasin transfer reservoir as it
1653-444: The establishment of peace between the NWMP and First Nations. When the news of the Cypress Hills Massacre broke in eastern Canada , it started a wave of anti-Americanism . In the news, the American men were described as "American gangsters " and "American scums". The idea that only American frontiersmen could commit this outrage had been maintained in many Canadian written accounts of the massacre. Canadians were not only shocked that
1710-418: The events. Commencing in the 1970s, a changing approach to heritage conservation at Parks Canada , coupled with growing regionalism and a more assertive Aboriginal rights movement, led to the next generation of interpretative documents, one that included a focus on the societies which Canada's 19th-century expansion had displaced. National Historic Sites are organized according to five broad themes: Peopling
1767-1079: The federal Minister of the Environment on the advice of the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada (HSMBC), as being of national historic significance. Parks Canada , a federal agency, manages the National Historic Sites program. As of November 2023, there were 1,005 National Historic Sites, 171 of which are administered by Parks Canada; the remainder are administered or owned by other levels of government or private entities. The sites are located across all ten provinces and three territories , with two sites located in France (the Beaumont-Hamel Newfoundland Memorial and Canadian National Vimy Memorial ). There are related federal designations for National Historic Events and National Historic Persons . Sites, Events and Persons are each typically marked by
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1824-461: The federal level. Although the HSMBC took little interest in these efforts, limiting itself to a commemorative role, the Parks Branch made wide use of government relief funds to hire workers to assist with the restoration of old forts. In 1943, the interim chairman of the HSMBC, Frederic William Howay , urged his fellow Board members to consider a broader range of designations, and to correct
1881-505: The focus of the program was on commemoration rather than on preservation. Benjamin Sulte , a member of the HSMBC, wrote to Harkin in 1919 about the significant ruins at the Forges du Saint-Maurice , demonstrating his preference for the installation of a plaque over restoration: "All that can be done in our days is to clear away the heap of stones, in order to reach the foundation walls and plant
1938-623: The force would have to be as mobile as possible. Alexander Campbell, the minister of the interior, did not believe sending an armed police force into the North-West Territories was necessary at this time, causing Morris to fear that any delay in training and deployment could be exacerbated further once winter fell. To force their creation, Morris claimed that the Métis and white settlers in the area around Portage la Prairie and Fort Qu'Appelle were experiencing fear and unrest due to
1995-577: The geographic and thematic imbalance in the designations. In particular, Howay encouraged the HSMBC to pay more attention to economic, social and cultural history, and he urged a moratorium on additional designations related to the War of 1812. In 1951, the Royal Commission on National Development in the Arts, Letters and Sciences highlighted the imbalances of the National Historic Sites program, urging
2052-420: The massacre represented a temporary extension of American frontier mentality into the Canadian northwest. A fictionalized account of the events of the Cypress Hills Massacre is told in the novel The Englishman's Boy by Canadian author Guy Vanderhaeghe . The story focuses in part on the character of the "Englishman's boy", one of the members of the party of wolfers. While little is known of those involved in
2109-417: The massacre was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1964. Artifacts from the Cypress Hills Massacre have also been preserved at nearby Fort Walsh National Historic Site, along with reconstructions of Farwell's and Solomon's trading posts. News of the Cypress Hills Massacre did not reach Ottawa until late August 1873. The Canadian government soon took steps to have those involved extradited from
2166-500: The massacre was to ensure that First Nations in the area were able to trust the Canadian government. The investigation would require international cooperation of two federal governments, and the North-West Mounted Police would take measures to make examples out of international criminals. Although ultimately the prosecutions resulted in no convictions, the willingness to seek justice for any Canadian contributed to
2223-486: The massacre. On September 25, 1873, the government of Canada issued an order-in-council to appoint nine officers of "Mounted Police Force for the North-West Territories". Recruitment began immediately, and the NWMP was created. With the new police force patrolling the area, the border could no longer be so easily crossed. The creation of the police force also had a political motive. The investigation into
2280-468: The men travelled on foot to Fort Benton, Montana Territory , about 8 kilometres (5 mi) away, and asked for assistance from the local authorities to retrieve them. The authorities at Fort Benton refused to assist them, so Hardwick organized his own expedition and set off to retrieve the stolen horses. The party numbered 13 men, comprising both U.S. and Canadian 'free traders' and wolf-hunters . The group quickly travelled from Fort Benton northward across
2337-412: The missing horse could be found, but the situation became increasingly tense as women and children began fleeing from the camp and Little Soldier's men began stripping off their garments in preparation for battle. The wolfers regarded these actions as a signal for a fight and lined up along a riverbank 50 yards outside the Assiniboine camp. In a last-ditch effort to avoid violence, Abe Farwell pleaded with
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2394-555: The new designations, with the "Battle of..."-type commemorations being overtaken by sites associated with federal politics. The largest group of designations (43 percent) pertained to historic buildings. By the 1990s, three groups were identified as being underrepresented among National Historic Sites: Aboriginal peoples , women, and ethnic groups other than the French and the English . Efforts were subsequently made to further diversify
2451-491: The number of Assiniboine casualties was higher. The personal account of Donald Graham, who joined the wolfers at Fort Benton and travelled with them to the Cypress Hills, states that 13 of Little Soldier's men were killed in the exchanges of fire. After the battle, the wolfers buried Legrace in a cabin and set the building ablaze. Some sources claim that Legrace's wooden coffin still remains there to this day. The site of
2508-466: The only two bodies of water in Saskatchewan that support a reproducing population of rainbow trout. There is concern that Asian carp , particularly silver carp , may spread up the river and to the other south flowing rivers that drain into the Milk River , such as the Frenchman River . National Historic Site of Canada National Historic Sites of Canada ( French : Lieux historiques nationaux du Canada ) are places that have been designated by
2565-570: The restoration and reconstruction of high-profile National Historic Sites such as the Halifax Citadel , the Fortress of Louisbourg , the fortifications of Quebec City and the historic core of Dawson City . The 1970s marked the start of a new shift in the nature of the designations. Of the 473 National Historic Sites designated between 1971 and 1993, the formerly dominant category of political-military events represented only 12 percent of
2622-552: The same time, the federal government was looking for ways to extend the National Park system to Eastern Canada . The more populated east did not have the same large expanses of undeveloped Crown land that had become parks in the west , so the Dominion Parks Branch (the predecessor to Parks Canada) looked to historic features to act as focal points for new national parks. In 1914, the Parks Branch undertook
2679-468: The semi-arid climate, the area is prone to drought so several dams and irrigation projects have been built in its watershed. In the 1930s, two notable dam projects were built to help regulate the river's water levels. Near the headwaters of Battle Creek, a dam was built along Adams Creek – a tributary of Battle Creek – that created Adams Lake ( 49°39′30″N 109°50′44″W / 49.6582°N 109.8455°W / 49.6582; -109.8455 ). During
2736-607: The support of notables such as Victor Hugo and Eugène Viollet-le-Duc , the Commission des monuments historique was created in France in 1837; it published its first list of designated sites , containing 934 entries, in 1840. In the United Kingdom , the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty was created in 1894 to protect that country's historic and natural heritage. While there
2793-675: The system grew, the scope of the program and the nature of the designations evolved. By the 1930s, the focus of the heritage movement in Canada had shifted from commemoration to preservation and development. The change was most marked in Ontario, where the Niagara Parks Commission was restoring Fort George and the Department of Highways was restoring Fort Henry . It took the Great Depression to create opportunities for significant heritage preservation projects at
2850-483: The trading post, had no horses with them. After a brief search it was determined by the group that Little Soldier showed no evidence that he had stolen their horses, so Evans, Hammond, and the rest of the wolfers retired for the night to Farwell's trading post, where they spent the evening and the next morning drinking Farwell's whisky with a group of recently arrived Métis freighters. In the morning Hammond complained that one of Little Soldier's men had stolen his horse for
2907-510: The wolfers, asking them not to start shooting. Before he could continue negotiating with Little Soldier and the wolfers, Farwell saw Hammond fire his rifle. The rest of the wolfers, protected by the tall river bank, then fired volleys into the camp. The Assiniboine, using inferior weapons, returned fire, but were unable to sustain an attack due to the wolfers' protected position. The total number of casualties reported differs widely in various accounts. One of Hardwick's men—Ed Legrace—was killed, but
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#17327761012192964-602: Was a solution. Unable to find a solution, Morris used the reports of the massacre to call on the Prime Minister of Canada , Sir John A. Macdonald , to create a police force. Already planning to establish a police force in the North-West Territories , Macdonald had envisioned a horse-mounted brigade based on the idea of the Royal Irish Constabulary . The force would be small; only 300 men could enlist. For an area that covered 480,000 square kilometres,
3021-594: Was also a strong bias in favour of commemorating sites in Ontario over other parts of the country. At one point, some members of the HSMBC concluded that there were no sites at all in Prince Edward Island worthy of designation. The then prominence of sites in Ontario related to the War of 1812 and the United Empire Loyalists has been attributed to the influence of Cruikshank, resulting in a "veritable palisade of historical markers along
3078-426: Was anxious to transfer old forts, and the associated expenses, to the Parks Branch. Roche asked James B. Harkin , the first Commissioner of Dominion Parks, to develop a departmental heritage policy. Harkin believed that the Parks Branch did not have the necessary expertise to manage historic resources; he was troubled by the relatively weak historic value of Fort Howe, the country's first historic park, and feared that
3135-453: Was given permission by the U.S. government to enter Helena, Montana Territory , to investigate the Cypress Hills Massacre. Depending upon the findings of this investigation, the accused could have faced extradition to Canada to face trial under Canadian law. Seven arrests were made, but two men escaped custody before they could be examined. The remaining men were freed because there was not enough clear evidence to prove anything against them, and
3192-610: Was instrumental in stopping the demolition of the fortifications of Quebec City , and he was the first public official to call for the creation of a park on the lands next to Niagara Falls . The 1908 tricentennial of the founding of Quebec City , and the establishment that same year of the National Battlefields Commission to preserve the Plains of Abraham , acted as a catalyst for federal efforts to designate and preserve historic sites across Canada. At
3249-714: Was no National Park Service in the United States until 1916, battlefields of the Civil War were designated and managed by the War Department : Chickamauga and Chattanooga (created 1890), Antietam (1890), Shiloh (1894), Gettysburg (1895), Vicksburg (1899), and Chalmette (1907). Domestically, Lord Dufferin , the Governor General from 1872 to 1878, initiated some of the earliest, high-profile efforts to preserve Canada's historic sites. He
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