140 years after Frog Lake Massacre, Cree community hopes to reshape tale of 1885 resistance

Stephanie Cram · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 29, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago

The 140th day of the Frog Lake Massacre volition beryllium commemorated this play successful St. Paul, Alta., and Cree storytellers volition archer their community's engagement successful 1 of the pivotal events of the Northwest Resistance. 

"It was 140 years agone connected April 2, 1885, wherever determination was an incident," said Leah Redcrow, a subordinate of Saddle Lake Cree Nation, and CEO of Acimowin Opaspiw Society, who is helping signifier the play event. 

That incident, a convulsive confrontation implicit nutrient rations, was led by Cree person Wandering Spirit, primitively from Saddle Lake's Snake Band. It resulted successful the decease of 9 men — the Indian agent, priests and settlers — from the Frog Lake settlement. 

Eight First Nations radical were aboriginal hanged for their engagement successful the Northwest Resistance and their burial tract is astatine what's now Fort Battleford National Historic Site. At immoderate point, a sedate marker was placed there with names inscribed, and includes Wandering Spirit.

Redcrow does not known who was progressive successful getting it installed. The problem, Redcrow says, is that astatine slightest 1 of the radical commemorated connected it wasn't hanged.

"What we're uncovering retired present is simply a batch of the alleged humanities records of what happened [are] grossly incorrect," said Redcrow. 

Parks Canada didn't respond to a petition for comment before clip of publishing. 

Correcting the record 

According to Redcrow, Wandering Spirit was ne'er hanged. 

"My band, the Saddle Lake Snake Hills band, we were blamed … for the full rebellion due to the fact that of what happened astatine Frog Lake," said Redcrow. 

"It's been good known successful our assemblage that they didn't termination him, and that helium escaped to the United States."

Redcrow said astir 500 radical from her set fled to the United States and acceptable up the Rocky Boy preservation successful Montana. 

"If helium got hung, I wouldn't beryllium here," said Jonathan Windy Boy, a Montana authorities legislator from Montana, who is simply a descendant of Wandering Spirit. 

"Not lone was Wandering Spirit 1 of the archetypal members of Saddle Lake … helium was 1 of the archetypal members that was enrolled successful Rocky Boy." 

Windy Boy said erstwhile helium arrived successful Montana, helium changed his sanction to Big Wind, helping him flight extradition backmost to Canada. 

Changing the narrative

For Cree elder Eric Tootoosis, the day is simply a clip to observe survival. 

"We commemorate [the resistance] to springiness acknowledgment for survival," said Eric Tootoosis from Poundmaker Cree Nation. 

"We're inactive present today." 

He said a batch has changed implicit the years, including an exoneration and apology for Chief Poundmaker, who was convicted and jailed for "treason-felony," but was not portion of the resistance. 

While overmuch of however the absorption is viewed by Canadians has changed, there's inactive tons of enactment to beryllium done — including correcting the information that Wandering Spirit wasn't hanged successful Battleford. 

"All these radical who wrote astir the 1885 rebellion, each of these radical that wrote astir Wandering Spirit, nary of those radical ever came to my reserve and asked for information," said Redcrow. 

For Tootoosis, past needs to see the Indigenous perspective. 

"All on it has been one-sided," said Tootoosis, who said the writers of the clip were mostly not Indigenous.

He says that benignant of past tin "inspire much hatred, much discrimination," toward Indigenous people.