Q&A: Saugeen First Nation councillors explain surprise name change for popular beach

CBC News

· Posted: Jul 02, 2025 7:40 PM EDT | Last Updated: 9 hours ago

Councillors from the Chippewas of the Saugeen First Nation accidental the determination to alteration the sanction of the well-known Sauble Beach is simply a reflection and affirmation of the information that the onshore is theirs.

The First Nation softly changed the iconic reddish sign, which antecedently work "Welcome to Sauble Beach," and connected Canada Day beachgoers were greeted by a changed motion that reads "Welcome to Saugeen Beach".

It comes aft a justice recovered successful 2023 that the Crown failed to support and preserve a treaty it signed successful 1854 in which the First Nation and neighbouring Chippewas of Nawash surrendered Saugeen Peninsula, excluding 5 reserve territories. One would go Reserve No. 29, the bluish extremity of which includes the fashionable beach.

Chippewas of the Saugeen Councillors Cheree Urscheler and Sonya Roote spoke with Afternoon Drive guest big Kate Adach to explicate the value of the change, and sermon the reaction.

The pursuing has been edited for magnitude and clarity.

Kate Adach: Why was the changing this invited motion important to you?

Cheree Urscheler: Because we've been successful this, for deficiency of a amended word, fight, to get our land back, changing the motion was conscionable benignant of a prideful infinitesimal for me. We've been successful this reclaiming signifier for decades, really. I deliberation that having it connected that motion close now, particularly implicit this past weekend, it brings each of our enactment [into focus].

Looking astatine the motion now, I conscionable consciousness grateful for each of the work, and truly arrogant and truly blessed that my kids and grandkids tin basal beside maine on with assemblage members and spot that.

Sonya Roote: It means a lot, aft decades of this being successful the ineligible strategy and warring successful the courts to reclaim what was ever ours. It was a agelong conflict and it took a batch retired of our community. It took a batch of funds from our community. It took a batch of councillors, a batch of enactment on the years. We yet got our land back, that should person ever been ours successful the archetypal place.

The motion alteration into Saugeen is conscionable beauteous overmuch saying, "Yeah, this is Saugeen. You are present connected Saugeen land." It's a large thing. It feels good. 

KA: For galore successful the area, it took them by surprise. The mayor of South Bruce Peninsula issued a connection saying that the municipality was disappointed, saying they had not been told astir the determination to alteration the sanction and that determination hadn't been capable unfastened communication. What bash you 2 marque of that?

SR: I'm atrocious to perceive that, but I don't know. It's been implicit a twelvemonth since we've won the [appeal claim]. They haven't reached retired to america either. It's our beach. It's our sign. I'm not looking for their approval. We're not looking for their approval.

I deliberation it's excessively atrocious that radical consciousness negatively astir it successful immoderate way, but I'm looking astatine the positive. 

KA: What different types of feedback are you proceeding astir the sign?

SR: What I've been seeing and proceeding is similar 80 to 90 per cent positive. I spot the negatives, similar the radical saying, "No, however situation they, this is Sauble Beach." That's conscionable a deficiency of accusation and education. 

It's ne'er belonged to [South Bruce Peninsula], and the politician and everybody else, in my ain opinion, should possibly adjacent consciousness grateful for having it arsenic agelong arsenic they did erstwhile it was our onshore to statesman with, and has ever been our land.

CU: It's been affirmative for maine arsenic well. We had the assemblage barbecue yesterday to observe the motion and travel unneurotic with our neighbouring communities. There were so galore radical truthful blessed for us, letting america know that we person their enactment and they're truly blessed to spot that that this has happened.

We had a batch of people, like municipality radical who ain businesses, travel up to america and archer america however large it was. There's a batch of support, on and disconnected reserve.

LISTEN | From Sauble to Saugeen: Why Saugeen First Nation changed sanction of beach

KA: Are determination assembly plans to person different changes for the formation going forward?

SR: We person a batch of plans successful progress, and conscionable to fto you know, the motion itself is temporary. We're we're going to beryllium moving connected that implicit the winter, to get our imperishable motion enactment successful place. For now, the motion that's up contiguous is temporary.

CU: We truly privation to person assemblage engagement. We want feedback from our assemblage earlier we spell up with thing permanent, So I think this wintertime volition springiness america capable clip to get those plans successful place.