4

Joe O'Brien at trapping camp
1955
Tatchun Creek


Credits:
(Yukon Archives PHO 372 88/150 #29)

5

"Prime Real Estate" and Indian Reserves

The K'uch'an newcomers were in conflcit with First Nation peoples over land almost as soon as they arrived in the Yukon. Many Hän people were displaced from their traditional camp of Tr'ochëk at the mouth of the Tr'ondëk (Klondike River) by gold rushers in 1897. Northern Tutchone people soon experienced similar problems, because they had chosen their homes very carefully and had camped in good spots. Once the K'uch'ans realized this, they were eager to take control of this "prime real estate".

By the 1950s, there were many K'uch'ans and Northern Tutchone living together at Carmacks. The Department of Indian Affairs began to set aside reserves for Northern Tutchone people in order to limit them to one small piece of land; the rest would be managed by the government. In 1956, Little Salmon Village was set aside as Indian Reserve No. 10.

In Carmacks, the local Indian Agent saw a need to move Nothern Tutchone people to a different living area than the white settlers. According to former Chief Taylor MacGundy and Elder Eva Billy, Indian Affairs wanted to create a reserve near the old airport in a swampy area. Taylor told the Indian Agent "We're not beavers, we can't live in that place". In 1958-59, Indian Affairs created a reserve on higher ground across the river, where the First Nation village is located today. These small reserves were to be the only land rights granted to First Nations people until the land claims era over 30 years later.