Bison once roamed the prairies here, wild and free. The two-legged ones came to hunt them more efficiently until their prairie was taken away by trains and guns. Now they live on farms, waiting for their chance to break free!

The Bison Story can be found on the East side next to Fort Gibraltar. From the front doors of the fort (facing away from the doors), head to the left, but do not round the corner. Point your device at the open field.

The prairies have supported rich and diverse ecosystems for thousands of years. Characterized by tall grasses, scrub brush, and bright yellow and orange wildflowers, the northern plains are home to a diversity of animals and human communities. Chief among its inhabitants are American Bison, also known as Buffalo to the first European explorers who saw them and to Indigenous communities today. Prior to the re-introduction of horses by the Spanish, bison were hunted by plains Indigenous people using pounds to corral the animals and leading them over cliffs called jumps. And after the re-introduction of horses, agricultural communities moved to a hybrid seasonal strategy, taking advantage of the herd mentality of their mounts, hunting the bison on horseback using bows, arrows, spears, and eventually, firearms.

Bison provided nearly everything needed by an Indigenous community; hides were brain-tanned for clothing, accoutrements, and tipi skins. Their bones could be hollowed out and used to make tools like darts, scrapers, and agricultural tools, like hoes. And most importantly for the fur trade, their meat and fat could be used to make pemmican. More on that later! Nearly all Indigenous communities on the plains, like the Blackfoot confederacy, the Mandan, the Nehiyâw (the Plains Cree), and the Oceti Sakowin (otherwise known as the Great Sioux Nation, composed Dakota, Lakota, and Nacoda communities) held the bison in high regard for their ability to sustain life. These animals were hunted in great numbers and honoured in ceremonies like the Sun Dance. As other nations like the Anishinaabe moved onto the plains in the late 18th and early 19th century, they also gravitated towards the bison hunt, and participated in pemmican production.

Pimikân, a Cree word meaning “makes grease” described not only the food, but the process of making the food. Although pemmican can be made from any combination of animal protein and fat, in the fur trade context on the prairies, it was mostly made from bison meat and fat.

While First Nations had been hunting bison to feed and clothe their families and supplement their trade with other nations, the iconic Métis bison hunt took this lifestyle to another level. Using military-style tactics and a strict hierarchy based on experience, they rode into bison herds, killing hundreds of animals in one go. According to Métis writer and observer Peter Erasmus, they sometimes sawed down the barrels of their muskets, spat shot into the barrels, and fired at the animals with the fattest humps, knowing that they would make the most pemmican, all while keeping pace with the bison on horseback. He also noted that some Métis women participated in the hunt and were adept shots. These hunts generally took place in spring and fall, intended to supply the fur trade companies, and even later, the British colonial government, with preserved food for their workers and soldiers.

After the hunt, the animals are butchered, and the meat is cut into thin strips and dried over a fire or in the sun. The fat, gathered from around the organs and in the long bones is melted into a liquid state. Once the meat is dry, it is crushed into a sawdust-like consistency, and mixed with the fat. The finished product is then stored in hide bags that weigh about 60lb each. The ratio of meat to fat is approximately 60:40. Sometimes, First Nations and Métis did not make the pemmican, but traded only the ingredients to the North West Company. The company then engaged its men to make the pemmican themselves. This was sometimes called coarse pemmican. Pemmican made by and for First Nations tended to be of a higher quality, and sometimes included dried berries, marrow, blood, and other ingredients which improved the flavour. This was sometimes called fine pemmican. Pemmican was eaten either in its raw state or used as a base for stews (called rubbaboo), soups, and breads.

The pemmican trade kept the fur trade companies afloat, but with it came conflict and even violence. In 1812, Lord Selkirk, a Scottish philanthropist and HBC shareholder, purchased a grant for land around the Forks in an effort to relocate dispossessed Scottish and Irish settlers. He didn’t fully appreciate what the influx of settlers would do for the existing fur trade community, composed of Freemen (retired fur trade engagés), Métis, and First Nations, the Anishinaabe in particular. Though they initially provided support to settlers in need, the NWCo tired of their presence and drain on resources in Red River. They were especially incensed when Miles MacDonell of the HBC issued the Pemmican Proclamation in 1814, prohibiting the export of goods from the settlement and running the buffalo (hunting bison on horseback). The NWCo and the Métis, their allies on the ground, ignored the proclamation entirely and refused to recognize the authority of the HBC’s charter. They continued their activities, and this led to conflicts in which forts were raided of their pemmican stores, crops were destroyed, and homes were burned. After this all came to a head in 1816 at the Battle of Seven Oaks, the initial colony was dissolved, and Lord Selkirk came out to Red River himself to negotiate the Tobacco Treaty with Chief Peguis and several other Indigenous leaders in 1817. This would ensure that they had title to the land in which new settlers could build their homes, and for the Anishinaabe, it meant maintaining a fruitful relationship with potential military allies. Despite the HBC/NWCo merger in 1821, the Métis and First Nations like the Nehiyâw and Anishinaabe were able to wield incredible economic power by continuing their bi-annual bison hunts and processing hundreds of animals into thousands of pounds of pemmican.

Written by Colin and Monique. Revised by Phil and Janet.