It is estimated that some 500,000 Aboriginal people inhabited what is now Canada in the year 1000. That was the time of the first known contact with Europeans on his continent.

When French traders and missionaries came to what is now Ontario, in the early 1600s, the Aboriginal peoples they encountered included the Huron, Algonquin, Ojibwe, Odawa, Cree and Iroquois.  They were living in organized societies the Europeans referred to as “nations.” The first Europeans to settle widely in what is now Ontario were British. The Royal Proclamation of 1763, under King George III, dealing with protection of Aboriginal lands became the basis of treaty making in Ontario.  In fact, many refer to this Proclamation as “The Indian Bill of Rights.”

About 32 Treaties were signed between 1764 and 1862.  By 1850, with the exception of small Reserves, all of southern Ontario to the north shore of Lake Superior was Treaty land. By 1929, the Crown would assert that with more than 35 Treaties covering the province, all of Ontario was the subject of a Treaty.

The major Ontario Treaties are the Robinson Treaties of 1850, Treaty 3 in 1873 and Treaties 5 and 9 of 1905 and 1929.   Outstanding Treaty issues continue today.  If you are interested in learning more about Treaties in Ontario, contact us for a Moving Red Canoe presentation on “Treaties Impact.”