Royal Alberta Museum returns over 17,000 artifacts to Fort McKay First Nation after decades in storage

The Royal Alberta Museum is returning more than 17,000 artifacts to the Fort McKay First Nation, some dating back 11,000 years, after discovering the collection was gathered from First Nation land and therefore legally belongs to the community, not the province.

The artifacts — arrowheads, tools, bones, and other cultural items — were collected between 1975 and 1977 by a University of Alberta student near Moose Lake, northwest of the First Nation. They were sent to the university and then transferred to the RAM in 1981.

At a ceremony held last week at Elsie Fabian School, a K-6 school run by the First Nation, the first of 77 artifacts were unveiled. Chief Raymond Powder called the collection a timeline of how his ancestors have lived off the land.

"It's not only a connection, but it's also an opportunity to share with the younger generations to come on who we are, how we have lived and how we have roamed around here and harvested, how we've had a relationship with the land," Powder said. "Those artifacts were taken from our ancestral lands, and to bring them back home, it was a really great feeling."

Kurtis Blaikie, an archaeologist contracted by the First Nation as its liaison to the RAM, noted that some items being returned — spent ammunition casings, an empty can of lard — might seem unremarkable to outsiders. But those everyday objects are as important as centuries-old arrowheads in proving the continuous presence and practices of the Fort McKay people.

"The more research we do, the more people 10,000 years ago look a lot like the people a couple hundred years ago," Blaikie said. "Fort McKay First Nation and their ancestors have been using this land in much the same way for a really long time."

The RAM's discovery that the artifacts were collected on First Nation land meant they did not fall under the Historical Resources Act and are legally the property of the First Nation, not the province. The museum's leadership contacted Fort McKay First Nation to arrange the return.

"Working with First Nations communities to ensure proper cultural care and stewardship of their belongings is a priority for us at the Royal Alberta Museum," said Meaghan Patterson, the RAM's executive director.

Chief Powder said many in his community had either forgotten about the collection or were unaware of it. He expressed gratitude that the return process did not require a lengthy legal battle. "I'm glad that we didn't have to go through this complicated and complex process," he said. "It was really given freely to us back to our nation."

The RAM is arranging the return of the remaining artifacts beyond the 77 unveiled at the ceremony.