Treaty 7.
Kainai, Siksika, Piikani, Nakoda and Tsuut’ina
The Treaty was signed at Blackfoot Crossing on September 22, 1877, between the federal government and five southern Alberta bands: the Kainai, Siksika, Piikani, Nakoda and Tsuut’ina. The bands considered the Treaty to be a peaceful agreement to share land and resources. The government, however, intended for the Treaty to officialize the Indigenous surrendering of traditional lands with small parcels of reservation land.
The Blackfoot Confederacy
Traditional Blackfoot territory stretched from Alberta to Saskatchewan and into Montana. The creation of the US/Canadian border split the Blackfoot tribes from each other; although today, the Confederacy has brought them back together through a collective Tribal Council.
For the most part, band signatories prioritized ranching over farming in the Treaty, opting for increased numbers of cattle rather than seeds or agricultural implements. Every man, woman and child within each band signatory would also receive five dollars each year, teacher salaries would be paid to instruct children, and each chief and council would get axes, handsaws and augers.
In return, the five bands were expected to “cede, release, surrender, and yield up to the Government of Canada” all rights and privileges to their hunting grounds. Treaty 7 land remains government owned, and no band can buy, sell or donate reserve land. Bands were also expected to live in peace with other bands and to obey the Queen’s law.
Treaty 7: Blackfoot Crossing