RESEARCHER-IN-RESIDENCE
Terry has accepted BC History's invitation to sit as Researcher-in-Residence throughout 2023 as he continues to learn about the story of his great-grandmother and the personal legacies of colonial and federal policies. This is the fourth of four parts.
Who was she? Who was she to me?
Few people in history are considered representative of their culture, yet my great-grandmother Mejade'sse is one such individual. She was born between 1871 and 1873, of Kaska Dena-Tahltan-Tlingit ancestry. My work seeks to piece together the documentary evidence of her life and to examine the enormous changes she navigated during her lifetime and their legacies in mine. Change in her culture was driven by unquestioned governmental and legislative programs to either assimilate or obliterate First Nations’ traditions. The futures of Indigenous People were seen as being limited to training as docile tradespeople and labourers in the service of generating wealth for others in the settler colonial world.
The standards of the Board for Certification of Genealogists has guided my research to ensure defensible accuracy through evidence consistency. I have added references to explain the historical context.
Genealogy
Defining Indigenous genealogy to meet the Genealogical Proof Standard1 and independent accepted status proof under Bill C31 for Mejade'sse's family tree started with oral history. My search followed Library and Archives Canada's indigenous genealogy guide including methodically examining every page of the 1901, 1911, and 1921 Canada census documents for Cassiar/Stikine, as well as other federal, provincial, and local archives including the HBC archives, Anglican Church archives, all relevant publications, personal records, university courses, discussions with academic experts, and verification with DNA cousins.
The one missing area of research was the examination of the archives held directly by the Kaska and Tahltan First Nations. I arranged to review these the first week of September 2023 in Watson Lake and Dease Lake during a family gathering. Discussions with resident anthropologists and my extended family led to greater understanding of my family's history and of Mejade'sse's life.
The next generation
Oral history recorded by the Tahltan Nation identified Mejade'sse's grandfather as a Tahltan man named Cawtoon-ta.2 Her mother appears in the HBC McDames records as “mother of ” but is not given a specific name. Records suggest Nettie had four sisters; I have been able to confirm one sister named Emma and her genealogy. Oral history has limitations.
