The Far Off Omineca and Beyond: Reconsidering the Finlay-Parsnip Watershed of Northern British Columbia, 1860-1956

Session Submission Type: Complete Panel

Abstract

The Finlay-Parsnip watershed of northern British Columbia is often seen as untouched pristine wilderness. It does not help that the local Indigenous nation, the Tsek’ehne, are relatively unknown and/or often lumped in with other nations. Yet outside of the settler town of Mackenzie, they continue to dominate numerically in this part of the world. As such their relationship to the land has remained vibrant despite the impacts of colonization on them. This panel is a result of fieldwork conducted in the summer of 2023 among the Tsek’ehne for the project “A Forgotten Land: Development in the Finlay-Parsnip Watershed of Northern British Columbia, 1860-1956.” It not only challenges the notion that the Finlay-Parsnip watershed is untouched pristine wilderness, but also argues that this view spurred on development as the settler state sought to make the area useful. It will start with Tsek’ehne scholar Dr. Daniel Sims examining the historical relationship the Tsek’ehne had with the land as well as who the Tsek’ehne are and why it is easy for them to be overlooked. Next Charles Campbell will consider the failure of settler colonialism in this area prior to the W.A.C. Bennett Dam. Dr. Tyler McCreary then examines how the province of British Columbia subsequently reimagined the Tsek’ehne homeland in manner that effaced their economies and way of life. Expanding on this idea Helena Saffron discusses the impacts the Williston Lake reservoir had on Tsek’ehne transportation networks and movement.

Sub Unit

• ASEH Annual Conference

Individual Presentations

• What Does It Mean to be Tsek’ehne: The Story of a Nation - Daniel Sims, University of Northern British Columbia/NCCIH

• Failure on the Frontier: An Exploration of Settler-Colonial Failure on Tsek’ehne Lands - Charles Campbell, Florida State University

• A Drowned Forest: Hydrocolonialism and the Destruction of the Tsek’ehne Mixed Economy in Northern British Columbia, Canada - Tyler McCreary, Florida State University

• Flooded routes: Traditional Tsek’ehne movement along the Finlay-Parsnip watershed and the impacts of the Williston Lake Reservoir - Helena Safron, Florida State University

Chair

• Daniel Sims, University of Northern British Columbia/NCCIH