The Cree Indians survived by mainly hunting and fishing. They fished white fish, pike, trout, sucker, and sturgeon. They hunted moose, caribou, and bear, and trapped beaver and muskrat. They also snared rabbits. In the fall and spring they went on little journeys to hunt ducks and geese. One of the Cree's favorite food was pemmican. The women would cut cubes of dried caribou or moose meat. After that they pounded the meat on a flat rock, and when the meat was like a powder, they added animal fat, and also mixed it with cranberries. The final step to make pemmican was to stuff the mixture into cleaned animal intestine. It looked somewhat like a sausage. A treat to the Cree was to eat blueberries and other kinds of berries. Because of their heavy winters it was difficult to get food, so they had to preserve them. In the summer they would dry berries in the sun. They also smoked meat; to do this they would hang the meat in thin strips on a wooden rack about four feet above a small fire. They had special wigwams (is a circle of poles covered with animal hide and birchbark) to smoke the meat in. Another way to preserve meat was to salt it. They added salt on the meat until they had enough to bury it in a hole to help preserve it.

CLOTHING

The Cree wore different clothing for different times of the year. In the summer light clothes were worn because of the temperature. Thin animal skin was mainly used. In the winter they wore heavy parkas, with hoods, heavy pants, mitts, and moccasins. Before they made their clothes, they tanned the skins.

To do this the women stretched the skin and removed the excess fat with a sharp bone. Next they spread a paste made of water and animal brains over the skin, after that it was soaked in water. After the skin was dried, the women "worked" them. By rubbing, pushing, and pulling them to make the hides soft. Most of their sewing needs were bought or traded at the Hudson's Bay Store.

TRANSPORTATION

On this part of my essay I will focus on the method of transportation used by the Cree Indians. In the winter they used dog sleds, snowshoes, and toboggans. In the summer they walked or, used a birchbark canoe if they went by water.

The dog sled was made from wood that was boiled and shaped. The wood parts were held together by babiche (rope made by cutting tanned animal strip all the way to the centre). The bottom of the sleigh called the runners was covered with wet snow to become ice, so it was easy to slide on the snow. The snowshoes allowed one to walk across deep snow without sinking. The Cree made their snowshoes with birch wood because it was firm, and flexible when steam heated. The babiche was then weaved throughout the entire snowshoe. Before doing this the babiche was wet and then it dried into a hard texture. The toboggan was used to carry food, clothing, equipment, and people who were too old, young, or sick to walk. The base was formed by strips of wood, and held together by cross boards. Babiche helped it stay in that position. Then the front of the toboggan was boiled and steamed to bend it into shape; it was then tied down to the toboggan so it wouldn't unbend. The canoe was the main transportation source used during the summer, spring and fall. The birchbark canoe was light and strong. It could easily be paddled in rivers and lakes. It could also be portaged easily around dangerous waterfalls. The outer covering of the canoe was made from the bark of a white birch tree (winter bark is best because of its strength to survive the winter). Cedar or spruce wood made up the inner frame. The roots of a spruce tree became the lashing, and spruce gum was used for sealing and waterproofing. Great skill was needed to put these materials together to make the canoe.

RELIGION

The Cree Indian believed that every natural living animal or natural thing should be respected like a god. The Cree also believed that animals and plants depended on each other; for example, you need soil for the plants, the moose eats the plants, and the people eat the moose. That is what they call a life chain. One of the ceremonies was when all the Indians in the tribe gathered in a big wigwam, in their finest clothes. They would start to sing. The Cree believed in giving thanks to the geese. They thought if they didn't do this, the geese would not come back the following year. They danced around and sang, and later, they had a feast of goose meat. When they killed an animal they believed that you should use an many parts of that animal as possible.

HOUSING

The Cree Indians lived in wigwams which the women built. The wigwam was made to last many years. It could be used at any temperature and any kind of weather. It was basically the only house they used. To build a wigwam the frame would be made of long, straight poles set on the shape of a cone. They tied the top with tree roots at the top of the tree. The frame was then covered with bark, moss, and animal skins. It only had one room. The floor was covered with soft good smelling spruce branches. In the middle of the floor there is a small fire pit to keep the inside of the wigwam warm on those cold nights. There would be a space at the top of the wigwam to allow smoke to go through. It had an opening on the south side of the wigwam which was covered by a strip of animal skin about three feet wide and as tall as the Indians who lived in that wigwam.

The men and women all had different duties. The men took care of the canoes,snowshoes, toboggans, husky dogs, sleighs, and hunting supplies. They fixed the canoes in the spring and in the fall they would repair the snowshoes, toboggans, and sleighs. The women took care of the food, skinning, cooking, smoking the meat, made babiche, clothes, blankets, and bowls. The elders decided when they needed food, when and where to hunt, and why and when to move.

There were no rich or poor families in the band then, everyone shared their supplies, food, clothes, blankets, and wigwams.

HISTORY

In the late 1800's my great great grandfather and his family traveled to Chapleau by canoe to trade their furs at a Hudson's Bay Trading Post which was on Mulligans Bay. Unfortunately that fort is no longer standing. Their journey was so hard and long they decided to settle down here in Chapleau.

In 1906 the Canadian Government and the Queen of England signed a treaty with the Chapleau Cree Band. The treaty made us a part of treaty 9 which covers all of northern Ontario. The treaty entitles us to post secondary education. Allows us to hunt, trap, and fish in our treaty area without a licence for sustenance. It also provides us with dental, optical, and doctor services.

In 1989 the Government of Canada and the Province of Ontario agreed to create a new Reserve for us at Fox Lake. Presently we are busy building a road and our house construction will start next spring. After our long journey from James Bay, our Band has finally found a permanent home.