Pipe and saddle owned by Chief Poundmaker returned to descendants in Toronto ceremony
A saddle and a ceremonial pipe owned by Chief Poundmaker were returned to his descendants at a ceremony in Toronto on Wednesday, after being held by the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) for 99 years.
Poundmaker, or pitikwahanapiwiyin, is considered one of the great Indigenous leaders of the 19th century and was key in negotiations that led to Treaty 6, which covers the west-central portions of present-day Alberta and Saskatchewan.
“To share this day, and for this day to happen, it’s incredible. It’s a spiritual journey, and sometimes you feel overwhelmed,” Pauline Poundmaker, Brown Bear Woman, great-great-granddaughter of the historic chief said.
“It’s such a huge honour we’ve been given to be able to be the one, the generation, to bring back his artifacts.”
Pauline, Brown Bear Woman, has been working to repatriate all his former belongings from museums around the world. She told CTV News that some of Poundmaker’s possessions should never have been put on display, like the ceremonial pipe.
Last year, Parks Canada returned a staff owned by Poundmaker at a ceremony at Fort Battleford National Historic site.
Poundmaker is remembered as a peacekeeper during the North-West Resistance of 1885 and, in 2019, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau exonerated the chief, who had been convicted of treason for leading his warriors in battle against Canadian forces.
As the largest museum in Canada, Pauline, Brown Bear Woman says ROM’s move could represent a turning point for First Nation families across the country who have historic family heirlooms held in institutions.
Last year, the ROM repatriated another Indigenous artifact to its rightful owners — a peace pipe used in the 1836 Manitoulin Treaty, returned to the Ojibwe and Odawa on Manitoulin Island.
Now that it’s been returned to the family, Pauline, Brown Bear Woman says the saddle may end up on display on Poundmaker’s traditional territory.
-With files from Donna Sound
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6877535.1715120774!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
Senior charged in shooting of teen on rural property north of Edmonton
A Sturgeon County man has been charged after he allegedly shot a teen over the weekend.
Altercation between 'numerous' golfers on B.C. course broken up by RCMP
Authorities broke up an altercation involving "numerous" golfers at a course in B.C.'s Lower Mainland over the weekend – an incident that was apparently prompted by serious breaches in etiquette.
'He was bigger than life': Former broadcaster Scott Boyd dies at 68
Former Breakfast Television co-host and radio broadcaster Scott Boyd has died at the age of 68.
Judge grants U of T injunction to clear pro-Palestinian encampment from downtown Toronto campus
An Ontario judge has granted the University of Toronto an injunction allowing it to clear out a pro-Palestinian encampment from its downtown Toronto campus
RFK Jr. says he has 'skeletons in my closet' after sexual assault allegation
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said on Tuesday he has 'so many skeletons in my closet,' when asked about an allegation in a Vanity Fair article that he sexually assaulted a former family babysitter.
Eastern Ontario doctor accused of killing four patients acquitted of murder charges, negligence
An eastern Ontario doctor facing four charges of first-degree murder and negligence causing death in connection with the deaths of four seniors at a Hawkesbury hospital was acquitted on all charges at the Ottawa courthouse on Tuesday.
Ontario police seize over $1M in cocaine, $300K in cash in major drug bust
Police in Cornwall, Ont. have seized approximately $1.3 million worth of cocaine and $300,000 in cash as part of a major drugs investigation.
Are fewer Canadians having children? We want to hear from you
Are you choosing not to have children? CTVNews.ca wants to hear from you.
NHL free agency shows teams in U.S. states with no income tax have an advantage
It's become difficult to deny the impact of favourable tax situations for teams around the NHL.